Cast The Astonishing! (merged)

[Prog Snob]

Jorn Lande as Nafaryus.

God, no. I can't stand his voice.

Jon Oliva would be an awesome choice though.

Jon Oliva, no thanks. I can't stand his voice.

B.Lee

Original critique.   

[pringkaarwanda]

I'm sorry, but I prefer James Labrie to sing all the character
But I really like how you guys try to find some actor/actress which look like a character from The Astonishing story

I like how Amanda Seyfried as faythe, it will be great !!
Hope the other bring their actor/actress which look like a character from The Astonishing story

[theanalogkid7]

Arhys - Tommy Karevik (Seventh Wonder, Kamelot, Ayreon) (He would be fantastic as any role, really. He's very versatile and theatrical)

So I only recently discovered Seventh Wonder, but I've been absolutely floored by Tommy Karevik's vocals.  He really could do a killer job with Arhys or Gabriel.

I also think Matt Smith from Theocracy would be a great voice to have in an Arhys or Gabriel role.

[ErHaO]

I view Labrie as a narrator conveying all characters on the regular album. Kind of similar to someone reading a book and altering his voice to reflect the lines of each character (audiobooks). And I think he does a fantastic job. However, I wouldn't say no to a full cast theater show, since the album definately fits that.

Here is my go:

Gabriel - Tommy Karevik
Ahrys - Damian Wilson
I want the two Ravenskill brothers to have more clean, melodious voices and both truly excel at that. Both have the power and range when needed.

Nafaryus - James Labrie
I love him as the Emperor on this disc, so let's keep him that 

Daryus - Tom Englund
A mature and more darker gritty voice, with a sad undertone befitting this tragic yet villanous character.

Arabelle - Amanda Somerville
Faythe - Elyze Ryd
Arabelle is the guiding mother type of character, so I think Amanda's voice would fit greatly. For Faythe, I envision a more young and pop-sounding voice.

Xander - A talented kid from Broadway
Yes, if I select the voices close to what I think their characters may sound like, this is what I come up with. I think a kid sounds, well, like a kid (a tad older than Xander is supossed to be though, to have a more pleasant/warmer sound to the vocals).

Disclaimer: I have not focused on the lyrics of TA too much at this point, so I do not always know which character sings what line exactly (especially for disc 2).

Edit: totally missed the Karevik discussion above but yes, that's what I had in mind too 

[ansell]

Bryan Cranston as Nafaryus.

[TioJorge]

Bryan Cranston as Gabriel
Bryan Cranston as Arhys
Bryan Cranston as Nefaryus
Bryan Cranston as Faythe
Bryan Cranston as Xander
Bryan Cranston as Daryus
Bryan Cranston as Arabelle
Bryan Cranston as NOMACs 1,2,3 and 4
Bryan Cranston as Imperial Guards
Morgan Freeman as Narrator

[Shadow Ninja 2.0]

Jorn Lande as Nafaryus.

God, no. I can't stand his voice.

I didn't know this opinion could exist.

[shredd]

Amanda Seyfried: Faythe. Give her pink hair and a cloak and she's a dead ringer. Done some singing in Mamma Mia too..

THIS!

https://themellochello.deviantart.com/art/Amanda-Seyfried-Haruno-Sakura-Wallpaper-374540511

[Cedar redaC]

Aryhs- Ross Jennings (Haken)
Gabriel- Mikael Eriksen (Circus Maximus) (Interchangeable with Ross from Haken. I think either would do either role justice in the end.)
Faythe- Anneke Van Giersbergen (Several projects, but my introduction to her singing came from The Devin Townsend Project)
Arabelle- Heather Findlay (Played Love in "The Human Equation")
Nafaryus- James Labrie
Daryus- Einar Solberg (Leprous)
Xander- No one in particular comes to mind

[porcacultor]

I'd like Treat Williams as Nafaryus,
David Morse as Daryus,
Kristen Bell as Faythe,
Nicole Kidman as Arabelle,
Penelope Cruz as Evangeline (she doesn't sing in the album, but maybe in a musical she'd have a singing part?),
Hugh Jackman as Arhys
and Joseph Gordon Levitt as Gabriel.

I don't know child actors who can sing and do Xander (Freddie Highmore would've been great... in 2004. Now he's a year younger than me!), but I do know all of these can sing.

JLB can be the narrator and be mixed in with the townsfolk and imperial guards.

There.

EDIT:

I've got runner-ups if necessary.

