Passion Concert Question

[RockabyeHamlet]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 3:32pm

Im terribly sorry if this has been mentioned before, but is it correct that their were two major Passion concerts? One with Donna Murphy, Michael Cerveris, and Marrian Mazzie, and another with Patti LuPone, Michael Cerveris, and Audra McDonald? I have only seen pictures but a friend of mine swears there was only one with Michael Cerveris and it was with Donna Murphy and Marian Mazzie, a reunion concert of sorts. Any help would be greatly appreciated, as both of us are a tad confused.

Updated On: 5/14/07 at 03:32 PM

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 3:55pm

http://www.ibdb.com/production.asp?ID=390386

[folkyboy]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 3:58pm

which one was Audra in then? cause i remember reading she was in one for Great Performances or something or other.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 4:02pm

Audra was in a concert version of Passion but it was for Live From Lincoln Center, not Great Performances. And it was an amazing production in my opinion.

[RockabyeHamlet]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 4:04pm

Matt, was it with LuPone and Cerveris?

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 4:06pm

^ Yes it was.

I posted a link for the 10th Anniversary concert with Murphy, Cerveris, and Mazzie.

[RockabyeHamlet]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 4:07pm

Thank you!

[folkyboy]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 4:07pm

aha! anything Audra is in is amazing. that went without saying :)

but i appreciate the clear-up.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 4:59pm

Is anyone able to put the Patti LuPone, Michael Cerveris, and Audra McDonald Passion on DVD for me? My tape is looking pretty bad...

[jewishboy]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 6:51pm

Right, the one with Patti, Michael, and Audra was a staged version that was taken from Ravina and done in Lincoln Center. The one with Marin, Donna, and Ceveris was the 10th anniversary done at the original theater.

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 6:56pm

^ The anniversary show played the Amabassdor. PASSION originally played the Plymouth.
Updated On: 5/14/07 at 06:56 PM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 6:56pm

I still think that the Lincoln Center version is amazing.

Posted: 5/14/07 at 7:15pm

I don't. I'm glad I have it and have seen it--and I have to admit i'm biased because Passion is one of my top 5 shows ever--but the concert just feels like it has so many wrong headed decisions for me. That said to be fair I enjoyed way more than the Candide concert that same year--and I sorta dislike concert productions anyway

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 7:26pm

I thought the two leads in the Live from Lincoln Center concert were miscast and I didn't like the way Audra McDonald decided to go with her characterization of Clara.
PASSION is my favorite musical--along with FOLLIES and SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE(how can I choose just one?)--but I have yet to hear a trio of actors that can match the beautiful and brilliant chemistry between Donna Murphy, Jere Shea, and Marin Mazzie. I think that was Mazzie at her best and Murphy gave a performance for the ages.
Did anyone see the 10th anniversary concert? It's interesting that Cerveris and Murphy worked there together and now they're back playing opposite each other.

[Raviolisun]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 7:31pm

I want the Patti/Audra/Michael one so. Frickin. Badly.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 8:54pm

Yes, I was at the reunion production. And it was one of the best experiences I have ever had. Donna Murphy was... flawless? And at first Michael Cerveris was a very quiet Gorgio and seemed kind of uncomfortable, but it all came together during "Is This What You Call Love?" which was one of the best that night. And since I didn't see the original I was so happy to see Marin Mazzie and Donna Murphy (two of my absolute favs) together. Also, my mom was there that night, she saw the original, and said that since Marin Mazzie has grown as an actress over the years that she was almost equal to Donna. This was different from the original, according to her, because she only remembered Donna Murphy the first time around.

[C is for Company]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 9:05pm

The Licoln Center concert didn't wow me much, aside from Audra who was in beautiful voice. It did however cause me to buy the OBC and the dvd of that performance and since then, that original trio has been the definitive to me.

Posted: 5/14/07 at 9:23pm

Jere Shea's always been underated in the role I think (many of the critics of the musical--and there were a lot--put a large part of the blame on him) but I find him supremely touching and natural in it--it's a shame he's kinda disappeared.

