PATTI LuPONE
This month (April 21) marks the 50th birthday of the uniquely talented, Olivier and Tony Award-winning actress Patti LuPone. I have been thrilled by LuPone's performances since I was 11 years old and feel fortunate to have seen her in a wide range of roles both in musical and dramatic theatre: Evita, Anything Goes, Les Miserables, Sunset Boulevard, Pal Joey, Master Class, The Old Neighborhood and several concerts on Broadway and in other venues.
To celebrate the actress' birthday, I thought I would compose a list of my 50 favorite songs (in no particular order) that I have heard LuPone sing over the years. La LuPone has recorded most of the songs that follow; however, there are a few she has yet to preserve (let's hope for another CD in the near future). . .So, happy birthday Patti, and come back to Broadway soon!
1. "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" (recorded on Evita and "Patti LuPone Live")
2. "Buenos Aires" (recorded on Evita)
3. "Rainbow High" (recorded on Evita)
4. "I'd Be Surprisingly Good for You" (recorded on Evita)
5. "As Long As He Needs Me" (recorded on the 1st "Hey, Mr. Producer" recording and "Patti LuPone Live")
6. "With One Look" (recorded on Sunset Boulevard)
7. "As If We Never Said Goodbye (recorded on Sunset Boulevard)
8. "I Get a Kick Out of You" (recorded on Anything Goes and "Patti LuPone Live")
9. "Blow Gabriel Blow" (recorded on Anything Goes)
10. "I Dreamed a Dream" (recorded on Les Miserables and "Patti LuPone Live")
11. "Meadowlark" (recorded on The Baker's Wife and "Patti LuPone Live")
12. "Where is the Warmth? (recorded on The Baker's Wife)
13. "Gifts of Love" (recorded on The Baker's Wife)
14. "Hostess with the Mostes'" (recorded on Heatwave)
15. "I'm a Stranger Here Myself" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
16. "It Never Was You" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
17. "I've Got the Sun in the Morning" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
18. "Dirty Hands! Dirty Face!" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
19. "Get Here" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
20. "Come to the Supermarket in Old Peking" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
21. "Being Alive" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live" and Sondheim Carnegie Hall celebration)
22. "Sleepy Man" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
23. "You Can't Get a Man with a Gun" (unrecorded; performed in AGYG concert)
24. "I Got Lost in His Arms" (recorded on "Heatwave")
25. "Old-Fashioned Wedding" (unrecorded; performed in AGYG concert)
26. "Hello Young Lovers" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
27. "Nickel Under Your Foot" (recorded on The Cradle Will Rock and "Patti LuPone Live")
28. "Moonshine Lullaby" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
29. "Heaven" (recorded on "Patti LuPone Live")
30. "And So It Goes" (unrecorded; L.A. tribute concert)
31. "Doin' What Comes Natur'lly" (recorded on "Heatwave")
32. "Count Your Blessings Instead of Sheep" (recorded on "Heatwave")
33. "Best Thing for You/Lonely Heart/Always" medley (recorded on "Heatwave")
34. "Tell Me on a Sunday" (unrecorded; performed in Andrew Lloyd Webber concert)
35. "Take That Look Off Your Face" (unrecorded; performed in Andrew Lloyd Webber concert)
36. "Love Makes the World Go 'Round" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
37. "I'm in Love with a Wonderful Guy" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
38. "Where Love Resides" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
39. "Shattered Illusions" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
40. "Not a Day Goes By" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
41. "I Never Do Anything Twice" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
42. "Come to Me" (recorded on Les Misérables)
43. "Back to Before" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
44. "Air That I Breathe" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
45. "Look Mummy, No Hands" (unrecorded; performed in Matters of the Heart concert act)
46. "At the Same Time" (unrecorded; performed on TV: AIDS awareness program)
47. "The Perfect Year" (recorded on Sunset Boulevard)
48. "New Ways to Dream" (recorded on Sunset Boulevard)
49. "A New Argentina" (recorded on Evita)
50. "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered" (recorded on Pal Joey)
BETTY BUCKLEY
A host of new concert dates have come in for another dazzling Tony winner, Betty Buckley. Following is BB's complete concert listing through the end of 1999. The list is continually growing, so check the Betty Buckley website on PBOL for the latest changes.
