"Liza's At The Palace" REVIEWS- Page 8

[MamasDoin'Fine]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 7:51am

Is that New Orleans concert yet on DVD anywhere. I only have the Laserdisc.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 9:45am

No, the New Orleans concert was never released on DVD--and the "Harvest Moon" is not on the laserdisc or the commercial VHS release--it was an encore, included only on the HBO broadcast.

Some wonderful collector kept his Betamax tape for 28 years and uploaded it onto YouTube.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 10:21am

I saw Liza last night and was indeed impressed. Though still not a fangirl, her tenacity with the material was great. She took some tough songs at her age and wrestled them into submission. I though she sounded great on most numbers (tho I do find the slurring, or should I say "shlurring") annoying and distracting. The orchestra was WONDERFUL, with the average age of the players seeming to be about 75...they were the highlight for me.

She was most charming, to me, when she went off script, spilling twice and flubbing the baseball joke.

"New York, New York" was another highlight...coming at the end of the show I thought she might not have gas left, but she LOVED performing it and had her best vocal of the evening, imo...modulating twice!
Switching the last number was a lovely surprise and very touching.

[bschneid76]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 10:29am

I was there last night as well. It was my first time seeing Liza live. I was in the 5th row and it was the most magical evening I have ever spent in a theatre. I loved when she flubbed the baseball line. "Billy, we're at the palace!" It was great. Her voice sounded wonderful as well. "New York, New York" was terrific. Truly magical.

[DAME]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 1:08pm

PJ.... I have a very good copy on VHS of the HBO special. I did transfer it to dvd for my files. I did ask her ( back when she was promoting the Liza with A Z dvd) if there were any plans to release her New Orleans and London shows on dvd and she did say "eventually". I am hoping that since she is ( apparently) in partnership with showtime that this current engagement gets filmed. I keep checking the ticketmaster site to see if they add any notes like they did with Gypsy regarding filming and camera presence at the last performances.

Updated On: 12/10/08 at 01:08 PM

[Corine2]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 1:27pm

Hey Dame. Are you the Producer of this show? Seems so.


I am still bitter about being the only press person in NYC to not get a ticket. I am very BITTER and I am usually not bitter.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 1:40pm

Corine, for god's sakes just BUY one!! Liza is worth every single penny of your hard-earned (or not-so-hard-earned) income.

[Corine2]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 2:09pm

No. I am bitter with a capital B.

[Kalimba]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 2:14pm

Sounds like someone was left off the "Press comp" list.

[DAME]

Posted: 12/10/08 at 2:50pm

Not the producer. Just a jealous Hussy who can't get to NY right now. And Corine.. you should have to pay for your ticket just like everybody else. Stop bitching.

[Testing1232]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 12:26am

Just got back, and all I can say is "WOW" !!!!!

An experience that I will NEVER forget !!!

God Bless that woman !

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 12:35am

I was there tonight as well...my fourth time. My friend and I were talking right after the show ended, and he said "we are in our mid-20s and this is probably the best performance we will ever see in our entire lives." I'm sure he was right.

I did the rush thing today...got to the box office at noon...waited there for seven hours and got front row center orchestra seats. It was wonderful seeing her so close...many of the songs brought a tear to her eyes, and not only did she sing well, she acted through most of the songs and was astounding.

The Kay Thompson segment was *brilliant* tonight, as was "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," which always brings a tear to my eye. Strangely enough, I got back to my apt 5 minutes before 11pm, turned on the TV, and ABC was showing a movie, and the background music was Judy Garland singing "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" through the end the movie. I started crying again.

Mayor Bloomberg was in the audience tonight and Liza acknowledged him right before she sang "New York New York."

Going back tomorrow afternoon and really looking forward to it.

Congrats to Liza, Ron, Billy, Jim, Tiger, Cortes, Johnny, and all involved in this brilliant production. Seeing this show makes me so happy...I can't even explain it. Go see this show!!

Updated On: 12/14/08 at 12:35 AM

[Testing1232]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 12:44am

<< The Kay Thompson segment was *brilliant* tonight, as was "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," which always brings a tear to my eye. >>

Totally agree- LOVED the Kay Thompson segment, especially the part about the "mirror"- (being vague so not to possibly spoil)

And "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" seemed to bring a tear to Liza's eyes as well ! (along with my entire section!)

This is a performance that you can never forget !

