Your favorite Rose in Gypsy?

[NathanLaneStalker]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 10:13am

Who is your favorite Rose in Gypsy? My favorite is Joyce Dewitt.

Bernadette Peters
Ethel Merman
Tyne Daly
Angela Lansbury
Patti LuPone
Bette Midler
Joyce Dewitt
Betty Buckley
Andrea McArdle
Rosalind Russell (ech)
Mary Louise Wilson
Linda Lavin
Betty Buckley
Maureen Moore
Linda Lavin

That's all I can name.

Updated On: 11/28/06 at 10:13 AM

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 10:14am

Well, I certainly haven't seen them all... but the best Rose I ever saw live was Tyne Daly.

[FrontRowCenter2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 10:20am

Haven't seen them all either, but of the ones I've seen I have to say Angela.

[Garland Grrrl]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 10:59am

Definitely Karen Ziemba

[broadway_socialite]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:10am

Would I be shunned if I said Bernadette? That woman can do no wrong.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:20am

Ironic that the one who rarely showed up to play the role is the one you list twice.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:23am

Betty Buckley or Linda Lavin?

And I believe she now goes by the name, Joyce deHalf-Witt.

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:25am

I've only ever seen the Rose's I've performed with in low budget theatre lol.. or the wonderful ms peters. I don't have much to compare too but, I loved Rosalin(d)? Russels performance in the movie and I also really liked Bernadette Early on in the run.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:27am

Lavin, doodle.

In fact, I'm guessing that Jana Robbins played the role in total for more performances than Lavin did. She should be on that list - a lot of people saw her.

[Hank]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:31am

Maureen Moore (understudy for Bernadette Peters)
She was wonderful, and got a nice standing O from from those who didn't get refunds.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:31am

Bernadette...I'll say it loud and proud.

[Junior]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:34am

Bernadette hands down. People can say what they want to about her in the role, but I LOVED her. I wasn't around when Mrs. Lansbury played her, but I'm sure she was also phenomenal. I've heard good things about Tyne Daly too, but I have trouble picturing her in the role. I love Patti too, and wish I could have seen her at Ravinia, but I like what little of her in the role I've seen in bootleg videos. I love Rosalind Russell in pretty much everything I've seen her in EXCEPT Gypsy. I just feel she was miserably miscast in the role. I've seen the Bette Midler version, and feel that she was ok, but someone else could have done better.

[EponineAmneris]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:42am

I've only personally seen live and in person seen Bernadette. She gave a the performance of a lifetime.

I thought Bette Midler was fun in the movie. Tyne, Angela and Betty Buckly sure *sound* great- I've heard them on recordings.

Just thinking of Patti LuPone in the role gives me chills- the good kind I can only imagine how good SHE is as Rose.

[Garland Grrrl]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:43am

The Bette Midler version is running on a continuous tape loop in Abu Ghraib.

Karen Ziemba played over 400 consecutive performances without even clearing her throat. She is an iron-woman.

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:45am

Ziemba won Perfect Attendance.

[Garland Grrrl]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:46am

AS WELL AS MISS CONGENIALITY AT THE STAGE DOOR...

[FrontRowCenter2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:49am

I was very lucky to have seen Lansbury's Gypsy and it was a legendary performance (also a Tony for her).

I remember as if it were yesterday that electric feeling you get very seldom in the theater -- Lansbury finished "Rose's Turn" - you could hear a pin drop for a second or two - then all at once the audience erupted into not only applause, but a standing ovation (and this is not the curtain call or end of the show!) that lasted for what seemed an eternity.

Remember that Rose is playing to an imaginary audience - Angela never broke character when the audience stood and went crazy with applause, she continued to pantomime her bows to the audience and continued until the ovation finally subsided and then continued on to the last scene. From what I understand this ovation happened nightly.

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 11:49 AM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:49am

Yes, both American Theatre Wing-bestowed awards.

[ahmelie]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:19pm

Based on recordings and bootlegs, because I've yet to see a live performance of Gypsy my top three, in no order are:

Patti LuPone
Angela Lansbury
Tyne Daly

[ahmelie]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:32pm

you could hear a pin drop for a second or two - then all at once the audience erupted into not only applause, but a standing ovation .

Oh, that's my favorite moment in the whole world, when something like that happens.

I would kill to have seen Lansbury.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:46pm

bernadette peters, hands-down.
angela lansbury is a close second...

[nobodyhome]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 2:26pm

I've seen Lansbury, Daly, Lavin, Judy Kaye, Peters, and a couple of others not so well-known, and I liked them all except Peters, who I thought was not really right for the role and wasn't helped by the direction. The role really does work well with different interpretations and a lot of different actresses can bring individual and valid choices that work well. The choices made by Peters and Mendes didn't work for me, though I can see how others might have found them effective.

Did Mary Louise Wilson ever go on for Lansbury? She was, far and away, the best Tessie Tura I've ever seen, completely eschewing the usual cutesy mannerisms designed to get laughs and getting more by playing Tessie tough as nails.

I don't recall hearing that Lavin missed a lot of performances as Rose. In Allergist's Wife, where she was also understudied by Jana Robbins, yes. But she was out a lot in Gypsy? I've never spoken to anyone who went to see Lavin as Rose and saw Robbins instead.


Updated On: 11/27/06 at 02:26 PM

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 2:30pm

Lavin missed quite a few GYPSY performances.

[glimpseofstocking]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 3:41pm

Patti was phenomenal, just incredible, definitely my favorite Rose. Angela Lansbury comes at a very close second though.

[Luvinbroadway]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 9:55pm

Patti, Tyne, Betty, Linda, Bette: in that order from those I have seen. The only one that I did not "get" was Bernadette (though I do love her in other roles).