April 17 Lehman Center for the Performing Arts Concert Hall in Bronx, NY
April 23 College of New Jersey, Kendall Hall in Ewing, NJ
April 24 Phoenician Hotel in Scottsdale, AZ
May 3 Orchestra Hall, Symphony Center in Chicago, IL
June 5 Myerson Symphony Center--Obelisk Awards in Dallas, TX
June 7 PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ
June 10-13 Theatrefest in Montclair, NJ
June 29 Benaroya Hall in Seattle, WA
July 20 Point Lookout in Camden, ME
July 27 Main Music Center in Philadelphia, PA
October 9 Tilles Center in Greenvale, NY
October 22 (class); October 23 (concert) Krannert Center for the Performing Arts; Foellinger Great Hall in Champaign-Urbana, IL
October 24 Sangamon Stage University Auditorium; Springfield, IL
November 6 State Theatre in New Brunswick, NJ
November 14 Cincinnati, OH (venue to come)
December 6-7 St. Barths Church in New York, NY
December 17 City Center in Coral Springs, FL
December 18 Atlantic University Auditorium in Boca Raton, FL
December 31 Shubert Performing Arts Center in New Haven, CT
DIAHANN CARROLL
Speaking of former Norma Desmonds, Diahann Carroll -- who played Norma in the Canadian production of Sunset Boulevard -- is the subject of a detailed discography in the current issue of Show Music Magazine (spring 1999). Writer Richard C. Lynch details Ms. Carroll's recording history, and what follows is a brief listing of her work on disc:
House of Flowers (Columbia LP; reissued by CBS Special Products)
"Diahann Carroll Sings Harold Arlen Songs" (RCA Victor LP; reissued BMG/Spain & BMG/Japan)
"Best Beat Forward" (Vik LX LP)
Porgy and Bess (United Artists LP)
"The Persian Room Presents Diahann Carroll" (United Artists LP)
"Diahann Carroll and Andre Previn" (United Artists LP)
"Fun Life" (Atlantic LP)
"Goodbye Again" (United Artists LP)
No Strings (Capitol LP; CD reissue on Angel)
"The Ed Sullivan Show: The Best of Broadway Vol. II" (TVT Records, CD)
"`A' You're Adorable: Love Songs for Children" (Golden Records Disque d'Or LP)
"Nobody Sees Me Cry" (Columbia LP)
"Cole Porter in Paris" (Bell System LP)
"Diahann Carroll" (Motown, LP)
"A Tribute to Ethel Waters" (Orinda LP; CD reissue LaserLight)
"All-Starr Merry Christmas" (Laserlight CD)
Sunset Boulevard (Polydor/Canada, CD)
"The Time of My Life" (Sterling Records)
IN OTHER NEWS After Wednesday's performance of Chicago, director Walter Bobbie and producer Barry Weissler took to the stage of the Shubert Theatre to announce that the revival of the Kander and Ebb musical was celebrating its 1,000th performance. Bobbie spoke glowingly about the show's current stars, Ute Lemper, just back from the Vegas company, and Karen Ziemba, and then introduced his upcoming leading ladies, Sandy Duncan and London's Ruthie Henshall (they arrive on Broadway at the end of May), who both entered from the wings of the stage to much applause. A large cake celebrating the anniversary performance was then wheeled on as well . . . The New Dramatists 50th Anniversary Spring Luncheon on Thursday, May 13 at the Marriott Marquis will honor the legendary Julie Andrews. The queen of comedy, Carol Burnett, will be on hand to speak about her friend and co-star through the years, and the cast of the Sound of Music revival will perform . . . "I've done maybe five different productions of [Annie Get Your Gun]. And that score! It's my score. To someone like me, Bernadette [Peters, AGYG's current star] is one of the few living legends I can look up to." So says Andrea McArdle in an upcoming interview by Harry Haun in the May issue of Playbill Magazine. McArdle, of course, is currently starring on Broadway at the Palace Theatre as Belle in Beauty and the Beast . . . Liza Minnelli belted out "Stormy Weather" and Betty Buckley followed with a touching version of "Serenity" at this week's MAC Awards gala at Town Hall. Heather MacRae picked up the prize for Best Female Vocalist, and Barbara Cook received a special lifetime