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 12:52am

Yes, Testing, the "closets" and "mirror" story always gets to me. LOVED it. I'm still debating in my head whether the "powderpuff" story is true or not, but nevertheless, she sells it well!

[DAME]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 3:10am

WT.. how was the house? And I have asked before if they are selling any kind of tickets at tkts? The rear balcony in the Palace should never be a full priced seat.

[Luscious]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 3:29am

Saw the show tonight, as well. Amazing! Alright, she doesn't hit every note, but who cares? She gives so much of herself that the audience is rooting for her every step of the way. I thought it was a very poignant, vulnerable and heartfelt performance. When she said that her family was all gone and that the audience was now her family, I teared up. I can't say that it was my favorite Liza show. I thought some of the song choices could have been better, especially during the first act. But it was an unforgettable night at the theatre, nonetheless. And she looked sensational!

Updated On: 12/14/08 at 03:29 AM

[Testing1232]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 8:58am

<< WT.. how was the house? And I have asked before if they are selling any kind of tickets at tkts? The rear balcony in the Palace should never be a full priced seat. >>

I was in Balc A- The rear of the balc had a ton of empty seats.. I was surprised given the fact that it was a Sat night, but the Palace is very steep, and not the best view up there.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 9:02am

The powder-puff story is the ultimate Liza story. It doesn't matter if it's true or not. It's BETTER than true.

[Testing1232]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 9:11am

<< The powder-puff story is the ultimate Liza story. It doesn't matter if it's true or not. It's BETTER than true.>>

Never heard so many people say "Aw" at once !!! What a great story !!

[MamasDoin'Fine]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 10:10am

I feel very lucky!
I arrived in New York from London yesterday (Sat) at 4.30pm, was in a friends apartment at 6pm, was in Times Square by 7.15pm and had a return ticket for Liza in my hand at 7.50pm!
She was amazing, more amazing than I dared to expect at the end of a 2 week schedule that she has just done. The buzz inside that theatre for the 3 or 4 minutes before curtain was how can i put it? -dangerous! There are only a handful of times I've experienced that buzz in a theatre in the last 30 years and one of those was a Liza concert back in the early 80s!
Liza looked fantastic, if a little tired looking. She blasted every number like only Minnelli can and had the audience within milliseconds of climbing to the stage at her! Nobody else can do that, not even Streisand or the like!
The show was avery slick 2hr 15min whirlwind.
Im not gonna ramble on about the show as its been perfectly described by all the posts above except to say that she is back as near to the top as we will ever get to see her now so see her if you can. I left the Palace and couldn't talk for 30mins!!!
Wish i could catch another performance but she's dark tonight and tomorrow. How am I gonna sit thru 'Slavas' matinee today without thinking of what's on stage at the Palace across the road???
Updated On: 12/14/08 at 10:10 AM

[Scripps2]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 11:19am

Are you out there again Mama?

Poor old Slava! I've seen him this year as well as Liza, and Liza is a extremely hard act to follow.

[MamasDoin'Fine]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 11:28am

Hi there! yea Im here again but this is the planned trip!
Last night- 'Liza At The Palace'
Today- 'Slava' and maybe 'Shrek' again for the opening night.
Tomorrow- not decided yet!
Never seen 'Slava' so I'm looking forward to it. If i get to the opening of 'Shrek' I will be happy as i really enjoyed it 3 weeks ago and Im sure its now tighter and ready for the critics.
There's so little to see here at the moment.

[Scripps2]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 11:52am

Slava is good - that is if you haven't seen Liza the previous night. I think you will like him anyway because he's born of a completely different theatrical tradition.

See Billy Elliott tomorrow - I'd love to know how it compares to the London production from a British perspective.

[MamasDoin'Fine]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 12:01pm

Its the Monday night problem in New York -not many shows on stage and 'Billy Elliot' isn't one of them!
We're trying to change the times as 'Slava' does an evening show today and 'Billy' has a matinee!

[uncageg]

Posted: 12/14/08 at 12:36pm

Mamma, maybe check out an off-Broadway show this evening if you can't do Shrek. Sounds like you have been here recently so I don't know what you have seen. Fuerzabruta is a really fun show. I got a discount ticket online the day of the performance. I did a Sunday evening show. I assume you may have already seen Altar Boyz. If not, they have a Monday night performance. A very fun show.