BETTY BUCKLEY DID GYPSY? I totally didn't know that. She was brilliant in Carrie. I really want to see her Mama Rose.
Understudy Joined: 6/16/08
Betty Buckley did it at Papermill in 1998. Most said she had no humor and was way too serious for the role. There may be a few press clips on Youtube.
Arthur Laurents and Sondheim were invited to the production. They were hoping the two creators would approve a transfer to Broadway. But Laurents said it wouldn't come near Broadway. He hated it.
Chorus Member Joined: 4/8/08
HELLO ALL.
Loved Rosalind, entertained by Bette .
Still paying off the loan seeing Patti on Broadway, she totally blew me away, so GLAD she got to play the role, won the Tony,I am saddened by the anti Patti notices on this board, I appreciate 'each to their own' but come on, this woman lives.breathes,throttles this role, and such a great supporting cast. PATTI ROCKS , come to london pronto X
Broadway Star Joined: 3/20/08
I don't get what was so bad about Bette Midler, I think she was just fine as Rose.
And I love how almost everyone's saying Ethel Merman when I bet maybe 2 or 3 people who have posted have actually seen her live.
Featured Actor Joined: 7/30/05
my fav, although unrecoreded was maureen moore!
It's honestly a tie between Lansbury and LuPone for me.
Patti is one of the best performers on Broadway right now, but Merman is probably one of the best performers in Broadway history, so I'm going with her.
Swing Joined: 3/31/08
"And I love how almost everyone's saying Ethel Merman when I bet maybe 2 or 3 people who have posted have actually seen her live."
I saw Ethel Merman in Gypsy opening night and all the way to closing night.
Broadway Star Joined: 12/9/06
I love Lupone's Rose. Lansbury's is great too.
The others are just so-so to me.
Bernadette, as much as I love her - a lot!, just didn't pull it off, IMO.
I probably speak for most of us when I've only seen about 10% of my fav shows live. That, however doesn't make it any less obvious that Ethel was an AMAZING Mama Rose.
We have cast recordings to prove that she had the firmest grasp on the singing and the character. The word of mouth proves the rest: Ethel is still more revered than all of the other Mamas. No one can be remembered that long in such a (for the most part) talented community without being nothing short of excellent.
I probably speak for most of us when I've only seen about 10% of my fav shows live. That, however doesn't make it any less obvious that Ethel was an AMAZING Mama Rose.
We have cast recordings to prove that she had the firmest grasp on the singing and the character. The word of mouth proves the rest: Ethel is still more revered than all of the other Mamas (slight overstatement =0. it's arguable). No one can be remembered that long in such a (for the most part) talented community without being nothing short of excellent.
I saw the movie version of Gypsy so many times as a little girl (mostly in two parts on the 4:30 movie Channel 7) that Rosalind Russell is indelibly Mama Rose to me and I STILL rewatch that movie every time it's on.
Stagewise, I've seen the Tyne Daly, Bernadette Peters and Patti Lupone versions live and I'd rate them:
1. Lupone
2. Daly
3. Peters (I absolutely love her but not as Mama Rose)
I hated the Bette Midler TV version.
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/17/04
And all the Rose's that will never be:
Judy Garland
Bea Arthur
Nancy Walker
Meryl Streep
Don't we discuss this in every Gypsy/Mama Rose/Patti/LuPone vs Peters thread?
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