Best Performance You've Seen? - Page 3

[54thstreet]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 1:29am

Matilda girls in London

[Will42]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 3:27am

Angela Lansbury in Driving Miss Daisy.

I've been fortunate enough to see quite a few great performances and productions in my life including Ms Lansbury's, but her Daisy Werthan is something else.
She was transcendent in the role and I the fact that her production wasn't filmed is a crime against humanity.

[JohnBalton]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 4:35am

Angela Lansbury in Driving Miss Daisy.

I've been fortunate enough to see quite a few great performances and productions in my life including Ms Lansbury's, but her Daisy Werthan is something else.
She was transcendent in the role and I the fact that her production wasn't filmed is a crime against humanity.

Yes she was great I hope you live in Australia. But the play was so strong because of the writing and supporting acting by Boyd Gains. He is a brilliant actor and loved him. James Earl Jones was amazing too.

[Will42]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 4:42am

Actually, it took me 2 days to get to Australia, since I live in Europe. Fantastic country, by the way.

I agree that Driving Miss Daisy was not only an acting showcase, as one might think. It's a beautifully crafted play with great direction and production design. James Earl Jones and especially Boyd Gains were great as well. You totally buy him and Lansbury as mother and son.

[JohnBalton]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 4:59am

You flew to Australia really???? where did you see DMD

[Will42]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 5:54am

I saw the show in Melbourne.
Always wanted to see Australia and this seemed like a perfect occasion. I spent a week in NSW and a week in Victoria - best vocation ever.

Those who lived in Australia and didn't see the show missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see 3 of the world greatest actors just around a corner.

[AngusN]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 6:56am

Bernadette Peters in Gypsy
Tracie Bennett in End of the Rainbow
Rory Kinnear in Hamlet
Douglas Hodge in La Cage
Maureen McGovern in Little Women
Christine Ebersole in Grey Gardens
Faith Prince in Guys and Dolls
Coleen Sexton in Jekyll and Hyde
Michael Ceveris in Sweeney Todd
Donna Murphy in Passion
Updated On: 7/24/13 at 06:56 AM

[JohnBalton]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 6:57am

Saw the Show I hope you went to Quay in Sydney and Dined in Attica in Melbourne

Updated On: 7/24/13 at 06:57 AM

[AC126748]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 7:53am

Mary-Louise Parker, Proof
Vanessa Redgrave and Robert Sean Leonard, Long Day's Journey Into Night
Christine Ebersole, Grey Gardens
Janet McTeer and Harriet Walter, Mary Stuart
Victoria Clark, The Light in the Piazza and Juno
Lili Taylor, Landscape of the Body
Patti LuPone, Gypsy
Tonya Pinkins, Caroline, or Change
Carla Gugino, After the Fall and Suddenly, Last Summer
Cate Blanchett and Joel Edgerton, A Streetcar Named Desire
Tracy Letts and Amy Morton, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Judith Ivey, The Glass Menagerie
Elizabeth Marvel in pretty much everything I've ever seen her in
Liev Schreiber and Jessica Hecht, A View From the Bridge
Joe Mantello and John Benjamin Hickey, The Normal Heart
Laurie Metcalf, Brighton Beach Memoirs and The Other Place

Updated On: 7/24/13 at 07:53 AM

[JohnBalton]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 7:57am

AC1267 wow that is a lot of shows

[Dave19]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 8:01am

"I've always said that if I'm lucky enough to live to be 100, I already know there will never be a performance as great as that one was. I just don't think it's humanly possible to top it."

I feel this way about Lea Salonga's performance in the "10th Anniversary" concert of les Mis. I don't think it will ever be humanly possible to top that exquisite vocal performance.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 8:27am

Of the last season? Amy Morton and Tracey Letts in Virginia Woolf(heck, the entire cast was stupendous) and Laurie Metcalf in The Other Place.

[fiesta1]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 8:31am

What a fun thread. The names mentioned have brought back many great memories. My standouts include:

Tonya Pinkins -- Caroline, or Change
Harvey Firestein - Torch Song Trilogy
Derek Jacobi - Cyrano de Bergerac (RSC) and King Lear (Donmar)
Angela Lansbury - Sweeney Todd
Vanessa Redgrave - Long Day's Journey
Richard Jenkins - Death of a Salesman
Bertie Carvel - Parade (Donmar)

[AC126748]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 8:32am

Where and when did Richard Jenkins do Death of a Salesman? That's a performance I would have loved to see.

[sally1112]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 8:40am

Patti LuPone- Gypsy
Patti LuPone- Sweeney Todd
Christine Ebersole- Grey Gardens
Alice Ripley- Next to Normal
Sutton Foster- Thoroughly Modern Millie
Gavin Creel- Hair
Cheyenne Jackson- Xanadu

[fiesta1]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 9:13am

AC12678:

I grew up in Providence, and saw Richard Jenkins play Willy Loman at Trinity Square in the early 80s. Truly an incredible performance.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 10:04am

I've seen many astonishing performances, including Victoria Clark in "The Light in the Piazza" and Nathan Lane in "The Nance".

