LEGENDS! in Concert...without Whoopi

[hushpuppy]

Posted: 3/23/09 at 11:39pm

I attended the one-night only performance of LEGENDS! As the crowd entered Town Hall tonight, there were prominent signs on the doors saying that due to illness, Whoopi Goldberg would not be performing. Before the performance started, Christine Ebersole came out to explain that Ms Goldberg was suffering from the flu, and her role would be performed by Lisa Estridge. Miss Ebersole gave us a little pep talk about how knocked out we were going to be by Miss Estridge and, who knows, we may just witness a Shirley MacLaine moment.

Well, we didn't quite get that, but we did have, for the most part, an enjoyable, often hilarious evening. I saw the original productions of LEGENDS! with Carol Channing and Mary Martin twice, once in Dallas, and once in San Francisco, and bought James Kirkwood's book 'Diary of a Mad Playwright' as soon as it came out, so I am familiar with the show and the backstage story.

Charles Busch and Lypsinka were excellent. Busch seemed to be chaneling her inner Bette Davis, and Lypsinka reminded me of Ann Miller (who, according to Kirkwood, called and offered herself as a replacement for Mary Martin, because, as she so colorfully put it 'You need two real c**ts up there'.)

Everything went along swimmingly, with major laughs, until halfway through the second act, when the ladies feed the producer character (Bryan Batt) some hash brownies. In the original, when the part was played by the wonderful Gary Beach, he masterfully played the part of someone who was losing control but couldn't quite figure out why. Tonight, director Mark Waldrop unwisely had Batt go through all sorts of ridiculous machinations, most of which were meant with bewildered silence from the audience (although he did get a robust hand upon his exit at the end). For me, it was at this point that the air went out of the production and the show never fully recovered.

I?ve never understood why LEGENDS! isn't a better show. A comedy about two washed-up actresses, who despise each other, yet dying for a comeback, should make for a giddy evening, yet both the original and this revised production sort of wheeze to a close when they run out of things to do. Interestingly enough, despite hearty applause, the audience stayed seated for the curtain calls.

Not to detract from Miss Estridge's competent performance, one has to wonder how much better the show would've been with Whoopi Goldberg as the sassy maid. But I guess we'll never know.

Lastly, it was a good night for stargazing. In the orchestra, I saw Stephen Sondheim, Raul Esparza, Parker Posey, Liz Smith, Phyllis Newman, and Sirius radio host Frank deCaro along with his partner, author Jim Colucci (I'm sure there was many many more celebs whom I missed).

[Corine2]

Posted: 3/23/09 at 11:56pm

I loved when Batt did Carol Channing. I thought he was hysterical.

[once a month]

Posted: 3/24/09 at 12:04pm

LAME play, but what a fun, exciting evening! A pal recently gave me a copy of Legends in Phila with Carol and Mary, and I can't wait to watch to see what was added for this production, other than Lypsinkas big number. Although Whoopie was severely missed, the audience was pumped and what a treat to have Christine Ebersole welcoming us. Unfortunately, I saw both Sondheim and Liz Smith leave during intermission.