Singing or Acting?

After spending last night re watching the movie musical Dreamgirls, and following yesterdays post on musicals and the Academy Awards, i was inclined to think about the road from stage to screen (i will bypass musicals written specifically for the screen such as Moulin Rouge). It seems to me that there are generally two paths when it comes to choosing actors to perform in films of this type, as Dreamgirls successfully does, one path is choosing singers to perform in these roles, the other involves choosing Actors, and teaching them to sing; films using this method include Mamma Mia! and Les Miserables. The pros and cons of these two routes is debatable, a debate made increasingly difficult by Anne Hathaways Oscar win, given that Jennifer Hudson also won back in 2007. The successes of each of these performances is debatable, both actresses give stunning performances, however the requirements of each of these roles is different, Dreamgirls is a musical marathon, and the shows hit number, and i am telling you I'm not going is a musical tour de force, which requires not only a strong emotional connection, but also an incredible voice. Hathaways role in Les Mis is different, this role requires less singing ability, yet a deeply emotional performance, plus an ability to cry on demand! This begs the question is it easier to turn a singer into an actress or vice-versa? I am inclined to say that the former is more accurate; one only has to look at Pierce Brosnan in Mamma Mia! to see that most actors are not blessed with much singing ability. Conversely in Dreamgirls, both Hudson and surprisingly Beyoncé manage to give entertaining and surprisingly for Bee, rather subtle. At the end of this rather lengthy and rather rambling article i come to the conclusion that the road from stage to screen is never textbook and that the requirements of each role need to be addressed when selecting actresses, however i will say that Dreamgirls is an adaptation of the show that manages to entertain fans of the source musicals and new fans, and yet i cant help but feel that fans of Les Mis the musical, will be disappointing by the film, which at times sacrifices musical grandeur for pure emotion, and which leaves the music feeling thin and pinched.