I saw Linda Balgord on for Rose this evening (I rushed the show with a friend from out of town this morning before anyone knew what was going on.)
The scene outside was very awkward to say the least. They had huge signs saying Patti was out and people from the house staff were also handing out elaborate fliers at the door explaining how to go about getting a refund, though it looked to me (at least from the orchestra) as if most people just saw the show as is.
As I was waiting in line to get in, I overheard someone who'd bought their tickets between shows today complaining that the person at the box office who handled them said Patti wasn't scheduled to be out tonight and didn't tell them she'd been out at the matinee. The staff member they were speaking to rebutted that Patti didn't call out for tonight's performance until 5pm, so it looks like she's going on a show-to-show basis with whatever illness has sidelined her.
I thought Balgord was terrific in a completely different way than LuPone (who I've seen in the role twice, once at the very end of previews and once again back in August.) She was much more emotionally vulnerable, which made her moments of anger and frustration that much more volatile.
Her singing was great (though her tendency to close her vowels made her sound shrill at times,) and she wore the same wig and costumes Patti does. She didn't get all of the laughs, but I think that had more to do with the audience than her delivery (since they didn't laugh at much else either, save for "You've Gotta Get a Gimmick" in the second act.)
Knowing that her first time on was only this afternoon, I was particularly impressed with how great her chemistry was with Boyd Gaines and Laura Benanti, both of whom are still turning in stellar performances that only validate their Tony wins. The dynamic is different, but it still works beautifully.
If you do end up seeing Balgord (which I don't imagine will happen often from now on,) know that the role is in good hands.
Tonya Pinkins: Then we had a "Lot's Wife" last June that was my personal favorite. I'm still trying to get them to let me sing it at some performance where we get to sing an excerpt that's gone.
Tony Kushner: You can sing it at my funeral.
Updated On: 11/23/08 at 12:21 AM