I have never traveled out of town for a show.. until this was announced. I knew last week that this was coming, but I didn't want to get too excited until it was official. Alice Ripley is probably my favorite theatre performer, and having hard her sing "As If We Never Said Goodbye" a few years ago at her 54 Below show with Emily Skinner, I knew there were two roles she needed to play, Norma and Rose (at her Sondheim solo show she sang Rose's Turn, google it, you won't be disappointed) Now while Boston isn't a long trip from NYC, it still says something about this piece of casting that it would get me to travel anywhere.
Side note: she was brilliant in the recently closed Pink Unicorn, even on a night when i saw it in early previews, where her shirt was buttoned wrong (which she played off hilariously), and her glasses got stuck on her sweater, she handled things flawlessly. (Sure she asked for lines a few times, but it was second preview of a one woman 90 minute show)