Barbara Harris- Page 3

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 11/18/05 at 12:05pm

I've also always wondered how they did On A Clear Day on stage- how did they handle the transitions? I saw a regional production many years ago wherein Daisy sat in a swivel chair in a dark corner of the Doctor's office and when it came time for her to become Melinda, she swiveled around and disappeared in the dark to re-enter on the opposite side of the stage after a quick costume change - not very interestingly done, and I've often wondered how it happened on Broadway and what ways it could be done to make it work (special effects-wise).

[Flahooley]

Posted: 11/18/05 at 12:09pm

I wondered the same thing too. Somehow I got the idea in my head that they put a very tight spot on Harris's face and when they pulled back she was in a new outfit... it is probably just my imagination.

Did anyone see it? Anyone remember?

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 11/18/05 at 12:22pm

that's interesting. There are so many ways they could achieve this affect, I'd love to hear more.

[Demitri2]

Posted: 11/18/05 at 8:09pm

The only time I got to see "On A Clear Day" on stage was a production with Joanna Gleason as Daisy/Melinda and she was totally miscast in the role. Her singing also left much to be desired. It only made one appreciate Ms. Harris on the recording even more. To make matters worse, the psychiatrist was played by Robert Goulet who had this strange habit of singing his numbers slightly out of synch with the orchestra giving it more a feeling of a Vegas concert than a Broadway show. However what I enjoyed most was the ending which was totally different from the movie. If anyone saw the show on stage please corroborate on whether my memory is correct. Daisy is getting ready to catch a plane which for some reason has a nickname which conjures up Melinda's spirit because the name of the plane is the same name as the sinking ship that Melinda perished on years ago. So Daisy's reluctance to fly on an airplane destined to crash is tied in with Melinda's tragic demise which ends up being a deja vu blessing.

[fredric47]

Posted: 11/20/05 at 11:59pm

Silly girl, you mean Julie Wilson. Julie Harris only appeared in one musical in her entire fabulous Broadway career, "Skyscraper" (1965).

[Flahooley]

Posted: 3/13/06 at 9:28pm

I just found this 2002 interview with the great Barbara Harris.

http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/issues/2002-10-24/speakeasy.html

[Chloe]

Posted: 3/13/06 at 9:56pm

I have an old album called The Second City Writhes Again with Barbara Harris and Alan Alda among others. It contains their classic sketch "Museum Piece," in which Alda's would-be Beat poet attempts to seduce Harris' uptight neurotic at the Art Institute. It's what I think of first when she's mentioned.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 8/26/11 at 8:12pm

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 8/26/11 at 10:17pm

Re question above about transitions, I saw ON A CLEAR DAY at Kansas City Starlight. The scenery was elaborate but the changes were interminable and contributed greatly to the failure of the book.

Re Harris' voice in the sixties, I remember her being referred to as an "actress-who-sings" even back then. The same was true of Angela Lansbury. But I love both voices. Unless the actor obviously can't hit the notes, most of the time I'll take a great actor over a great singer on everything but the blandest of love songs.

I mean, if there's anybody who can't sing it's Lauren Bacall. But would anybody really rather see APPLAUSE with a lesser star just because that star had a prettier voice? (Don't get me wrong: Harris and Lansbury clearly sing better than Bacall. I'm deliberately using an extreme example.)

[Miranda3]

Posted: 8/26/11 at 10:31pm

Demitri--Your description of her behavior during the Tony speech was riveting. But since you viewed the speech, would you please also tell us what she actually SAID in it. Re Clear Day: There is a book entitled "We Danced All Night" by a woman whose last name is Shapiro (Doris?), who worked for Lerner. The book recounts what went on during the original Clear Day run, during which Shapiro claims Lerner was on amphetemines, supplied by the same physician who treated JFK. There is material in the book re all the cast members during the original run, including Harris. I don't mean to imply that the cast was using drugs, just that I think the book describes the circumstances of the original production. Will check and order.

[ChiChi]

Posted: 8/26/11 at 11:10pm

Last I knew she is teaching and directing here in Arizona. She workshopped one of my plays in a class she taught in Scottsdale.