"People have their opinions and that doesn't mean that their opinions are wrong or right. I just take it with a grain of salt because opinions are like as*holes, everyone has one".
-Felicia Finley-
I've seen her in about everything she's done on Broadway (excepting Marie Christine), but, truth to tell, I wasn't totally taken with her Carrie Pipperidge. I made a point of going to Master Class in Philadelphia, mainly b/c of Zoe Caldwell and anything that's Callasian, but Audra blew me away. That she could hold her own with Ms. Caldwell was mind-blowing. I wouldn't go so far as to say I was "in love" with her, but, for my money, she's the best of a happily crowded field of musical leading ladies.
When I saw her in "110 In the Shade" several years back. She was great in the role and then completely charming at the stage door, chatting with me for quite a while about her decision to do tv (Private Practice) and her promise to not be gone for too long, as Broadway is her true home. She continued to chat with everyone who was waiting and couldn't have been kinder or more sincere.
Dawn Upshaw, one of my favorite opera singers releases a CD of Rodgers and Hart songs.
One of the cuts features a duet with an up-and-coming Julliard grad, currently appearing on Broadway as a young opera student in MASTER CLASS with Zoe Caldwell.
I've seen Master Class already: the kid is good. Real good.
I get the R&H CD, and there she is, duetting with Dawn on "Why Can't I?"
PJ - I LOVE that Dawn Upshaw album. It's perfection. What a deeply sensitive and intelligent vocalist Upshaw is and her voice blends so beautifully with Audra's.
As for the OP's question, I guess I must have first become aware of Audra with Ragtime when I was a kid. I probably fell in love when I saw her during her first concert tour in promotion of her debut solo album (still the best album she's recorded, I'd say). She was magnificent and actually played with a full 20 piece orchestra which was nice. This was either at UCLA or UC Irvine; I forget which.
When I marched with her and the cast of Hair in the National Equality March in Washington DC. She was so sweet and passionate. I immediately went home and started listening to her work. So excited to see her perform in May.
"I never had theatre producers run after me. Some people want to make more Broadway shows out of movies. But Elliot and I aren't going to do Batman: The Musical." - Julie Taymor 1999
I was first blown away by Audra when I saw the Broadway Celebration at the White House on PBS! I immediately jumped at the chance to see her when she performed at Carnegie Hall! That was one of the most brilliant concerts I have ever seen and after that night I have been obsessed with her! I have then seen her in concert and on Broadway many times!