For Patti LuPone and "Hello, Dolly!" fans only!

[Broadway Baby 2]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 1:05am

Hi Broadway world family,
I am realy hopeing that Patti does a revival of Dolly. I think it would be great. I emailed Jerry Herman to tell him how amazing LuPone would be in the role and that I am praying for a LuPone "Hello,Dolly!" revival. The show is due for a revival. I thought that some of you Lupone fans would also like to put a little bug in Jerry's ear about how wonderful it would be. Here is his email address for you to do just that [e-mail]

Updated On: 1/15/09 at 01:05 AM

[NYC_or_Bust]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 1:19am

It still ticks me off when people don't spell it "Hello, Dolly!"

[Broadway Baby 2]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 1:24am

noted and corrected

[homeimp]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 1:39am

Patti might be just great for Dolly. Then how about Bernadette for Dear World, Hugh Jackman and Stephanie Block for Mack And Mabel, Nathan Lane for The Grand Tour, Martha Plimpton for Mame, etc. Or should it be Martha for Mabel and Stephanie for Mame? Oh, dear...

[jeniferrenepatricia]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 4:54am

Although I love the idea, I would prefer to see Patti in a new production as opposed to a revival. A musical or straight play, it doesn't matter.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 7:56am

I don't think I want to see Patti play Dolly Levi...I'd prefer more of a JoAnne Worley type.

[CarolynaGirl]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 9:50am

I don't care what she does. I just need her back on the NY stage as soon as possible.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 9:56am

I'd like to see her originate a role, too. at TimesTalks, she said she had spoken to David Mamet and he was writing a role for her. it'd be pretty amazing if that panned out.

[jennyish]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 9:59am

Patti LuPone + David Mamet = Ultimate Theatre Bliss. I would pay full price for that ****.

[madbrian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:05am

I would agree with the sentiment that LuPone should look for a role to originate. Having said that, I'd love to see Dolly revived (and even more so, Mame). I think Megan Mullally could play the lead in either.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:16am

Obviously I'd love to see Patti originate a role, too.

But I like seeing great actors take on classic roles. I think we make such a distinction between musical roles and dramatic ones. Nobody seems to beef when a great actor takes on Hamlet (or, for that matter, when a great soprano does her first Tosca), but the screeching that occurred when it was announced Patti was doing Rose ("It's only been five years!") seemed odd to me.

I'm not saying that Dolly Levi is Hamlet, but it is a classic musical role, and I'd love to see her have a go at it--while we're waiting for someone to write another great musical lead for a 60-year-old woman.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:20am

"Patti LuPone + David Mamet = Ultimate Theatre Bliss."

That's already been done and it wasn't that great. Mamet needs top notch acting and Patti doesn't have the acting chops.

I also think Meagan Mullally is the best choice for Dolly. She will be able to find the comedy as well as the drama in the character. I think LuPone would ram through it like a bulldozer.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:24am

Goth, I disagree about "The Old Neighborhood"--I thought it was some of Patti's finest acting. I also thought she mopped the floor with everyone else, actingwise. Apparently Mamet thinks pretty highly of her, too, since she's done probably a dozen of his plays.

I do see your point about Dolly; left to her own devices, Patti can just do high-handed when she should be doing charming. But give her a real director--or at least a director she respects--and I think she can find things in the role that no one else has.

That being said, I'd love to see Megan M. do something really good.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:29am

Maybe when I saw "The Old Neighborhood" Patti was having an off day. There's a point in the show where she breaks down crying and it was one of the worst acting moments I've seen on Broadway. To me it looked like she was doing it by the numbers:

1 - lip tremble
2 - face scrunches
3- head down
4 - hand over face
5 - shoulders shake
6 - vocal sob
7 - recovery begins
8 - head up
9 - dab eyes
10 - on to next emotion

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:44am

I can imagine that, Goth. If Patti's bored or off for some reason, it shows.

I'll be honest: I am a HUGE fan of hers, but I generally don't care for her at all in straight dramatic roles. I went only because I got a cheap ticket. And she blew my socks off. It was really some of the best acting I'd seen in a while.

[nobodyhome]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:46am

If Patti LuPone was always as good as she was in The Old Neighborhood (at least when I saw her), I'd like her a lot more than I do.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:46am

Just thinking about watching Patti ask Ephraim to give her a sign before launching into the slow beginning part of "Before the Parade Passes By" gives me goosebumps.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:50am

And let's just take a moment to acknowledge that she would sing the f--- out of that.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:58am

I think that casting LuPone in the show would point out a flaw in the show.

"Before the Parade..." is in Act 1. Patti will blow the roof off with that song. There is nothing in Act 2 that will allow her to top that. She won't be able to use "Hello Dolly" to top "...Parade..." Act 2 will be a letdown.

The flaw was never noticed because Carol Channing wasn't a belter.

Updated On: 1/15/09 at 10:58 AM

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 10:59am

Didn't Herman put in an extra song or two for Merman?

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 11:04am

"Didn't Herman put in an extra song or two for Merman?"

Both songs were in Act 1.

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 11:06am

Ah.

Well, I certainly see your point. But I wouldn't argue for a lesser singer just on that account.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 11:14am

I wouldn't call it a lesser singer, it's a different type of singer.

[BroadwayBelle2]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 11:16am

I would see Patti in anything!

[NGeorgiaBwayFan]

Posted: 1/15/09 at 11:45am

So many reviews of GYPSY spoke about Patti bringing a different interpretation of Rose. (It certainly was a more sensual Rose, and more fierce than other productions I've seen.) Whether you enjoyed it or not, it was her own.

Of course, anyone who plays Dolly will always be compared to Carol Channing.

Part of the fun of theatre is seeing different interpretations of a role given by different actors. We've seen Patti's take on Rose, I think it would be fun to see her take on Dolly. Once again, whether you liked it or not, she'd make it her own.