I spent a good hour reporting on this 90 minute interview and then lost it all. So now you get the five minute version.
Kelli came out on stage with Father Beck wearing a thigh high black leather dress, to the amusement of the audience when she first sat down and arranged her legs.
Growing up Irish Catholic on a farm in rural Oklahoma, Kelli was chubby, unattractive, and suffered from discrimination from the Protestant Bible Belt girls, who would not associate with her. She also has a clear memory of the day when two girls passed her on the sidewalk and she heard one say to the other that "that girl looked just like Miss Piggy."
These girlhood experiences were formative. Kelli does not criticize the sincere beliefs of others and does not judge. I believe, though not completely clear on this, that she carries her Catholic faith deep within her, but clearly does not observe all the trappings, as she was married not in a church but on the top of a mountain in Vermont. Her father was OK with this.
As Father Beck went through her career, her first two songs were "Finishing the Hat" and "I Have Dreamed." I don't know if she knew Father Beck before tonight, but he must have really gotten on her good side when he told her that he had seen Bridges three times. The musical was discussed at length and the difference between the musical and the book/film was said to be that in the musical her husband was a good man and she loved him and her children and no one was at fault for the chance encounter and the affair.
Kelli made it crystal clear that we have not seen nor heard the last of Bridges. Although her age now precluded her from playing some of her other roles, Francesca was not one of them. The clip of the recording session of "One Second and a Million Miles" was played.
Towards the end, Father Beck turned back to religion, asking Kelli what she thought of Pope Francis. This Pope is the most tolerant Pope of my lifetime and Kelli was really glad to see his inclusiveness. She was one of the performers when the Pope celebrated Mass at Madison Square Garden. She sang "The Lord's Prayer." At the request of Father Beck, she arose to sing this,
Kelli left the microphone where it was in the corner. I've seen Kelly perform live many times, in shows, galas, concerts. Standing up there on the stage in this small venue, sans mike, with all the power of her classically trained voice, she gave the most stunning performance that I had ever heard. The audience would not stop applauding; it wanted to make sure that Kelli knew that what she had done was so amazing.
After a little more talk, mainly about politics and what it was like to return home, a liberal Democrat to a very conservative state. She remained gracious and didn't deride those who thought differently from her. Try to understand.
She then closed with her fourth song, which is her concert closer, "Make Someone Happy." Sadly, the mike was back. And then it was over. Surprisingly, there was no talk of her future plans.