Ryan Gosling as Arhys
Emilia Clarke as Faythe
Robert Downey Jr. as Daryus
Gerard Butler as Nafaryus (with extra snark)
Meryl Streep as Arabelle
Eddie Redmayne as Gabriel

You can mix and match both, I guess

EDIT 2:

WHY didn't I read the first post properly? Well... If anyone wants a shitty attempt at a hollywood casting of the thing, there you go!

[DragonGuitar]

So I only recently discovered Seventh Wonder, but I've been absolutely floored by Tommy Karevik's vocals.  He really could do a killer job with Arhys or Gabriel.

I also think Matt Smith from Theocracy would be a great voice to have in an Arhys or Gabriel role.

Yes, exactly! I originally put him as Gabriel but decided I would rather cast him as Arhys as I think Michael Erikson would do a really good Gabriel, and I can really picture "A Better Life" sung by Karevik- it would be awesome!

[lonestar]

Just wanted to add, for the part of the NOMAC, I'd like either ED209 or JOHNNY5

[Prog Snob]

HAL 9000   

Alternate model that cooks...  HALAL 9000 

[pringkaarwanda]

John Myung as Evangeline

[pringkaarwanda]

Amanda Seyfried: Faythe. Give her pink hair and a cloak and she's a dead ringer. Done some singing in Mamma Mia too..

THIS!

https://themellochello.deviantart.com/art/Amanda-Seyfried-Haruno-Sakura-Wallpaper-374540511

So let me be perfectly clear

[cramx3]

Gabriel - Tommy Karevik
Ahrys - Damian Wilson
I want the two Ravenskill brothers to have more clean, melodious voices and both truly excel at that. Both have the power and range when needed.

Nafaryus - James Labrie
I love him as the Emperor on this disc, so let's keep him that 

Daryus - Tom Englund
A mature and more darker gritty voice, with a sad undertone befitting this tragic yet villanous character.

Arabelle - Amanda Somerville
Faythe - Elyze Ryd
Arabelle is the guiding mother type of character, so I think Amanda's voice would fit greatly. For Faythe, I envision a more young and pop-sounding voice.

Xander - A talented kid from Broadway
Yes, if I select the voices close to what I think their characters may sound like, this is what I come up with. I think a kid sounds, well, like a kid (a tad older than Xander is supossed to be though, to have a more pleasant/warmer sound to the vocals).

Like this cast 

I'd go with:

Gabriel - Tommy Karevik
Arhys - Bruce Dickinson
Nafaryus - Devin Townsend
Daryus - Jorn Lande
Arabelle - Amanda Somerville (i like this pick)
Faythe - Simone Simons
Xander - JLB

[Mark Levinson Jr.]

Arhys - Zak Stevens (Savatage)
Gabriel - Michael Eriksen (Circus Maximus)
Nafaryus - Jon Oliva (Savatage)
Arabelle - Floor Jansen (Nightwish)
Faythe - Anette Olzon (Nightwish)
Daryus - Todd La Torre (Queensryche)
Xander - Spencer Sotelo (Periphery)

All of these are due to voices, not really how they look (Especially Spencer and Jon).

Great call on the Savatage guys... I think they'd have the sound and bring that theater vibe too!

[Mark Levinson Jr.]

I view Labrie as a narrator conveying all characters on the regular album. Kind of similar to someone reading a book and altering his voice to reflect the lines of each character (audiobooks). And I think he does a fantastic job. However, I wouldn't say no to a full cast theater show, since the album definately fits that.

Here is my go:

Gabriel - Tommy Karevik
Ahrys - Damian Wilson
I want the two Ravenskill brothers to have more clean, melodious voices and both truly excel at that. Both have the power and range when needed.

Tommy sounds great live too, and it would be amazing to see him and JLB on the stage at the same time!

[V_R11]

Neil Patrick Harris as Gabriel

[BFRedrocks]

Just a few suggestions:

Gabriel - Tommy Karevik (nice call on this one!)
Faythe - Elize Ryd (Amaranthe)
Nafaryus - Geddy Lee
Arabelle - Simone Simons

Definitive back up to Nafaryus - The Most Interesting Man in the World (from the Dos Equis commercials..."stay thirsty my friend") Am I the only one that sees the resemblance?

[RaasMah]

*snip
Daryus 

If you're comparing Daryus to a GoT character, Jaime Lannister looks a bit like him (apart from the grey hair that Daryus has).

