Customer Reviews

Broadway's Lost Treasures

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

We should be thankful for what we get on this DVD, so by all means, get it. By doing so, hopefully you'll encourage similar Broadway DVDs to be released in the future. (By the way, also consider getting "The Best of Broadway Musicals: Original Cast Performances from the Ed Sullivan Show," which captures some great 1950s-1960s performances.)

However, I have to agree with those who say this set is lopsided, even considering that the producers didn't have the rights to release other footage from the Tonys.

The saddest thing about some of the footage is that, while it claims to capture "sung" performances, in fact a few of the numbers are lip-synched. These include two of the numbers that I was most looking forward to seeing: Angela Lansbury in Sweeney Todd and Robert Preston in The Music Man. While it's great to see these performers in action, the lip-synching makes it an artificial experience.

But enough caveats. These aside, there's still plenty to enjoy.

The great John Raitt sings a definitive "Hey There" from The Pajama Game a couple of decades after its original run. He sounds just as exciting as ever. The song is shortened, but again, let's be thankful for what we have. And there's also a scene from 42nd Street with pre-"Law and Order" Jerry Orbach singing his heart out.

Some of the most enjoyable segments are in the DVD's "bonus extras" section. For example, in what seems the oldest segment on the DVD, the utterly charming Barbara Harris performs a number from The Apple Tree, a 1960s musical that is now essentially forgotten by all but fervent show fans. And to watch those ever-young old troopers Mickey Rooney and Ann Miller singing and dancing in Sugar Babies is a joy.

So, tap your way to Amazon's checkout and get this DVD in your hands ASAP!

We saw this on PBS and almost made an outrageous donation to obtain a DVD, then held out for its public release. (The price was far more reasonable buying it through Amazon!) Our family enjoys American muscial theater and this DVD serves up plenty of great performances. The production is well-done, with four segments: Broadway Divas, Leading Men, Dancin', and Record Breakers. Angela Lansbury introduces the show, then each part is hosted by Joel Grey, Tommy Tune, Jerry Orbach and Chita Rivera, each of whom has at least one terrific performance during the show. Many of the scenes were clearly taken from a special that aired on TV in the late seventies. The singers and dancers---some of them getting a bit up there in years---deliver wonderful performances. There isn't a single bad one in the roster. It's difficult to choose a favorite, but our family really loved Betty Buckley's awesome version of "Memory" from Cats, Andrea McArdle belting out "Tomorrow" from Annie and the great hoofing and singing by Jerry Orbach and company in "42nd Street" from the musical of the same name. We also found Angela Lansbury creepily funny in Sweeney Todd and Joel Grey just plain creepy in Cabaret, as his character was intended to be. Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon also prove the old gals still have it in their song-and-dance number "All That Jazz" from Chicago. Yul Brynner also is light on his feet in "Shall We Dance?" from his signature musical The King And I. Paul Lynde vents wonderfully as a frustrated parent in his part from Bye, Bye Birdie; both Robert Preston as The Music Man and Zero Mostel as the poor man from Fiddler On The Roof display remarkable energy and zest for their longtime roles. As for the ladies, Carol Channing croaks and squeaks delightfully in Hello, Dolly!, Julie Andrew is elegant and wistful singing "Send In The Clowns", and Patti Lupone is great as Evita. The DVD is nicely done, and includes five bonus acts not shown on the PBS version. We highly recommend this for fans of American musical theater or those curious about this almost-lost art form.

