Carbucketty Hell
Most people get their favorite actors from their favorite characters, or the other way around. But I'm going to let you in on a secret-- it isn't always like that. Because my favorite cast members have one thing in common: they all have played my least favorite cat.
Yes, this is a callout for Carbucketty. The most useless cat, the most ridiculous, the stupidest, most obnoxious hell kitten known to mankind. And I could talk about what a great character he is for hours, but god do I hate him.
The Junkyard coined the term "Carbucketty Hell" in the fall of 2016 when Callan played the role for an extended time when Giuseppe Bausilio was out of the show. Every day it was Carbucketty. Sometimes twice a day. And it was a lot.
And then it was announced that they had hired a new cast member to replace Giuseppe and relieve Callan from Carbucketty Hell. Frankly, I didn't know what to think. I'd gotten rather used to seeing him every time. It was definitely going to be weird. But I welcomed the new guy in the same way I had slowly been working my way through getting to know the rest of the cast-- with a drawing of his cat and a little note at the bottom.
I never expected to bond with Tanner as much as I have. But the pent up frustration from Callan's stint in the role translated to an overwhelming annoyance with the character, and to my delight Tanner didn't like him any more than I did. "He's so annoying! What does he even do?" I complained to him one night.
"Nothing," was Tanner's answer. "He does absolutely nothing."
And this became the joke between us. Carbucketty Hell, nothing to do except play Carbucketty (until Tanner made an exciting Coricopat debut... and then right back again). And then somewhere down the line I became a little too invested in the things about Carbucketty that made me hate him, and it was probably the strangest character obsession ever. But my admiration for Tanner was never in jeopardy. In fact, it just grew. I could talk about him a lot, and there will be a separate post for that, because it veers out of Carbucketty territory. But then December rolled around and I learned that Giuseppe was coming back. It was good news, but I wasn't as excited as perhaps I should've been. Getting Giuseppe back meant losing Tanner to #SwingNation, which admittedly wasn't as bad as him leaving the cast entirely which had been my biggest fear for a while. We'll just say that everyone was at least a little relieved when his time in Carbucketty Hell ended.
I remember though, the day he told me he would be taking his final Carbucketty bow. He said Giuseppe would be back for a month, and then someone else would be coming in. And he didn't say who, only that I would "love the new guy, though :)". I pondered that for a while and made my own assumptions, but my reaction when I found out was not one of my proudest moments.
The cryptic description of the new Carbucketty was of course because it was going to be Tanner's boyfriend Jakob Karr-- someone I had only heard about through him. So maybe I jumped out of my chair at the diner the Junkyard was eating at before the show, shouting "I called it I hecking called it oh my god oh my god this is happening and I totally called it!" before walking out because I was so overwhelmed. It was a good thing. A very good thing. But as Emily so eloquently put it, "I can't believe they're replacing Tanner with Tanner's boyfriend".
Jakob's Broadway debut brought much needed excitement to a day that was otherwise a very hard one for me (more to come on that as well). I remember him catching my eye during Mistoffelees and then commenting at stage door that he had seen me at the end-- this of course being after a hug that came before a proper greeting, and was followed by "it's so good to meet you! I've heard so much about you-- good things." And I mean, how could anyone not love a Carbucketty actor that sweet? The character, of course, had no such luck.
Jakob's wrist injury over the summer brought back Callan Carby for a while, but when it became clear that Jakob wasn't going to be back for a while, they needed an alternative. And the company already had an ace up their sleeve-- Kolton Krouse, back in the cast as a swing, jumped into the role of Carbucketty for about a month until their more permanent temporary replacement came on board. And well, I was thrilled. My love for Kolton went way back before this role, and I joked with my friends that he was going to "make me like Carbucketty" as if it was the worst thing in the world. (It was, and luckily he didn't). But of course, that had to end too, and I had to say another tearful goodbye not unlike the first time he left the show.
So it's pretty strange that my four favorite cast members (Callan, Tanner, Jakob, Kolton) all have had significant time playing Carbucketty, but I guess it just goes to show that actor doesn't always equal character.
