Bernadette Peters & Lea Salonga to Lead Sondheim’s OLD FRIENDS On Broadway in 2025- Page 4

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:19pm

This is sort of disappointing. These are all great talents but I was hopeful this was going to be filled with Broadway stars the way the West End version was filled with some West End heavy hitters. I sort of don't understand what the point is... but it'll probably be a lovely show. 

[spicemonkey]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:20pm

Bette's Turban said: "She had vocal issues throughout the entire London run. I think she is forgiven alot in her concert turns. It’s still fun to see her."

Her vocal has been declining since Annie Get Your Gun sadly. But it’s still a huge privilege to see her perform live on the stage! 

[Bette's Turban]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:24pm

spicemonkey said: "Bette's Turban said: "She had vocal issues throughout the entire London run. I think she is forgiven alot in her concert turns. It’s still fun to see her."

Her vocal has been declining since Annie Get Your Gun sadly. But it’s still a huge privilege to see her perform live on the stage!"

Agreed.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:24pm

Seeing Bernadette at Two River Theatre in a few weeks, can't wait to see her in a relatively intimate venue.

[binau]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:30pm

I watched Bernadette more times in Old Friends than I care to admit to - and I'll tell you her vocal performance varied so much it's impossible for me to disagree or agree with any criticism because it's all right. At her worst, Bernadette's voice was so bad (clearly sick) she could not sing on pitch or even hold the last note of "Losing My Mind" and instead said "my mind, my mind, my mind" 3 times. She looked uncomfortable and I was uncomfortable - I realise this is the purpose of understudies and Bernadette probably shouldn't be performing. There were other periods where she just wasn't quite there especially early previews but then periods of time where she was on fire. 

At her best Bernadette's "Send in the Clowns" was just as good as it was in the production itself (and is my favourite take on the material), her "Losing My Mind" has a certain vulnerability that no one else has, the opening of "Broadway Baby" was sexy/soulful and "Gotta Get a Gimmick" was a riot. Bernadette singing "Not a Day Goes By" to Sondheim himself was very special too, but I will forever cherish Bernadette doing "Sunday" and hearing her do some of those spoken and sung lines in character with an incredible ensemble of singers around her. I tended to alternate between whether I'd cry after "Sunday" or the end choral "Being Alive". 

But I did think Bernadette was much stronger in the London concert recently - 8 performances a week might be taxing on the voice and Bernadette is clearly the co-star of 'Old Friends' with a lot of singing and dancing. I found it very impressive for her age and a joy to watch. And of course you're watching more than just a performer. It's a bit like a nostalgic throw back to an era that is almost gone, and a funeral/celebration for Sondheim himself. I would trade a bit of vocal health for the context. 

There aren't many voices that survive till age 76. Patti's voice is the only person I can think of. Everyone else it kind of goes by then (think Betty Buckley, Elaine Stritch, Angela Lansbury, Chita Rivera etc.). 

I died a little inside when I heard someone say "I loved the show except for the woman with the weird voice". It is what it is. I love her weird voice, even now. As soon as I heard it in 'Sunday' I was addicted to it and all I want to do is celebrate it while we still have it. 

Updated On: 10/22/24 at 01:30 PM

[Bwaygurl2]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:40pm

binau said: 

There aren't many voices that survive till age 76. Patti's voice is the only person I can think of. Everyone else it kind of goes by then (think Betty Buckley, Elaine Stritch, Angela Lansbury, Chita Rivera etc.).

I died a little inside when I heard someone say "I loved the show except for the woman with the weird voice". It is what it is. I love her weird voice, even now. As soon as I heard in 'Sunday' I was addicted to it and all I want to do is celebrate it while we still have it."

Sondheim loved that weird voice, so there! My favorite description of it is"the voice of a precocious child " and she still has that. She has a tremolo but her head voice was pure and her belt was brassy and exciting. The only people in their seventies that have/had better voices are Patti and Barbara Cook imo. 

[Bette's Turban]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 1:43pm

Sondheim also liked leather .. so there!!!!

Love that David Harris will be in the cast.Woof.It’s time for him to leave Moulin Rouge.

Updated On: 10/22/24 at 01:43 PM

[The Rural Juror]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 2:51pm

Bernadette AND Beth Leavel in a show together? Gay theatre gasps heard around the globe, and mine was the loudest. 

[binau]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 3:53pm

Maybe it's too early to tell but are Bernadette and Lea above the title in this New York production? 

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 4:30pm

binau said: "Maybe it's too early to tell but are Bernadette and Lea above the title in this New York production?"

I don't think so. Most of the non-profits don't usually do it (I know Sarah Paulson was below the title until Appropriate moved to the Belasco) and on the MTC website, their names are below the title everywhere. 

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 4:59pm

 I was hoping for Jac Yarrow to take the trip across the pond, but alas, no. I am thrilled to se Bonnir Langford will still be with the show, she is a bundle of likable Talent!!!I

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 5:02pm

KJisgroovy said: "This is sort of disappointing. These are all great talents but I was hopeful this was going to be filled with Broadway stars the way the West End version was filled with some West End heavy hitters. I sort of don't understand what the point is... but it'll probably be a lovely show."

Please correct me if I'm wrong. But, I think maybe you're mixing up the actual West End show with the one-night only gala concert (which was filmed and broadcast and recorded as the cast album). That had a TON of legit stars and people who were actually Sondheim's "old friends" including Maria Friedman, Judi Dench, Julia McKenzie, and many others. Bernadette, Bonnie, and Janie Dee were the only ones to continue on to the longer West End run. I'm not familiar with all the people who did it on the West End. But, the level of star power seems pretty equal to what we're getting on Broadway. 

That being said, I would agree that it's surprising and a bit disappointing how few of this cast have done major Sondheim productions before. Just looking at post-COVID, there have to be over 150 Sondheim alumni from Company, Woods, Sweeney, Merrily, Assassins, and Here We Are. Even more if you include the various concerts and the Company and Woods national tours. Out of that whole group, only two (Daniel Yearwood of Sweeney and Paige Faure of Company) are in this show. 

[SisterGeorge]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 7:23pm

It'll be interesting to see all the comparisons of the two Mama Roses that will be in town simultaneously. I thought Lea was terrific in London and at the time thought that if anyone was planning a full production of Gypsy, she'd be a great choice. Oh well.

[ChairinMain]

Posted: 10/22/24 at 10:09pm

Yeah, I dunno y'all I saw Bernie in concert last year and the voice was in really solid shape. Some keys were lowered but she sang almost all of the songs most associated with her (including a 20-minute "Dolly" sequence that made me feel like I had seen a one-woman national tour) and she sounded terrific the whole night long. That night was particularly special, because I had not been able to bring myself to listen to "Into the Woods" since Sondheim's passing, and Bernadette opened the concert with "No One is Alone". I couldn't have asked for a better moment in the woods.