Was the concert staged by Lonny P? I dunno--it WAS nice to have the opportunity to hear a new cast play the roles (though I play the London recording a fair amount anyway) and I like Giorgio's song being back in but--it felt miscast to me too and just lacking. but it is hard to top that original trio

E

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 10:15pm

Jewishboy, thanks so much for the memories of the PASSION 10th anniversary concert. How I wish I could've been there.
Eric, the Lincoln Center concert was indeed staged by Lonny Price which probably explains some of the shortcomings. However, even if James Lapine had directed this, I don't think I would've been convinced that LuPone and Cerveris were right for Fosca and Giorgio.
The only three actresses I know of that have played the role are LuPone, Maria Friedman, and Judy Kuhn. I found LuPone miscast and Maria Friedman a debacle in the OLCR; but I really do wonder how Kuhn did in the role, of the three of them she's the only one that sounds like an interesting choice for Fosca.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 10:34pm

I hated Patti LuPone's Fosca. She had no dignity whatsoever and was completely crazy. There is no reason in my eyes that Giorgio should have fallen for her.

As for Cerveris, he was all wrong for Giorgio, both vocally and physically.

Audra was great, though a bit too warm for Clara IMO.

[buffyactsing]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 11:14pm

Ditto to what CatsNYRevival said. If anyone has a fairly good quality copy I'll raise them either the October 12th or New Years Eve Audra Concert from Live From Lincoln Center....PM me.

The concert was interesting...oddly enough it got me into Passion even though I had seen the OBC dvd before. While now I much prefer the DVD, the concert is lovely in it's own right, especially Audra (though as Sporkgoddess said, a bit too warm of a Clara opposite Lupone)...but no one can compare to Donna Murphy as Fosca.

Updated On: 5/14/07 at 11:14 PM

Posted: 5/14/07 at 11:16pm

I saw the London version when I was 14 or 15 on my first time in London--I had just gotten into Sondheim about 3-4 years before but knew the Broadway CD by heart. I was mixed on the production (I wish I had bought a program--I can't even find pictures online--but I remember it being based around some sorta glass gazebo--I joke not)--I was a big fan of Aspects of Love (quiet all) then so was very excited to see Ball and had no clue who Friedman was--but really liked both live even if, when I saw the filmed version pretty soon after they didn't compare. But it was an interesting production (not at all based on the Lapine version--and I realize now I don't even remember who directed it) and the audience reacted REALLY well to it--I had heard about the laughter with Broadway audiences, etc, and was nervous about the reaction.

That said I don't play the concert recording of that cast all that much.

E

[jewishboy]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 11:22pm

I'm sorry, SparkGoddess, but Cerveris was excellent for Gorgio vocally. And although I do agree with you on the physical stand point, he is such a great actor that it really makes no difference.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 11:28pm

It's interesting you say that, Eric. When I had just turned 18, I wasn't familiar with PASSION yet, though I did know about it but I dated an older guy who used to live in London and he saw the original London production with Friedman and Ball. He couldn't even tell me what the show was about, if I remember correctly, he said "it is about this woman who is sick but really ugly and it's a horrible show." He also said that he wanted to leave an intermission but his friend convinced him to stay.
Once I did become familiar with the show--and like I said before, now it's my favorite Broadway musical--I wondered if he felt that way because he saw the London cast or because he just didn't get the show itself (after all, his favorite show was MAMMA MIA).
I really can't stand listening to Maria Friedman in the OLCR. I think she has no idea what she is doing playing Fosca, she is all over the place, and I find it a very one-note performance. None of Murphy's nuances and delicious line readings are there. Michael Ball on the other hand is quite good as Giorgio, though I much prefer Shea.
How did you feel the added intermission helped/interrupt the pace of the show?

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 5/14/07 at 11:36pm

I disliked both Cerveris's acting and his singing in the role. As for his appearance, not even the best actor in the world could make me think of him as the hot boy toy that I imagine Giorgio to be.

As per the London version: I don't like Maria Friedman as much as Donna Murphy, and I think that "I Love Fosca" ruins the beautiful revelation that is found in "No One Has Ever Loved Me."