...And yes, I have a Carbucketty costume. That I made. And I love. It doesn't mean anything.
Yes, this is a callout for Carbucketty. The most useless cat, the most ridiculous, the stupidest, most obnoxious hell kitten known to mankind. And I could talk about what a great character he is for hours, but god do I hate him.
The Junkyard coined the term "Carbucketty Hell" in the fall of 2016 when Callan played the role for an extended time when Giuseppe Bausilio was out of the show. Every day it was Carbucketty. Sometimes twice a day. And it was a lot.
And then it was announced that they had hired a new cast member to replace Giuseppe and relieve Callan from Carbucketty Hell. Frankly, I didn't know what to think. I'd gotten rather used to seeing him every time. It was definitely going to be weird. But I welcomed the new guy in the same way I had slowly been working my way through getting to know the rest of the cast-- with a drawing of his cat and a little note at the bottom.
I never expected to bond with Tanner as much as I have. But the pent up frustration from Callan's stint in the role translated to an overwhelming annoyance with the character, and to my delight Tanner didn't like him any more than I did. "He's so annoying! What does he even do?" I complained to him one night.
"Nothing," was Tanner's answer. "He does absolutely nothing."
And this became the joke between us. Carbucketty Hell, nothing to do except play Carbucketty (until Tanner made an exciting Coricopat debut... and then right back again). And then somewhere down the line I became a little too invested in the things about Carbucketty that made me hate him, and it was probably the strangest character obsession ever. But my admiration for Tanner was never in jeopardy. In fact, it just grew. I could talk about him a lot, and there will be a separate post for that, because it veers out of Carbucketty territory. But then December rolled around and I learned that Giuseppe was coming back. It was good news, but I wasn't as excited as perhaps I should've been. Getting Giuseppe back meant losing Tanner to #SwingNation, which admittedly wasn't as bad as him leaving the cast entirely which had been my biggest fear for a while. We'll just say that everyone was at least a little relieved when his time in Carbucketty Hell ended.
I remember though, the day he told me he would be taking his final Carbucketty bow. He said Giuseppe would be back for a month, and then someone else would be coming in. And he didn't say who, only that I would "love the new guy, though :)". I pondered that for a while and made my own assumptions, but my reaction when I found out was not one of my proudest moments.
The cryptic description of the new Carbucketty was of course because it was going to be Tanner's boyfriend Jakob Karr-- someone I had only heard about through him. So maybe I jumped out of my chair at the diner the Junkyard was eating at before the show, shouting "I called it I hecking called it oh my god oh my god this is happening and I totally called it!" before walking out because I was so overwhelmed. It was a good thing. A very good thing. But as Emily so eloquently put it, "I can't believe they're replacing Tanner with Tanner's boyfriend".
Jakob's Broadway debut brought much needed excitement to a day that was otherwise a very hard one for me (more to come on that as well). I remember him catching my eye during Mistoffelees and then commenting at stage door that he had seen me at the end-- this of course being after a hug that came before a proper greeting, and was followed by "it's so good to meet you! I've heard so much about you-- good things." And I mean, how could anyone not love a Carbucketty actor that sweet? The character, of course, had no such luck.
Jakob's wrist injury over the summer brought back Callan Carby for a while, but when it became clear that Jakob wasn't going to be back for a while, they needed an alternative. And the company already had an ace up their sleeve-- Kolton Krouse, back in the cast as a swing, jumped into the role of Carbucketty for about a month until their more permanent temporary replacement came on board. And well, I was thrilled. My love for Kolton went way back before this role, and I joked with my friends that he was going to "make me like Carbucketty" as if it was the worst thing in the world. (It was, and luckily he didn't). But of course, that had to end too, and I had to say another tearful goodbye not unlike the first time he left the show.
So it's pretty strange that my four favorite cast members (Callan, Tanner, Jakob, Kolton) all have had significant time playing Carbucketty, but I guess it just goes to show that actor doesn't always equal character.
...And yes, I have a Carbucketty costume. That I made. And I love. It doesn't mean anything.
 |
| all the Broadway Carbuckettys so far |
Comments
Post a Comment