By Andrew Gans
06 Oct 2006
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| Barbra Streisand in concert |
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| photo by Firooz Zahedi (headshot) |
News, views and reviews about the multi-talented women of the musical theatre and the concert/cabaret stage.
BARBRA STREISAND
Last Saturday I received an invitation that I will probably never be offered again: the chance to attend a Barbra Streisand dress rehearsal at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, PA. Not only would this be the first time I had ever seen the Academy Award-winning actress perform live, but I was also able to bring five people with me to the by-invitation-only event.
Knowing this would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, I wanted to share the day with some of the people I love most and those who I knew would truly appreciate the experience: my mom, my sister, my sister-in-law, my friend Tod and his mother Joyce. The six of us some coming from New York, some from New Jersey and one in Pennsylvania all headed to the 15,000-seat Wachovia Center on Tuesday for the afternoon concert.
The concert was primarily attended by friends and family members of the musicians in the 56-piece orchestra or those working on the concert tour as well as such celebrities as Rob Marshall, Liz Callaway, David Zippel and Donna Karan. And, as we all waited to be let into the theatre on the suitably sunny day, there was true excitement in the air, a feeling that continued to build as we took our seats in the mammoth stadium. Most of the 900 or so attending were seated in the floor section, and my family, friends and I could hardly believe that we were going to have the privilege of enjoying a Barbra Streisand concert from the fourth row.
The set design for the tour, it should be noted, is simple, yet elegant. A few raised pathways with lit handrails encompass the orchestra, and there are three areas where a modest bouquet of roses adorn a small round table and chair.
The original overture to Jule Styne's Funny Girl the 1964 Broadway musical that garnered its star her second Tony nomination began the concert and was greeted with an enthusiastic applause, but the sight of Streisand, who, at 64, remains a striking figure, brought the audience to its feet for the first of many times that day.
Streisand began her concert with Richard Maltby and David Shire's "Starting Here, Starting Now," and I have to admit hearing the sound of her voice live those lush, rich, golden, rounded tones that seem to magically pour out of her was surprisingly moving. There have been many singers throughout the years who, intentionally or not, have imitated her sound, but when hearing Streisand live, one quickly realizes there is no substitute for the real thing.
After welcoming the animated crowd, Streisand noted that she hadn't performed in Philadelphia for over four decades, not since she filmed her 1965 television special "Color Me Barbra."
"Down with Love" preceded one of the afternoon's highlights, the Academy Award-winning theme song from the 1973 Streisand-Redford film "The Way We Were." There was a gentle hush as Streisand delivered the opening lines, "Memories light the corners of my mind. . .," and I suspect there was nary a dry eye as she finished the Marvin Hamlisch-Alan and Marilyn Bergman tune on a beautiful sustained, almost ethereal high note.
Before belting out a terrific version of the Harold Arlen standard "Come Rain or Come Shine," Streisand explained why teleprompters are a must for her tours. During her monumental 1967 concert in Central Park, she forgot the lyrics to three songs, and that experience was so "frightening and embarrassing" that she was unable to sing in public for nearly 30 years. "When I performed my fundraising concert in 1986," she said, "by then they had invented the teleprompter. . . . Now I have them in case I have a senior moment!"
One of the many things that struck me during the generous, three-hour concert was the warmth that Streisand exudes onstage. And, not only is she tremendously intelligent evidenced in both her spoken word and her lyrical interpretations she is also extremely funny, joking throughout the show, often at her own expense. She drew laughs when detailing all the local food she had sampled in Philly, noting "The only thing I like more than American democracy is eating." When she played a wrong note on the piano during "Ma Premiere Chanson" her simple "Oh sh**!" was delightfully down-to-earth, and when a loud sneeze from the audience preceded the final note of a song, her quick "God bless you" drew laughs and applause.
"I Finally Found Someone," a song based on the love theme from "The Mirror Has Two Faces," preceded her best-known composition "Evergreen." As Streisand explained that one of the most enjoyable aspects of writing songs has been hearing other people interpret them, the tour's special guests Il Divo joined her for the remainder of that song, which explores "the meaning of one love."
The strong-voiced Il Divo comprising David Miller, Sebastian Izambard, Urs Buhler and Carlos Marin joked a bit with Streisand, before taking the stage with five solos: "Senza Catene" ("Unchained Melody"), "Passera," "Regresa A Mi" ("Unbreak My Heart"), "Si Tu Me Amas" and the Sinatra classic "My Way"; the latter was dedicated to Streisand.
