Tony Performance question (BLTreasures vol 1)

[Unknown User]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 3:52am

Just rewatched vol one of BLT--why did Angela Lansbury lip synch Worst Pies (and so badly?) Have other Tony performances been lipsynched--just better so I didn't realize? :P

Also the Applause performance is... Interesting. I'm not a fan of the show but I admit it's kinda fun--did they really allow bare behinds (even fake bare behinds) on early 1970s tv?

[COOOOLkid]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 3:57am

A lot of the performances in the past have been lip-synched. New Argentina, The Impossible Dream, and many others have been lip-synched. (at least the part of the performance, if not the entire)

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 3:58am

It's so awkward seeing Lansbury trying to lyp-synch "The Worst Pies in London," if you pay attention, on that same DVD Viviane Blaine lyp-synchs "Adelaide's Lament" as well. It's disappointing to see them do that but I can't really tell the reason perhaps someone can shed a light on this topic.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 4:01am

New Argentina was lipsynched? Awww I love that clip

I did read that that woman who won for Spamalot (sorry I'm bad at names tonight) was sick when they did their clip so she lipsynched which is kinda understandable.

WIth Worse Pies I remember reading somewhere that the song was so hard and Angela was nervous but I have my doubts--she does a fine job, regardless on the LA dvd.

[COOOOLkid]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 4:19am

for "A New Argentina" number, I'm only sure that Patti's high belt was lipsynched. You can see her close her mouth a little too early.

[best12bars]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 9:15am

You have to remember that body mics were fairly new back when Evita opened. I remember horrible problems with them in that particular show.

Most shows before 1980 were done without body mics... so lip-syncing was probably the only way a TV audience could hear the singers and their lyrics well enough for broadcast.

Also... It was very common for singers to lip-sync on all variety shows from that era. Everyone from the Supremes, to Sonny & Cher, to the Jackson Five did it.

There are a lot more performances on those Tony clips that have lip-syncing. You're just not aware of it, unless they do a bad job of it.

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 9:41am

b12b-
What sorts of problems??? Love me some theatre backstage issue stories!

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 10:22am

Body mics were around WAY before the early 1980's. Barbra Streisand wore one in FUNNY GIRL and that was 1964! Now, they WERE still somewhat primitive back then, so sometimes the frequency signals would accidentally pick-up police dispatch calls, etc.

I have a recording of the show from 1965, and you can hear a few audible accidental picked-up signals towards the end of the show on the PA system of the Winter Garden Theatre (audible to the audience, too).

Favorite one?

During Barbra's/Fanny's final scene before the "Don't Rain on My Parade" reprise, you can faintly here over the Winter Garden Theatre's PA system: "5 minutes for curtain call, please".

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 10:38am

I saw a Tony awards show decades ago when even the great Ethel Merman lip-synched her song--I can't recall what song it was but it left me very disappointed.

[Buscee]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 10:49am

Most musical performances on TV are lipsynched. It makes for a good "take" on the sound portion, and allows for good editing. I do remember that in the same year that Angela performed "Worst Pies" lipsynched. Lucie Arnaz insisted that herself and Robert Klein perform THEY'RE PLAYING OUR SONG live. It comes out at times breathless, but it was at least LIVE.

[OtherDaryl]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 10:54am

Body mics story - Dreamgirls National Tour - New Orleans Saenger Theatre (RIP) - Deena and Curtis' mics fed back on one another during their duet and they ended up coming through two channels at once - popping in and out and sounding like a quartet.

[philcrosby]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 10:58am

Actually, I had read that the real reason that "Worst Pies" was lip-synched was that Lansbury was afraid that in the unfamiliar surroundings -- different theatre, conductor, not having Cariou onstage with her -- that she would go up on the lyrics. Using the recording gave her a safety-net.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 11:47am

Iw was mostlt likely standard TV proceedure for variety shows and such that the numbers be pre-recorded to llow the enginers to better mix the orchestra with the voices.

On strange one: On the 1967 telecast the opened with "Wilkommen" (its on BLT 1, I believe) and if you listen carefully about 1/2 way through they switch the audio and it sounds like they are lip-synching teh last half of the number to the cast album. I thougt at first it was because of audio problems they mixed in the OCR for the BLT special but I got a tape of the 1967 Tonys from a friend and its on there too.

[Broadway Bob*]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 12:10pm

The Wilkommen on BLT isn't from the original production. It is from the 1987 Revival that gave Joel Grey above the title billing when it made its return. It was still a Harold Prince production and I'm not sure if the choreography was original or not. I would doubt it as it seems just slightly Fosse-esque.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 12:11pm

Oops - I was thinking of another show altogether!

Ron Field choreographed the 1987 CABARET revival, assisted by Bonnie Walker.

Updated On: 4/12/07 at 12:11 PM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 1:23pm

I forgot that Robert Preston also does a GREAT job at lyp-synching to "We Got Trouble" on that same volume.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 6:02pm

I thought Promises Promises was the first show to have a sound designer and use numerous close bodymikes--and had assumed that after then they quickly became fairly standard--I've read some stories about probs with them in Companya nd in Follies which were before Evita (as you know)

And the WIlkoman is actually from the original 60s Cabaret on BLT--it's one of the most interesting clips on there. Check how young Joel Gray is and how crappy the video image quality is--why anyone would think it was from the revival is beyond me if you just *look and listen* to it.

However having seen a VERY good ****** of the 1987 revival, which aside from a few changes (DOn't Go replaced another song, the two money songs were mixed nad mingled and Masteroff started adding some of the gay content) recreated the original staging especially Ron Field's--the opening WIlkoman, while a bit longer is VERY VERY close to what you see on the Tonys from 20 years before (which I admit must have seemed very tame to 1980s audiences used to the movie evcen if it's a great staging IMHO)

E

[Unknown User]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 9:00pm

"I saw a Tony awards show decades ago when even the great Ethel Merman lip-synched her song--I can't recall what song it was but it left me very disappointed. "

True I guess-a-nd in Britain lip synching is sitll the norm on shows like Top of the Pops (now gone I believe) I knwo pop stars like Kylie Minogue had to argue witht he producers to be allowed to NOT lip synch--because for the technicians it's ismply much much easier to just use a playback

[jv92]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 9:09pm

"The Wilkommen on BLT isn't from the original production. It is from the 1987 Revival that gave Joel Grey above the title billing when it made its return. It was still a Harold Prince production and I'm not sure if the choreography was original or not. I would doubt it as it seems just slightly Fosse-esque"

You are wrong. It is indeed from 1966. The lazy people at Broadway's Lost Treasures didn't bother to dig up a 1966 Playbill. And my appologies to EricMontreal who brought this up before I didn't read his post.
Updated On: 4/12/07 at 09:09 PM

[sparrman]

Posted: 4/12/07 at 9:22pm

Question: Do we know why Cariou or at least SOMEONE playing Sweeney wasn't there for Lansbury to sing "Worst Pies" to?

Observation: On the Tonys in "Guido's Song" from the "Nine" revival, Antonio Banderas lip syncs the line "So arrange it...", though the rest of the song appears to be sung live.