But no performance has moved me more than Danny Burstein in "Talley's Folly". An extraordinary masterclass in acting.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 11:25am

recently:

Jenny Bacon Heartless
Patrick Stewart and Kate Fleetwood Macbeth
Nina Arianda Venus in Fur
Katie Finneran Promises, Promises
Chuck Cooper The Piano Lesson
Janet McTeer and Harriet Walter Mary Stewart
James Gandolfini and Jeff Daniels God of Carnage
Laura Linney Time Stands Still
Danny Burstein Follies
Kelli O'Hara and Paolo Szot South Pacific
Audra McDonald and Phillip Boykin Porgy and Bess
Holland Taylor Ann
Christine Ebersole and Mary Louise Wilson Grey Gardens
Cate Blanchett A Streetcar Named Desire
Mark Rylance Boeing Boeing
Judy Kaye Souvenir and Nice Work If You Can Get It
Donna Murphy Into the Woods
Alice Ripley Next to Normal
Laura Benanti and Boyd Gaines Gypsy
Tari Kelly (going on for Sutton Foster) Anything Goes

the ones I can't forget:

Jennifer Ehle and Stephen Dillane The Real Thing
Janet McTeer and Jan Maxwell A Doll's House
Ian McKellan Napoli Milionaria
Randall Duk Kim King John and Titus Andronicus
Joanna Gleason Into the Woods
Linda Lavin Broadway Bound
Donna Murphy Passion, The King and I, Wonderful Town
Lou Diamond Phillips The King and I
Emily Watson and Simon Russell Beale Uncle Vanya
Charles S. Dutton and S. Epatha Merkerson The Piano Lesson
Betty Buckley Sunset Boulevard and Gypsy
Niall Buggy Aristocrats
Robert Morse Tru
Lea DeLaria On The Town (marvelous in the park, not very good after it transferred)
Judy Kaye On The Twentieth Century
Bernadette Peters Annie Get Your Gun
Maggie Smith, Maggie Tyzack and Bette Henritze Lettice and Lovage
Rosemary Harris and Helen Stenborg Waiting in the Wings
Jim Dale Scapino
Jerry Orbach Promises, Promises
Mercedes Ruehl The Goat and Lost in Yonkers
Irene Worth Lost in Yonkers
Bill Pullman The Goat
Marian Seldes The Torchbearers and Three Tall Women
Myra Carter Three Tall Women
Claire Bloom Electra
Harriet Harris Thoroughly Modern Millie
Phylicia Rashad, Audra McDonald and Sanaa Lathan A Raisin in the Sun
George Rose and Jana Schneider Drood
Kathleen Turner Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Mary Louise Wilson Full Gallop
Christopher Plummer Barrymore
Robert Lindsay Me and My Girl
Eileen Atkins Prin
Michael Cerveris, Patti Lupone and Manoel Felciano Sweeney Todd
Victoria Clark Titanic
Vanessa Redgrave Orpheus Descending
Erland Josephson, Brian Dennehy and Linda Hunt The Cherry Orchard
Brian Dennehy and Elizabeth Franz Death of a Salesman
Colleen Dewhurst Long Day's Journey Into Night








Updated On: 7/24/13 at 11:25 AM

[theatregeek6]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 12:10pm

Marin Mazzie (N2N)
Tracey Bennet (End of the Rainbow)
Angela Lansbury (Gypsy)
Laurie Beechman (Joseph)
Ben Vereen (Pippin and JCS)
Jennifer Holiday (Dreamgirls)
Rita Moreno (Sunset Blvd - West End)
Bill Porter (Kinky Boots)

[frazer]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 12:13pm

Brian Darcy James - Next to Normal. If he took it to broadway, he would have got the tony.
Owain Arthur - One Man Two Guvnors
Pete Poslethwaite - King Lear
Angela Lansbury - Driving Miss Daisy
Caroline o'connor - Gypsy in Melbourne
Roger Allam - La Cage

and, ranked slightly above them all,

Tracie Bennett - end of the rainbow

[WickedOne2]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 12:29pm

I have so many favorites I can't name just one:

Raul Esparza - Company
Euan Morton - Taboo
Idina Menzel - Wicked
Patti LuPone and Laura Benanti - Gypsy
John Lloyd Young - Jersey Boys
Alice Ripley - Next to Normal
Gavin Creel and Will Swenson - Hair
Audra McDonald - Porgy & Bess
Sutton Foster - Anything Goes
OBC of God of Carnage
Victoria Clark - Light in the Piazza
Steve Kazee and Cristina Milioti - Once

[silversurfer2]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 1:06pm

Brian Stokes Mitchell & Audra McDonald & Marin Mazzie-RAGTIME
Natasha Richardson-CABARET
Patti LuPone-GYPSY
Angela Lansbury-GYPSY
Raul Esparza-COMPANY & TABOO
Euan Morton-TABOO
Alice Ripley-N2N
Original Cast-A CHORUS LINE-My First Bway Experience
Lea Salonga-MISS SAIGON
Harvey Fierstein-HAIRSPRAY
John Gallagher Jr and the Original Cast-SPRING AWAKENING
Nathan Lane-THE PRODUCERS
Ben Vereen-PIPPIN & JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
Christine Ebersole-GREY GARDENS
Liza Minnelli-LIZA @ THE PALACE
Jennifer Holiday -DREAMGIRLS
ORIGNAL CAST OF "LES MIS"

[sanda]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 1:41pm

Frank Langella --Frost/Nixon

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 1:48pm

I also have to add:

Patti LuPone - Master Class
Jane Adams - An Inspector Calls
Marla Schaffel - Jane Eyre

And in London:

Brendan Fraser - Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Martine McCutcheon - My Fair Lady
Sheridan Smith - Legally Blonde

[dreaming]

Posted: 7/24/13 at 1:53pm

London:

Judi Dench in "The Royal Family"
Gwyneth Paltrow in "Proof" (She was excellent-and there's a Sally Bowles! She'd be very good.)
Alan Rickman and Lindsay Duncan in "Private Lives"


Back in NYC:

I saw a one night only performance of Vanessa Redgrave reprising her role in "The Year of Magical Thinking". This was right after her daughter had died so suddenly (they changed the date, but it was still recent). She was astounding.

And I think Nina Arianda's performances in both "Born Yesterday" and "Venus in Fur" deserve recognition. (Come back to Broadway!)



Updated On: 7/24/13 at 01:53 PM