achievement award. . . Vicki Sue Robinson, who starred on Broadway as a teenager in productions of Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar, is probably best known for the pop hit "Turn the Beat Around." The disco diva will open her new concert act, Behind the Beat, at the Kaufman Theatre (534 West 42nd Street) on Friday, April 30. The limited engagement (through May 30) will play Wednesday through Friday evenings at 8pm, Saturdays at 5 and 9pm and Sundays at 3pm. Call (212) 239-6200 for reservations . . . Cabaret singer Elaine St. George will open her latest act, The Girl That I Marry, at Judy's (169 Eight Avenue at 18th Street) on Thursday, April 29 at 9pm. Other performances are scheduled for May 1, June 11, June18 and June 25. Songs include such standards as "Get Me to the Church on Time" and "Not Getting Married Today" as well as rarities like "Hot and Happy" and "Courtin' Cowboy." There is a $15 cover and $10 food/drink minimum; call (212) 929-5410 for reservations . . . The complete text of last season's Triumph of Love, including lyrics to all of that musical's songs, can be found in the spring 1999 (volume 15, number 1) issue of Show Music: The Musical Theatre Magazine . . . Favorite TV moment of the week: Rosie O'Donnell carefully instructing a bemused Dame Judi Dench on the art of eating an Oreo cookie . . . And, finally, as reported last week: To celebrate the release on April 20 of the Annie Get Your Gun cast recording, that show's stars, Bernadette Peters and Tom Wopat will be part of a CD signing at the Virgin Records Megastore in Times Square on Friday, April 23. The signing will now take place at 1 PM rather than at noon.
REMINDERS:
SARAH BRIGHTMAN
On June 22 and 23, admirers of The Phantom of the Opera star will get a chance to see the singer in concert at City Center in New York City.
PATTI LuPONE
LuPone will join opera star Bryn Terfel for a concert version of Sondheim's Sweeney Todd to be held at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall from May 4 to May 6 in the year 2000. The performers will be backed by the New York Philharmonic, and the event, which will be recorded, will celebrate Sondheim's 70th birthday.
KAREN MASON
Karen Mason is currently singing nightly at Davenports Cabaret in Chicago, where she will reside through April 11; call (773) 278-1830. The songstress will perform at the Bradstan Inn in White Lake New York on June 20, and on September 25 KM will perform in concert to benefit Dallas Children's Theatre Fairmont Hotel, Dallas.
ELAINE PAIGE
Following are a a handful of upcoming Paige concert dates in Sweden, which are listed below:
June 10 Ulriksdal (as part of the Royal Ulriksdal Palace Festival) in Stockholm, Sweden
June 12 Finspang Palace in Finspang (outside of Norrkoping), Sweden
June 17 Sofiero Palce in Helsingborg, Sweden
June 19 Tradgardsforeningen Botanical Gardens in Gothenburg, Sweden
Paige will also appear as the special guest of Cliff Richards at his concerts in Hyde Park, London, on July 16, 17 and 18. Tickets are available from First Call: 0171-420 1000. And, don't forget, EP will make a special appearance in New York City in May when she will perform at the Breast Cancer Research Foundation's spring gala on Wednesday, May 5 at the New Christie's Auction House in the city. The event is being hosted by Barbara Walters, and Paige -- bwho is expected to sing a handful of her biggest hits -- will be accompanied on the piano by Tony Award-winning composer Marvin Hamlisch. For more information about this worthy event, contact The Breast Cancer Research Foundation at (212) 572-4249.
BERNADETTE PETERS
Peters is set to sing her lovely, poignant rendition of Irving Berlin's "Moonshine Lullaby" on ABC's "The View" this Tuesday, April 13. Be sure to set your VCRs.
Well, that's all for now. Happy diva-watching!
by Andrew Gans
e-mail me at
Diva Talk is dedicated to the memory of Matthew Shepard, 1976- 1998.
