Patti LuPone @ The Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH - 5/18 [my review :-D]

[Perfectly Marvelous]

Posted: 5/18/07 at 11:10pm

Tonight my mother and I went to see Miss LuPone in concert, as a "belated birthday" present [and Mother's Day present, too]. Neither of us had seen her perform in her one-woman show or any show for that matter, so we didn't know what to expect [which made it a lot more fun]. AsI sat there, through both acts, I couldn't believe I was watching Patti LuPone. Even now, as I am typing this up, I still can't believe it.

We dashed down the streets of Portsmouth, dodging the rain to the best of our abilities, and got to the theatre just in time for the show. Despite the weather, the theatre was packed and I noticed there didn't seem to be a lot of teenagers/young adults, except for two that were sitting in my section. The show began with Patti telling us that when she was a kid, dancing in a show, she noticed how the audience was smiling at her. "As long as they were smiling at me, I knew I could do whatever I wanted," then added, "So tonight, I'm going to do whatever I want!" And that she did!

One of the first songs she sang was from Bye, Bye Birdie one of first shows while she was in high school. She proceeded to tell us about how she'd cut class and go to cattle calls, stating it was a miracle she even passed high school. Listening to her speak about her auditions was great - especially "the drama division of the Juilyard School of Music" story - in which she chose the most generic modern monologue, classical monologue and overall terrible song choice to perform. Not to mention she showed up wearing the turtle neck mini dress her friend had bought for her for an earlier audition [and still managed to get in!]. It was stories like these that helped us [the audience] connect to her, and vice versa. I commented during intermission that it was like going to see Liza, because they're the same kind of performer. They both have little tales behind their song choices, and that's fascinating. Throughout the first act, she performed "Don't Rain On My Parade" [rather fitting!] as well as a song from The Baker's Wife [one of her first Broadway shows], and a segment devoted to West Side Story... which, for me, was one of the highlights of the evening. It was hilarious to hear her sing Anita and Maria's part at once! Another favorite was "Neverland" She closed the act with "Don't Cry For Me Argentina" met with a rousing applause.

After a twenty minute intermission and a costume change, Patti came back to dazzle us with "Oh What A Beautiful Morning" from Oklahoma. As she stated in the first act, this show was about roles she could have played, would have played, and should of played, so the second part featured roles that she very well could have played... if she were the leading man. To my Mom's surprise, there were no Sweeney Todd numbers, but to our delight, she sang "Trouble" from The Music Man, encouraging the crowd to join in on "Oh, we've got trouble!" During one of the songs, which required a pause in the music, someone's cell phone went off. So Patti, while taking the indicated pause, turns and looks in the direction of the ringing cellphone. After the number, she noted, "I'd like to remind you to turn off all cellphones and pagers..." to which we responded with a chuckle. In the back of my mind, I had hopes that she would perform a song from Company. My wish was answered when she sang "The Ladies Who Lunch". In true Patti fashion, she belted the hell out of the ending, and even though she had previously belted the hell out of her other selections, I didn't mind. It was wonderful to hear her live and not on a recording. And like Liza, she came out for a few encores. She "closed" with "My Way" and came back out for "The Way You Look Tonight" and just when most of the patrons thought finished, she returned once more to sing "If It's Magic", a song also covered by my favorite performer, Jon Peterson. Although I have to admit, I really enjoyed Patti's rendition, as well. As we stood standing and clapping, thinking that she was definitely not coming back out, [the curtain had closed by this point], she snuck out holding some flowers and tossing them to people in the front of the house. Then, she paused and sang "One Hundred Years After Today" [I think that's the title of the song, I'm probably mistaken] accappella. Sending off a kiss to us, she ducked behind the curtain and the show was complete, but not before saying "You have a beautiful city and a beautiful theatre. You're so lucky, Portsmouthians! God Bless."

It was truly a performance that will have a lasting impression on me. I hope to see her perform more in the years to come!

Updated On: 5/18/07 at 11:10 PM

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/18/07 at 11:19pm

Fabulous review! Love her. Glad you had a good time PM!

[Raviolisun]

Posted: 5/18/07 at 11:31pm

as well as a song from The Baker's Wife [one of her first Broadway shows]

I thought that never went to Broadway?

I'm glad you had such a nice time.

[Jan2]

Posted: 5/18/07 at 11:32pm

I was in the audience too tonight! Just got back! Awesome review, you pretty much summed up one amazing evening. It was my first time seeing Patti, and she was so amazing! I loved her encores.

[Perfectly Marvelous]

Posted: 5/18/07 at 11:59pm

I thought that never went to Broadway?

