This week, we spotlight Tony-nominated actress Ann Hampton Callaway by combining two Playbill.com features, Diva Talk and Their Favorite Things, which asks members of the theatre community to share the Broadway performances that most affected them as part of the audience.
Callaway, who recently revisited her first concert collaboration with sister Liz Callaway — Sibling Revelry at 54 Below — will bring her evening of Streisand tunes to the South Orange Performing Arts Center this weekend. Entitled Ann Hampton Callaway Sings The Streisand Songbook, the Sept. 28 concert will begin at 8 PM, and attendees can expect to hear Callaway's interpretations of such Streisand classics as "Cry Me a River," "The Way We Were," "Somewhere," "Don't Rain on My Parade" and "People" as well as such titles as "A Sleepin' Bee," "Starting Here, Starting Now," "A Cockeyed Optimist" and more.
Callaway, who in the past decade has become one of the great song interpreters of her generation, explained the genesis of her critically acclaimed tribute to the international star. "Sometimes inspiration demands audacity, and that's what it took to create The Streisand Songbook," Callaway said. "I was approached a few years ago to put together a tribute to perhaps the greatest singer of our time, and I was reluctant to do something so ambitious that might invite comparison. There's only one Streisand. However, in revisiting the idea, I thought about concentrating the focus on the writers she loved — Arlen, Styne, Sondheim, etc. — and also my experience of writing songs for her, and suddenly it seemed exciting and worthy of doing.
"I chose songs carefully to paint a portrait of Barbara's career and her personality, but each song had to be something I also needed to sing," the multiple MAC Award winner continued. "It had to pass the Ann test for reflecting something I believed in and something I could put a personal stamp of my own on. I worked tirelessly on my arrangements of these songs, including my original 'At the Same Time,' and then approached the top orchestrators, many who have worked with Streisand, like Jonathan Tunick and Don Sebesky. My premiere of the show was with Keith Lockhart and The Boston Pops with my special guest, Alan Bergman. [It was] thrilling and illuminating … to speak to Alan and [his wife] Marilyn about writing for and working with Barbra." The subsequent run of the Streisand tribute at 54 Below garnered Callaway two Broadwayworld.com Awards and a MAC Award for Best Show of the Year.
"I am so grateful to be touring the country with this show and celebrating this living legend who has taught me so much about singing, acting and writing," added Callaway, who received her Tony nomination for her performance in the 1999 musical revue Swing! "Barbra is one of the most fascinating women in the world, and her originality is a beacon to anyone who aspires to be true to themselves. Without Barbra, I may never have learned who I am to the extent her originality inspired me to explore." Callaway said her "sentimental favorite" Streisand performance is her work in the "Funny Girl" film. "Barbra's comedic and dramatic brilliance makes for one of the finest musical theatre performances on stage or screen," Callaway explained. "When I saw this movie as a young aspiring performer, I realized how high she set the bar of artistic excellence, and I've been trying to reach it ever since. The crown jewel of the movie is her live singing of 'My Man' — her idea — and it makes for unprecidented emotional vulnerability in a movie musical. I could watch that movie every day and find something new to love about her performance."
Tickets for Ann Hampton Callaway Sings The Streisand Songbook are priced $35-$55. Click here for more information. Click here for Callaway's complete tour itinerary.
Click through the following pages to read Callaway's favorite Broadway performances.
Elaine Stritch in Company
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Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters in Sunday in the Park with George
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Liza Minnelli in Liza's at The Palace
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Anna Deavere Smith in Twilight: Los Angeles
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Well, that's all for now. Happy diva-watching! E-mail questions or comments to [email protected].