Not to mention adapt at hurting little kids...

[DragonGuitar]

Nafaryus - Geddy Lee

Cannot see that at all, sorry  Imagine the "kneel before Nafarious" part of Three Days sung in a Geddy Lee screech.  Don't get me wrong I love Rush, one of my favorite bands of all time, but I can't picture him as any of the characters is TA... except maybe Faythe

[ariich]

Nafaryus - Geddy Lee

Cannot see that at all, sorry  Imagine the "kneel before Nafarious" part of Three Days sung in a Geddy Lee screech.  Don't get me wrong I love Rush, one of my favorite bands of all time, but I can't picture him as any of the characters is TA... except maybe Faythe

Well, while I agree that Geddy is a terrible choice for Nafaryus, that heavy chorus in Three Days is sung by the Imperial Guards, not Nafaryus himself.

[DragonGuitar]

Nafaryus - Geddy Lee

Cannot see that at all, sorry  Imagine the "kneel before Nafarious" part of Three Days sung in a Geddy Lee screech.  Don't get me wrong I love Rush, one of my favorite bands of all time, but I can't picture him as any of the characters is TA... except maybe Faythe

Well, while I agree that Geddy is a terrible choice for Nafaryus, that heavy chorus in Three Days is sung by the Imperial Guards, not Nafaryus himself.

Oh haha, I didn't realize. My CD hasn't arrived yet so I have just listened to the album on Spotify and I don't have the lyrics booklet saying what each character says.

[BFRedrocks]

Nafaryus - Geddy Lee

Cannot see that at all, sorry  Imagine the "kneel before Nafarious" part of Three Days sung in a Geddy Lee screech.  Don't get me wrong I love Rush, one of my favorite bands of all time, but I can't picture him as any of the characters is TA... except maybe Faythe

Well, while I agree that Geddy is a terrible choice for Nafaryus, that heavy chorus in Three Days is sung by the Imperial Guards, not Nafaryus himself.

Brain fart on my part for this one.  Never mind...       How about David Draiman (Disturbed) instead?

[PintoZ]

When I first saw Faythe I was like... this is Amanda Seyfried 




Arabelle also reminded me of Glenn Close

[TheGreatPretender]

Definitely some cool comparisons! But uh... You might wanna share them here, brother:

https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=45765.0

[BlobVanDam]

That other thread is to cast musicians to sing the parts, not actors to play them. I'm ok with them being separate.

[ariich]

That other thread is to cast musicians to sing the parts, not actors to play them. I'm ok with them being separate.

While it was intended that way, quite a bit of has ended up being about actors, so I've merged the two.

[MirrorMask]

Gerald Butler could be Aryhs, and also Cate Blanchett could play Arabelle.

[Bertielee]

Jorn Lande as Nafaryus.

God, no. I can't stand his voice.

Jon Oliva would be an awesome choice though.

Jon Oliva, no thanks. I can't stand his voice.

B.Lee

Original critique.   

OK, let me elborate on it a little : I don't like his vibrato, the tone of his voice or the way he sings. That's why I was really happy he was replaced by Zach Stevens on Edge of Thorns.

B.Lee

[obelix5150]

Some clear overlaps with other entries here, but here's my go:

Gabriel - Tommy Karevik (Seventh Wonder/Kamelot)
Arhys - Michael Eriksen (Circus Maximus) is my first choice. Jeff Scott Soto would be cool too.
Xander - IDK, some kid.

Nafaryus - James Labrie
Daryus - Russell Allen (Symphony X) or Tom Englund (Evergrey)
Arabelle - Floor Jansen (Nightwish/ReVamp/After Forever) - it's a shame to give this relatively small part to such a talented singer, but she has to get in there somewhere!)

Faythe - Simone Simons (Epica) would be my first choice - such an absolutely gorgeous angelic voice especially on ballads. Elize Ryd (Amaranthe) would also be great in the role.

Imperial Guards - Devin Townsend (C'mon, you know that Three Days chorus would be AMAZING with a wall of Devy)

[Architeuthis]

If it was a movie, Alec Baldwin would play a good Nafaryus..lol!

[jingle.boy]

I think you guys are missing the point - this is meant to be about casting singers in the rock opera. Not "which celebrity looks most like each character".

I'd rather see what DTF poster plays each roll. 

Oh shit, this must happen...   

This is exactly what I was hoping to find in this thread.

*leaves disappointed*

[Tick]

Josh Hartnett