Patti and Bernadette NEED to perform together- Page 2

[nasty_khakis]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:42am

g.d.e.l.g.i. said: "Wait a minute, though...

Patti as Vera
Bernie as Auntie Mame
"Light the candles, get the ice out / Roll the rug up, it's today!"

Huh? Huh??"

Ain't NO way Patti would play second fiddle to Bernie. Patti would play a smaller part (Women on the Verge, for example), but she'd never be Vera to Bernie. They'd have to switch the roles nightly or something. 

 

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:43am

As I said in my edited reply, the only reason I'm not reversing the two or suggesting they alternate, which might work equally well, is that I'm afraid Patti would decide to play Mame like Rose. I don't need to see the dark side of Mame Dennis. At least Vera reflects what Patti really is -- a strega. And it's a sizable enough part that maybe she wouldn't mind playing second banana. I mean, I doubt she wouldn't mind, I'm not an idiot, but one can dream.

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 09:43 AM

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:44am

I don't mean to insult because I do love her, but I don't think Bernadette's voice would be up to singing Mame eight times a week. It seemed to me Follies was a difficult show for her, and Mame is arguably a larger role and much more vocally demanding. Patti, who is very funny, seems like she would be too broad for Vera. It's a shame that Elaine Stritch never played that before she died.

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:46am

Well, let's say we flip the script... Patti as Mame, Bernadette as Vera. Better fit? (I'd like to believe that could still work, but I keep seeing visions of the one-note manic depressive Rose in my head.)

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 09:46 AM

[adamgreer]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:55am

Patti as Mame could go either way, but in order for it to work, she'd need a very strong director. Peters could never sing it 8 times a week. 

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:59am

When has Bernadette ever showed a flair for the kind of deadpan comedy that you have to master in order to play Vera? She can be very funny and often is, but I don't know if that is in her particular wheelhouse. Really, Mame is just an odd fit for both of them. 

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:01am

wonderfulwizard11 said: "When has Bernadette ever showed a flair for the kind of deadpan comedy that you have to master in order to play Vera?"

And that's why I said Patti for Vera. Make up your mind, man! :P It's not like they can't transpose the score for Bernadette.  

Having said that, when I picture Bernadette as Vera, I picture her as Vera in opposition to Patti's dark crazy Mame, which may or may not occur were Patti given the role. This would allow for a different take where Vera was slightly brighter and more bubbly.

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 10:01 AM

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:05am

I just can't see either of them being a good fit for anything in this show. I guess Bernadette could have been a good fit for Agnes when she was younger, but that's about it. If they ever revive it, I'd rather see someone like Andrea Martin play Vera, though I have no idea who would make an ideal Mame.

[lovebwy]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:44am

qolbinau I always thought your love of La Peters was simply adorbs.

 

I feel the same way about Patti. Watching them work together would be a hoot and a half.

[Sertzo19]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 11:23am

This thread is everything. I'm just here for the dream-collabs.

[nasty_khakis]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 1:10pm

No no, I completely agree she'd make a GREAT Vera and heck, may even play her opposite other Mames (I know she loves working with Audra, for example), but I just meant that would be the only way to get her to play a role with only 1 and a half songs to Bernie's many. I actually would LOVE to see that, though.

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 2:02pm

I've got it -- benefit concert, a la Encores! She only has to suffer for one night. :P

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 2:16pm

A Broadway Cares Concert is really what I had in mind when I suggested this thread, and I think the ladies could have so much fun riffing on all the kinds of things suggested in this thread.  Can you imagine them doing a mock rivalry "Anything You Can Do...I Can Do Better" duet? Or a medley of all the roles they "should" have played. It would be a hoot and the audience would eat it up.

 

And of course, I didn't mean to infer Peters and LuPone are the "most relevant" of current music theatre leading ladies, but they are, because of their long careers and the historic roles they've played on Broadway, arguably the most legendary- and certainly the two I think most theatre fans would love to see perform together.

 

I hope it happens someday and that the occasion isn't Stephen Sondheim or Mandy Patinkin's funeral.

 

 

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 02:16 PM

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 2:25pm

QueenAlice said: "I hope it happens someday and that the occasion isn't Stephen Sondheim or Mandy Patinkin's funeral."

 

Wow that came out of left field, that is too funny. I appreciate dark wit.

 

I would also love to see Bernadette and Patti do something together.

[binau]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 5:35pm

Another reason it would be unlikely for Bernadette to replace Ebersole (besides the reasons already discussed) is that, when they've considered names like LuPone, Murphy and Ebersole - Bernadette would have at least crossed their mind. They've had at least two chances to cast her now but haven't. Either they don't want her, or Bernadette doesn't want them (and I'm guessing it's more the former - she'd be crazy to pass up this opportunity).

[binau]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:19pm

lovebwy said: "qolbinau I always thought your love of La Peters was simply adorbs."

Thanks <3. I didn't really like musicals until I came across Sweeney Todd and really 'got' how it was possible to explore a story and character with music. After expanding my knowledge and experience through the Sondheim catalogue (and more broadly), Bernadette exemplifies this for me in a way that is rare to find in other actresses.

Bernadette may never have reached the single peaks that some actresses have been able to when the perfect mirage of actor and show come together (e.g., Ebersole in Grey Gardens; Ripley in Next to Normal; Murphy in Passion), even if she has come extremely close (Sunday in the Park). But perhaps more importantly she has turned in a string of very good performances time and time again that are both engaging and continue to show why this art form is such an effective way to tell a story. Few actresses on Broadway have such an extensive list. And too often actresses with incredible peaks seem not to be able to repeat their success in other shows.

I feel like of late Bernadette has lost a bit of popularity on this forum, particularly as her voice ages. But given she has still recently delivered some of the peaks of her career (e.g., Send in the Clowns in NIGHT MUSIC), I myself have no reason to lose interest.

 

[Jay Lerner-Z]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 9:30pm

^ I still love her!

 I'd love to see them perform "The Grass Is Always Greener" from Kander & Ebb's "Woman Of The Year", with Patti in the Lauren Bacall role and Bernadette as the ditzy Marilyn Cooper character. 

 I doubt it would show off their voices, so maybe it's a horrible idea, but I think it would be great.

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 09:30 PM

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:23pm

They could perform in concert:  each playing favorites and then a few duets.  It will never happen, but worth a fantasy thought.

[indytallguy]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:24pm

I'd love to see them together doing something  totally unexpected at Miscast or Broadway Backwards.  I know the odds are next to impossible, but it could blow the roof off.

 

And equally unlikely, but possibly appealing would be a two-person concert/show like what Lupone and Patinkin did a couple of years ago ... only better :)

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:53pm

Years ago, when Patti  emailed with fans, I asked for her thoughts on a possible concert pairing with Betty Buckley.  She responded: "Are you kidding?"

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 10:53 PM

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/16/16 at 10:59pm

Well Betty is a little crazy...it would be easy to say LuPone just doesn't like female competition, but she has performed regularly with Audra McDonald who is  hard to top for talent, so I think it's more that Patti just doesn't suffer fools.

I'm curious how LuPone and Ebersole will get along. Ebersole is definitely known for being eccentric.

Updated On: 3/16/16 at 10:59 PM