Florence Lacey in Follies tonight- Page 3

[Brick]

Posted: 11/13/11 at 11:59pm

PalJoey, I think you've absolutely nailed it.

[South Fl Marc]

Posted: 11/14/11 at 7:48am

Pal Joey - what an escellent post , as always.

I'm sorry I can't get up to see Follies this week. I am a huge Florence Lacey fan. Her Norma Desmond last year with Signature Theatre in Washington was outstanding. I bet her "I'm Still Here" brought down the house.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 11/14/11 at 8:59am

Most non-theatre fanatics I know who have seen the show RAVE about Peters, ( partly because they know who she is), when I ask about Maxwell, I mostly get, oh she's good too.

[Hest88]

Posted: 11/14/11 at 5:19pm

Qolbinau, I'm also a fan though my husband is not. He has, however, been dragged to a number of her concerts. If it makes you feel better, after we left Follies last week--a musical he's only slightly familiar with, again though reluctant exposure through me--he rated it as just below Sweeney Todd as one of his favorite Sondheim musicals now. Plus, he became obsessed with Losing My Mind and was not content with any of my Follies CDs. Instead, he *had* to track down the Bernadette Peters version on YouTube. This from a man who has even less tolerance for sentimentality than I do.

I went in, after reading so much about the D.C. and Broadway versions, determined to enjoy my first full-length, live version of Follies. I didn't think Bernadette Peters' version of Follies was over-the-top crazy. (In fact, she was much less emotional than Jan Maxwell.) Perhaps I shouldn't have, but I found her fluttery, insecure, fragile Sally quite moving. I could do quite a bit of nit-picking, trying to compare this Follies to the picture in my head from Ted Chapin's book and all the various versions and video clips I've seen and heard over the years, but I have no desire to. We're never going to get the original Follies back, and I was perfectly thrilled to get such a well-acted, well-sung, and emotionally satisfying Follies. If I lived in NY I'd be seeing this as many times as I could.

[BroadwayFan12]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 2:02pm

Ticketmaster says that Paige will be out tomorrow too. Was that always the plan?

[nealb1]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 2:16pm

Just checked Ticketmaster's site, and EP comes back Nov 16th. Tonight, 11/15, is her last night out of the show.

[BroadwayFan12]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 2:34pm

I meant today, lol. I thought today was Monday for some reason.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 11/15/11 at 4:52pm

I should have put in my usual disclaimer when criticizing Bernadette: No one has loved Bernadette Peters more than I.

I loved her back on the Carol Burnett Show, and I still believe that part of the reason that Sunday in the Park with George received the Pulitzer Prize was that Bernadette's wise, warm, witty, silly, and ultimately ethereal performance lifted the material to a higher level of emotion and psychological insight than anyone expected. She and the material were totally in tune, in a way that I felt privileged to see, and the performance was remarkably restrained.

If they gave Pulitzers for acting, she would surely have received one for her performance as Dot. If they gave a Nobel Prize for acting, she would have received one of those too.

But what she did in Night Music and what she is doing in Follies is extraordinary because she is magical to look at and to hear. She has lost the quality of restraint. If anyone else were doing it, the director would have said, "Less is more." And her performances as Desiree and Sally would have been better for it.

[VeraCharles3]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 7:15am

PalJoey
You are such a gentleman. It's no wonder there is so much love and respect for you on this board.

As a huge fan of Bernadette myself, though living in the UK I have still to see her perform live, I do wonder why whenever it's suggested Bernadette would be great for a role, it's mostly always followed by "but she'd need a strong director". Now PalJoey, you have said a similar thing. Why is this? By all accounts Bernadette is supposed to be one of the nicest people in Showbusiness, so it can't be ego, can it? Is she set in her ways? Are directors too in awe of her?

Am just interested why Bernadette more than others seems to need strong direction?

Any ideas would be appreciated.

[VeraCharles3]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 7:16am

PalJoey
You are such a gentleman. It's no wonder there is so much love and respect for you on this board.

As a huge fan of Bernadette myself, though living in the UK I have still to see her perform live, I do wonder why whenever it's suggested Bernadette would be great for a role, it's mostly always followed by "but she'd need a strong director". Now PalJoey, you have said a similar thing. Why is this? By all accounts Bernadette is supposed to be one of the nicest people in Showbusiness, so it can't be ego, can it? Is she set in her ways? Are directors too in awe of her?

Am just interested why Bernadette more than others seems to need strong direction?

Any ideas would be appreciated.

[jayinchelsea]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 8:17am

Just saw FOLLIES in Chicago last week, and although I've been a fan of Bernadette for many years, I have to agree with PalJoey. After watching her performance in NGHT MUSIC last year, and now having seen her Sally three times, it is clear that Bernadette does what she wants, and if the director doesn't take a strong hand in the performance, what we get is over the top and unconvincing. And as much as I disliked the overall performance, including her singing of "Losing My Mind," the worst moment was the last, when she now drags out her exit endlessly, as if to say, "I'm the star, and this show is All About Sally." A strong director would have stopped that. And yes, Susan Munoz, who played Sally in Chicago, was just about perfect, playing and singing the tole better than anyone has since Dorothy Collins.

[AMH]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 11:16am

I saw Follies a couple weeks ago and absolutely loved Bernadette's "certifiable" Sally, as PalJoey put it. However, Bernadette can do no wrong with me, so I'm probably not the best person to make that judgment.

[dreaming]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 11:23am

I loved Bernadette's performance because it was so "un-Bernadette" for me, at least, and I have seen her in Annie Get Your Gun, Gypsy and A Little Night Music. What I've noticed is that her performance in Follies seems more evolved, more 'grown up' in a way (her Desiree definitely was like this, too, but Sally is on a whole other level). She is playing the role very darkly, and I'm not sure that sits well with most people who are used to Bernadette's usual performances (such as Annie Get Your Gun). She moved me to tears-and each time I've seen it, she's not broken down into tears during "Losing My Mind" until the very end. I was able to hear each and every word and note-and she sounded better each time.

The role is coming from within her I think, and her performance is incredibly heartfelt and a truly amazing transformation.

[AMH]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 11:32am

Agreed! I reside in the south and am making a special trip up to NY next month just to see the show again.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 2:54pm

I am loving this discussion. I respect all the opinions on this board, but I heartily disagree with all the people who feel that Bernadette's Sally is very mentally ill. I didn't see that (and I work in the mental health field.)

I actually saw Bernadette's Sally as a woman who never grew up-maybe entitled, petulant and living in a fantasy-thinking she has as many options as when she was a young showgirl. That is not a mental illness.She always believed she deserved better than Buddy.

Her "Losing My Mind" felt a little overindulgent, petulant and her long parade off felt a little childish and defeated.

I liked her interpretation.

[Hest88]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 11:34pm

See, I loved the drawn-out ending, because you can feel the defeated resignation so well. The realization that when they all stepped out the door they were stepping away from all of their hopes and dreams.

[ljay889]

Posted: 11/16/11 at 11:43pm

The ending is quite possibly Berndadette's most successful moment. It's beautifully done. it's hardly Bernadette being Bernadette. The extended entrance and exit have been there since day one in DC. It's clearly part of Schaeffer's vision to give some more of the focus to Sally.
Updated On: 11/16/11 at 11:43 PM