Yes, my bad. I forgot to mention that!


I'm glad I'm not the only local gal here to enjoy the show! It was tremendously amazing. I'm still in awe!

[D2]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 12:36am

Glad you enjoyed it, PM! I know how much you were looking forward to it!

[Unknown User]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 12:53am

that was fun to read!
thank you!

[Perfectly Marvelous]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 3:57pm

Glad you enjoyed it, PM! I know how much you were looking forward to it!

Let me tell you, it was worth running down the street in a pair of heels for!

I actually had a hard time trying to write this up, because half of me was sitting there trying to soak in every moment, while the other half was going "HOLY SH!T! I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M HERE WATCHING PATTI LUPONE SING!"

I forgot to mention that she did a fabulous rendition of "Losing My Mind" [far better than the 80's-fied Liza version].

[Unknown User]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 4:02pm

I forgot to mention that she did a fabulous rendition of "Losing My Mind"

i think my heart would stop.

[glimpseofstocking]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 4:57pm

Seeing Patti for the first time is like a religious experience! Haha! It sounds like the show was FABULOUS!
Losing My Mind? WOWWWWW. You have no idea how jealous I am of you!

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 5:03pm

I'm tempted to ask her if she'll ever sing "With One Look " and "As If We Never Said Goodbye" in her "Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda" show. from Roman in Austin, Texas... the official Patti LuPone FANatic

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 5:10pm

If only...


Sounds like you had a great time!

[Jan2]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 5:11pm

I totally agree Perfectly Marvelous, Patti singing 'Losing My Mind' was one of the highlights of the evening! I also really REALLY enjoyed 'Never Never Land.' All in all, and amazing experience. I did have to walk like 2 miles in the rain, was almost late, and got a huge blister on my foot, but it was totally worth it!

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 5:14pm

Patti LuPone was in THE BAKER'S WIFE when it started its pre-Broadway run in Los Angeles in May of 1976. It was scheduled to open at the Martin Beck(now the Hirschfeld) in November, 1976, but, despite its fine score by Stephen Schwartz, it had book, direction, and casting problems and it closed after its Washington, D.C. run, just before its scheduled NYC opening. A revised production played NYC's York Theatre Company in 1985, but was not well received.

Updated On: 5/19/07 at 05:14 PM

[Raviolisun]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 5:33pm

Thanks, Gypsy. That's what I thought. It's too bad, it's my favorite Stephen Schwartz score.

[Perfectly Marvelous]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 6:35pm

I forgot to mention that she did a fabulous rendition of "Losing My Mind"

i think my heart would stop.

Mine almost did when she started "Trouble"... I was about ready to jump up and down with immense glee. And I was so so so happy when she sang "The Ladies Who Lunch"!


Seeing Patti for the first time is like a religious experience! Haha! It sounds like the show was FABULOUS!
Losing My Mind? WOWWWWW. You have no idea how jealous I am of you!

It was like when I saw The Rocky Horror Show for the first time...

And yes,the show was fabulous from start to finish! When she said she was doing two from Steve, I didn't know which songs she was going to do, but I'm so glad that "Losing My Mind" was one of them [actually, it was the first one] and then she pulled up a stool to the front of the stage and began "The Ladies Who Lunch" [the ending was dead-on - no one else can belt out "RISE!" for about five or so times like she can. Seriously... what a voice! I'm not even sure I can listen to that song ever again, because her version was just amazing] My mom leaned over at one point and said, "Y'know, if you get more vocal training, you'll be just like her!" [honestly, I won't....but it's a nice thought!]


And I do apologize for the inaccuracies concerning The Baker's Wife, because I remember that she said it was her first Broadway role that never really got to Broadway, or something like that... which is a shame, because judging from that song she did, it sounded like a great score and a great production.

[wiggum2]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 6:49pm

I was there also and She was terrific! She seems to have a little bit of a cold but was still excellent! I had seen the coulda, woulda, shoulda before but I amd 95% positive this version had different songs and the pianist was adorable!

[Perfectly Marvelous]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 7:00pm

The pianist was great!

I remember when I saw Liza, she was also had/was getting over a cold, but still gave a stellar performance. And that's what I really admired about Patti, because even though she may be feeling a bit under the weather, she just gave the show her all.


And I'm so glad I wasn't the only BWW'r there!

[RevolutionaryCostume]

Posted: 5/19/07 at 8:19pm

Oh awesome!

I hope she performs a show that good in Chicago. She's coming here in August with Audra M. .

~Jacob.