Lucy and Jesse

that's a tough one Glebb.....I saw Blythe Danner do it twice...so I'd have to go with her...but I did love Lee Remick.

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No contest: Alexis Smith.

The other are just play-acting.

And correction: LUCY's a lassie you pat on the head; Jessie is classy, but virtually dead.

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Yes, I saw the original Follies. Five times.

But NO--I never saw the ZIEGFELD Follies.

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The recorded Phyllis's, in order of performance (on disc):

Alexis Smith
















Dee Hoty
Lee Remick

Updated On: 3/16/05 at 09:58 PM

I gave up Little League to worship Stephen Sondheim. I memorized this one and performed it every Saturday afternoon in left field.

Here's a little story that should make you cry,
About two unhappy dames.
Let us call them Lucy "X" and Jessie "Y"
(Which are not their real names).

Now Lucy has the purity
Along with the unsurety
That comes with being only twenty-one.
Jessie has maturity
And plenty of security.
Whatever you can do with them she's done!

Given their advantages,
You may ask why
The two ladies have such grief.
This is my belief...
In brief:

Lucy is juicy
But terribly drab.
Jessie is dressy
But cold as a slab.
Lucy wants to be dressy.
Jessie wants to be juicy.
Lucy wants to be Jessie
And Jessie Lucy.

You see,
Jessie is racy
But hard as a rock.
Lucy is lacy
But dull as a smock.
Jessie wants to be lacy,
Lucy wants to be Jessie.
That's the sorrowful précis.
(It's very messy.)

Poor sad souls,
Itching to be switching roles.
Lucy wants to do what Jessie does,
Jessie wants to be what Lucy was.

Lucy's a lassie
You pat on the head.
Jessie is classy
But virtually dead.
Lucy wants to be classy.
Jessie wants to be Lassie.
If Lucy and Jessie could only combine,
I could tell you someone
Who would finally feel just fine!

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I think EVERYONE was outdone by Diana Rigg performing "Ah, But Underneath" in the same spot in the London production.


A Note of Trivia: "The Story of Lucy and Jessie" replaced a number called "Uptown Downtown." In that number, the dancers were going to dance in opposite directions at the same time--to demonstrate the confusion Phyllis was going through while she performed--but it proved a little too hard for Michael Bennett to choreograph properly.

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First of all, Glebb, your showqueen card is PLATINUM and it never expires. After all, I could never have put that red dress on and done the choreography. You could have--and you would have looked fabulous. Those who can, do. The rest of us (like me) memorize lyrics.

And yes, Guv and M-E, Ah, but Underneath has brilliant lyrics, but what Sondheim song doesn't? Lucy/Jessie had the post-modern pastiche quality that Losing My Mind, Buddy's Blues and Live/Laugh/Love had, all of which contributed to making the end of that show a total mind-f*ck. They were Sondheimian versions of the kinds of songs performers like that did in shows like that, yet they summed up the core psychological problem of each character with devastatingly incisive irony. Ah, but Underneath misses out on those multiple levels and operates on a single level. Underneath that song, there isn't much.

Plus, Alexis Smith was so incredible looking slinking around in that red dress, and the lyrics were a tongue-twister.

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See my post above.

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Might I just say how much I love the Follies in Concert DVD?

And just as good as the concert is the rehearsal footage shown at the beginning.

I LOVED that number but I could never even begin to pick a favorite.

It is perfectly acceptable for baby show queens to perform on a sports field sans costume as long as it is the original choreography. Spiked shoes only add to the challenge. I was once sent off a football field because it was thought that my FLAWLESS rendition of "Turkey Lurkey Time" was upsetting the other team. Actually, it was MY team gunning for me after the match as I recall...