JERRY HERMAN-why no musical tribute? — Page 2

they don't train actresses like the ones needed to pull off his shows

Cough* Christine Baranski*Cough

Allofmylife: I agree with you totally, but what better way to show today's audiences a spectacular number from his show(s)? There are many younger theater fans who may have never seen the title songs of Mame or Hello Dolly staged. I agree that he needs no musical tribute as the legend he is, but for fans as well, it would have been a very special performance!

I do not agree that there are not trained singers and dancers or choreographers that could pull off the Mame title tune or Dolly. There is plenty of talent out there. Those 2 numbers do not require a lead singer either.

In the posts regarding the fact that something was planned, I find it very sad that it didn't happen and feel sorry for the people who rehearsed. I think it would have been much more of a showstopper than the Mama Mia sequence, that's for sure.

I was worried that his award was going to be given before the telecast, as was the case to the Lifetime Achievement awards given to Eileen Heckert and the past few recipients.

The use of the film clips was cool.

I understand the absence of songs from "Dear World" and "The Grand Tour", but, are there no clips from the original production of "Mack and Mabel"?

Why not even use the bit from the 1984 Tony Awards with Bernadette Peters and Robert Preston singing bits of "Time Heals Everything" and "I Won't Send Roses"?

And a bit more of Pearl Bailey singing "Before the Parade Passes By" would have been cool. That's one of the numbers that I've missed since the demise of BlueGobo.com.

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I look at this Tony as the one he should have gotten for Mack & Mabel.

We do need a new Herman show about now.

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Is Bernadette Peters out of the running for either of these?

She could work as MAME.

I'd like to see Sam Mendes attack it and come up with something interesting. His GYPSY had its moments and his Sondheim shows were briliant, particularly COMPANY and ASSASSINS... and THE FIX and CABARET are two of the most electrifying shows I saw in the 90s.

Maybe he's too Hollywood now... Maya Rudolf (the star of his new film which opens wide this week) would be a brilliant Gooch. Plus she's pregenant right now (with Paul Thomas Anderson's offspring no less).

Baranski was fantastic in SWEENEY TODD every time I saw her (opposite Kelsey Grammer and Brian Stokes Mitchell) and her work in CHICAGO and MAMMA MIA (and THE BIRDCAGE where she sings "Love Is In The Air") is all stellar. She is well-regarded and should be allowed to carry her own full-rate production.

Nothing less. For any of them.

Frankly, I do not really feel LA CAGE (which is definitely coming back) nor MAME nor HELLY DOLLY needs a revival as much as MACK & MABEL.

I'd love to see an imaginative director tackle that show in a solid revival.

It's Herman's best score.

P

Updated On: 6/8/09 at 10:26 PM

Actually, the footage was wonderful. It's been on youtube before but this time, it has been stabilized and the soundtrack matched up. It worked for me. It was magical.

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Well it's probably just as well that they didn't

Remember Stephen Sondheim's musical tribute a few years ago?

It was as if some intern who new nothing about theatre or Sondheim and did no research was given the order to:
"Find someone who embodies the work of Stephen Sondeim"

Sondheim...Sondheim...Sondheim...I know Arthea Franklin!!!!!!!!!

And what an awful performance that was too.