As Il Divo began singing The Phantom of the Opera's "Music of the Night," Streisand returned to much applause, joining the four men for a gorgeous version of the Andrew Lloyd Webber tune. Whether she's singing solo or with a group, one can't help be impressed by Streisand's innate musicality. As opposed to today's "American Idol"-type singers who sing three notes for every one, Streisand's simple riff here or gentle lick there seem completely organic and add to rather than detract from the melody.
The first half of the evening concluded with several songs from Funny Girl: the extended, full show version of "Don't Rain On My Parade," the bittersweet title song, a powerful medley of "The Music That Makes Me Dance" and "My Man" (which was added to the film) and, of course, one of Streisand's many anthems, "People." The crowd again jumped to its feet as Streisand's voice soared on the song's climax: "People who need people are the luckiest people in the world!"
The concert's Entr'acte featured a portion of the "Funny Girl" movie score; "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever"; music from "The Prince of Tides"; and the "Yentl" ballad, "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" Streisand then reappeared, singing a glorious rendition of Rodgers and Hart's "Where or When."
The Grammy winner then had some fun with her audience, answering questions from the crowd [those attending the concerts will have the chance to fill out "Ask Barbra" cards prior to each show] and performing a version of the classic Judy Garland-Streisand duet "Get Happy"/"Happy Days Are Here Again" with a special guest star (I won't ruin the surprise).
Streisand then built Harold Arlen's "When the Sun Comes Out" to a thrilling, full-voiced finale. While discussing her "pride and joy," her son Jason, a piece of music he composed for his mother while she was making "Yentl" was played in the background. A wonderful, poignant medley of Rodgers and Hammerstein's "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught" and Sondheim's "Children Will Listen" followed.
One of the most welcome surprises of the afternoon was the inclusion of Maury Yeston's "Unusual Way." Streisand's voice was perfectly suited to the beautiful Nine ballad, and her acting of the song was also impeccable. In fact, it made one long to hear what she could do with some of the more current theatre scores.
"Like the Gentle Rain," performed as a bossa nova, was followed by the Bergmans "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?," and two early Streisand favorites, "Woman in the Moon" and "Have I Stayed Too Long at the Fair?" followed; the latter was particularly impressive.
Streisand offered the West Side Story anthem "Somewhere" as a "prayer for tolerance, compassion and peace," and was again joined by Il Divo. As the thrilling sound of the five voices and the orchestra conducted by William Ross swelled to dramatic effect on that Leonard Bernstein-Stephen Sondheim tune, the entire crowd spontaneously rose en masse.
"God, you're a great audience! Can you come back tomorrow?," Streisand quipped before delivering two more songs to the appreciative crowd: "My Shining Hour" and a terrific arrangement of "A Cockeyed Optimist." There was one final encore, but I'll leave that as a surprise.
If I were asked to sum up the afternoon in one word, it would have to be joy. There were tears of joy, joy in people's smiles, joy in watching a performer reclaim the concert stage, joy in sharing this day with my family and friends, and the simple joy of music superbly performed. And, now, Streisand has the chance to spread this joy throughout the U.S. and Canada as she embarks on a two-month tour that will visit such cities as New York, Washington, Toronto, Quebec, Boston, Atlanta, Chicago, Phoenix and Las Vegas.
For more information about Streisand 2006 Tour with Special Guest Il Divo, click here.
SANDY DUNCAN
Sandy Duncan who remains one of my all-time favorite Roxie Harts in Chicago is currently taking on a much different role in the musical theatre canon: the free-spirited Mame Dennis in the classic Jerry Herman musical Mame. Duncan is starring in a concert version of the award-winning musical for the Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield, MA. Directed by Julianne Boyd, the production, which runs through Oct. 15, also boasts Diane J. Findlay as the boozy Vera Charles, Eric Ulloa as the adult Patrick, Mark Jacoby as Beauregard Jackson Picket Burnside and Joyce Chittick as Agnes Gooch.
During a rehearsal break late last week, Duncan a triple-threat, whose performances on stage and screen have garnered her three Tony nominations (for Canterbury Tales, The Boy Friend and Peter Pan) and two Emmy nominations (for "Roots" and "Funny Face") spoke with me about her latest stage role. That brief interview follows.
Question: How are rehearsals going so far?
Sandy Duncan: I'm trying to think. [Laughs.] At this point [I'm] in the . . . totally overwhelmed [stage]. I've never seen [Mame] and didn't know the music, so we're trying to figure out how best to do this. It was primarily going to be a reading/concert version, and it's kind of gotten out of hand because now the musical numbers are staged, and we have props. It's just something we have to figure out so that the audience isn't led into an expectation that can't be fulfilled because we're doing [the show] with no set. We start putting down our scripts so often that it starts to be like, "Oh, are they doing the [full] production," and we don't have the [rehearsal] time to do that. Continued...
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