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The fabulous Liza delivers a magnificent performance

Merboy

By Merboy
in Comedy & Tragedy

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Merboy Experienced

Merboy

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This is from the 100th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty in 1986 (?).

 

What a performance! It's strong, over-the-top, energetic, powerful, campy, and delightful. I especially love when she does the lasso with her hands and motions for the orchestra to stop so she could belt - she really knows how to get the crowd going and this was a very adoring crowd of New Yorkers.

 

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WilliamM Grand Master

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Garland made far more films and had a hour weekly TV show on CBS, Sunday at 9 pm, but only for one season.

 

Liza has performed in Broadway musicals and won a best Actress Academy Award. And Minnelli has lived lived much longer than her mom, who died in her late 40s.

The difference could have been Liza's dad, Vincente Minnelli.

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bostonman Grand Master

bostonman

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Liza has performed in Broadway musicals and won a best Actress Academy Award. And Minnelli has lived lived much longer than her mom, who died in her late 40s.

The difference could have been Liza's dad, Vincente Minnelli.

 

Except, in 2 of the 3 of the shows she originated in on Broadway, (i.e. not the ones where she came in as a replacement) - The Act and The Rink - she was notoriously difficult to work with and missed performances a lot. (There may also be stories about her replacement casting in shows such as Chicago and Victor/Victoria, but I don't know for sure.) She later said in a CNN interview (sometime in the early 2000's) that she would never want to do the 8-times-a-week Broadway schedule again - but it seems to me she may never have really wanted to do that anyway.

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WilliamM Grand Master

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Except, in 2 of the 3 of the shows she originated in on Broadway, (i.e. not the ones where she came in as a replacement) - The Act and The Rink - she was notoriously difficult to work with and missed performances a lot. (There may also be stories about her replacement casting in shows such as Chicago and Victor/Victoria, but I don't know for sure.)

 

The other musical was "Flora, the Red Menace." I saw the musical; she was just okay,despite winning a Tony Award. However, Liza was quite young in 1965.

 

"The Act" was a mistake, because she apparently was on stage for most of the show (I did not see it). I heard only praise for her short run in "Chicago." I did see "Victor/Victori," and concentrated of the supporting cast not Liza.

 

Liza was more successful in "Minnelli on Minelli," really a concert rather than a musical. Debbie Reynolds was in the audience the night I saw it. It was the only time I saw concert production on Broadway twice, including Springsteen.

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WilliamM Grand Master

+ WilliamM

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She later said in a CNN interview (sometime in the early 2000's) that she would never want to do the 8-times-a-week Broadway schedule again - but it seems to me she may never have really wanted to do that anyway.

 

She did it in "Flora, The Red Menace" and for a short time in "Chicago."

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bostonman Grand Master

bostonman

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She did it in "Flora, The Red Menace" and for a short time in "Chicago."

 

Well, she did it with all the book shows she was in - but the point is, she had trouble keeping to that. And yes, I think she was much better suited to concert appearances - but those weren't done with such a strict schedule I imagine.

 

Some performers just aren't made for that kind of schedule or performance style. It's said that Burt Bacharach, who wrote the wonderful score for Promises, Promises, wasn't ever interested in writing for Broadway again after that show, because he found he couldn't relate well to the idea that the show wasn't rigidly the same every night. Seems he was a bit too used to the recording studio, lol.

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bostonman Grand Master

bostonman

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Liza with Bob Fosse - Great! Liza without Fosse = An over-the-top, overrated dud!

 

I agree about the first half of that, not really the 2nd half.

 

But, I will say that I feel something about Liza that I also feel about Streisand - that as they grew up, they developed this rather hard-edged "see how fucking hard I'm working at this" sort of style that tends to put me off at times. Much more fun for me to see someone who makes what they do seem impossibly EASY, rather than trying to show us how TOUGH it is. (add Patti Lupone and Mandy Patinkin into that group as well.)

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N13 Experienced

N13

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There is a group of 'artistes' that seem to like themselves so much it makes it impossible for the audience to even have room to like them. Minelli and Potimkin are at the top of the list. Streisand's sheer talent overrides her ego though. imho

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WilliamM Grand Master

+ WilliamM

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I agree about the first half of that, not really the 2nd half.

 

But, I will say that I feel something about Liza that I also feel about Streisand - that as they grew up, they developed this rather hard-edged "see how fucking hard I'm working at this" sort of style that tends to put me off at times. Much more fun for me to see someone who makes what they do seem impossibly EASY, rather than trying to show us how TOUGH it is. (add Patti Lupone and Mandy Patinkin into that group as well.)

 

Mostly agree.

 

To be fair Streisand, she did not have much experience when doing "Funny Girl" on Broadway. And, she apparently did not enjoy carrying the show without a strong male lead. It was not obvious the night I saw the musical, but was later in the run.

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bostonman Grand Master

bostonman

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Mostly agree.

 

To be fair Streisand, she did not have much experience when doing "Funny Girl" on Broadway. And, she apparently did not enjoy carrying the show without a strong male lead. It was not obvious the night I saw the musical, but was later in the run.

 

Listening to the cast recording of Funny Girl, I feel Streisand is fine. (Even with that weirdo vocal tic at the end of "Rain On My Parade.") And even in the film (which I haven't seen for a long time, but even so) I think she's ok. Her earlier TV specials were charming and genuine. It's with the Dolly film, right from the over-caffeinated performance of "Just Leave Everything To Me" that the problems start for me. By the time we get to the first Broadway album with that god-awful overprocessed "Somewhere" and the crazed hammy exasperation of "Putting It Together," she no longer holds any appeal for me.

 

But, I will say that I mostly enjoyed the televised "Back To Brooklyn" concert a few years ago. Except when she got to the Gypsy medley, which was vocally pushed and had "I'M TRYING TO PROVE TO YOU ALL THAT I CAN DO THIS MOVIE, DAMMIT" all over it. Truly tasteless.

 

BTW - in terms of her leading man in Funny Girl, I do have to assume she wasn't referring to Sydney Chaplin. (But I assume Chaplin's replacements were not as strong?)

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bostonman Grand Master

bostonman

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I saw Funny Girl with Streisand and Chaplin. Having never seen the film, I can not speak to how anyone else played the male lead. And I also saw Sydney Chaplin in Subways are for Sleeping. Chaplin was not fantastic in Subways; Phyllis Newman was because of better songs.

 

I'm jealous that you got to see Subways. I love that score. :D

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