Brian May says no to TV talent search

Queen guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor have been to a lot of casting sessions around the world for the musical We Will Rock You, but have turned down an offer to turn the audition process into a reality show. May told whatsonstage.com that the team behind We Will Rock You had been approached about doing a reality TV show, during which people would be critiqued on the way to picking new castmembers for the stage show, but he's totally opposed to it. May said, "We all feel that TV auditioning would be contrary to the spirit of our show. It's actually an appalling lowering of standards, this whole TV-dominated culture. I promise you will never find us on some panel bullying and ridiculing young performers -- I personally detest that kind of thing, and I think it's a shame that the public puts up with it."

He also said, "The idea that you can just pull people in off the streets to audition in public, and cast your show from this process, is a huge insult to all those young men and women who have devoted their whole lives to developing their talents, preparing for performing in a live stage show eight shows a week. How could you possibly expect to get the best performers this way? No self-respecting professional actor or actress would lower themselves to go in for this kind of humiliation. The best actors and singers will stay away."

May added, "When you see We Will Rock You, you are watching performers who have dedicated their whole lives to the pursuit of excellence... auditioned with dignity in private, encouraged to find their own way of playing the parts, and very often rising to the leading roles within our company. This is the kind of theatre you are supporting when you buy a ticket for We Will Rock You. You are striking a blow against the dumbing-down of live theatre."

May and Taylor will be on hand next Monday (May 14th) at the Dominion Theatre in London's West End to mark the fifth anniversary of the opening of We Will Rock You. It has spawned a number of international productions, including runs in Switzerland, Japan, Spain, Germany, South Africa, and the United States, and it's currently running in Toronto, Canada.