I ordered this DVD when it first came out and I've been enjoying it ever since. All the performances are enjoyable- some more than others, but they are all wonderful nonetheless. Some of my pesonal favorites include:
Patti Lupone bringing down the house along with Mandy Patinkin and Bob Gunton doing the song "A New Argentina" from Evita. This is definately one of my top 5 favorites on this DVD.
Anegela Lansbury providing a hilarious performance in "The worst Pies in London" from Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Carol Channing singing the nothing-less-than inspirational "Before the Parade Passes By" from Hello, Dolly!
Yul Brynner performing "Shall We Dance?" with his co-star (not sure of her name). This performance is priceless and so is that dress!
John Raitt's beautiful baritone voice soars in this song-"Hey There" from The Pajama Game
Paul Lynde delivers a ton of laughs in "Kids" from Bye Bye Birdie
Joel Grey and cast perform the spectacle that is Cabaret in the song "Willkommen". This song never gets out of your head!
Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera- two of Broadway's top leading ladies come together and perform two wonderful songs from Chicago: "All That Jazz" and "Nowadays". Bob Fosse's coreography can never get old and is dispalyed in this performance for your full enjoyment.
Jerry Orbach. His death was a tragic loss to the theater. That's why these DVD's are so remarkable. This is another top performance- the song "Lullaby of Broadway" from 42nd Street. It was this performance that inspired me to save up and go to NYC to see my very first broadway show- 42nd Street.
Andrea McArdle and the orphans perform "Tomorrow" and "You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" from Annie. This is just superb. There's absolutely no flaws.
Betty Buckley and cast perform two songs from Cats-"Jellicle Songs" and the classic "Memory". It is stunning to watch.
Any performance with Patti LuPone in it is a gem in itself. This one- "Buenos Aires" from Evita shows off her powerful set of pipes and shows the other side of the character of Eva Peron.
Bonnie Franklin and cast are hilarious in the song
"Applause" from the show Applause. The whole theme to the song is 100% true and kind of "hits home" for every actor. Plus, it has parodies of other classic musicals that will have you rolling on the floor in laughter if you're a big fan of musicals.
All in all, this DVD is totally worth buying! And after you're through with this one and have memorized all the songs, check out Broadway's Lost Treasures II. I have yet to receive III, but I am looking forward to it!

I am a Broadway musical "junkie" and it saddens me to not give this DVD the five star rating it promised. My disappointment came when I noticed some of the numbers are basically the original cast members lip synching to the original cast recordings. Still there are enough "live" performances on this DVD to make it well worth the money. Just be prepared to be a little dissappointed for the reasons stated above.

Being a farm boy from Illinois, "the-ay-ter" could have been in a foreign country and I would have never been wiser. Area schools performed shows written especially for high schools (like "Mississippi Melody" and "Up On Old Smokey"). In 1971, I had just purchased a state-of-the-art reel to reel tape recorder and was anxious to do a bit of experimentation with it. As fate would have it, I saw an ad on CBS for the 1971 Tony® Awards telecast and thought I'd see what kind of sound quality I would get from the tinny little speaker on the television. I had no idea the format for that year was to perform 1 song from each award-winning show using as many of the original cast members as possible. Even though the sound quality was far less than perfect, I realized I had an audio tape of more original cast members singing songs from Broadway shows than I could shake a stick at. And many of the songs were familiar from television variety shows like Ed Sullivan etc.

I went away to college taking my recording with me and thoroughly annoyed my dormmates with it. It was good to listen to while cleaning my room--but I had the advantage that I could recall what was on the television screen. Reel-to-reel fell by the wayside for 8-track, cassette tapes, and finally cd. The tape became brittle and would break many times over and electronic manufacturers slowly pulled reel-to-reel from the market. Now, 30 years later, I'm actually seeing the performances again (remember this was YEARS before home video recordings). The 1971 broadcast is heavily used throughout Broadway's Lost Treasures I, II and III. The telecast that year used the giant lighted years as the backdrop for the songs. Plus I found out that things like a "clunk" in the audio of "If I Were A Rich Man" was not caused by me--but it was Zero Mostel hitting the stage wagon with his shoe.

One performance I can recall in particular that has not been used (yet) is the one where the female announcer says: "...then came the sparkling 'High Button Shoes' and every bit as lovely then as she is now: Nanette Fabray..." (So I guess there's still enough material out there for "Broadway's Lost Treasures IV").

Get all 3 dvds for your collection because it's nice to have something when you simply want to be entertained and don't want to be bothered with a story line.

I really enjoyed this DVD, mainly because it introduced me to some musicals I'd never heardof, and it let me view footage of performances that I had heard of but had been performed before my time. I was exited to see Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon doing a medly from Chicago, my favorite musical. I had heard them on the original cast album but had never dreamed if seeing them perform it! I also enjoyed "If I Were a Rich Man" from Fiddler on the Roof, which is the soring musical my school is doing thic year. I loved the movie Cabaret and really enjoyed seeing Joel Grey performing this as it had been done on Broadway, quite different from the movie's rendition of "Willkommen". I also enjoyed, for possibly the first time, "Tomorrow" from Annie, because that was the first "good-sounding" version I've heard, it wasn't as nasally as the versions in the movies. Overall, this DVD gave me a Broadway experience that I may never get to see. Plus, I like seeing things done by the originals.

First, I would give the DVD a 5 star rating for the opportunity to see all those broadway numbers with most of the original casts. That is a treat, and something to treasure. But I gave it a three star rating, as it was so blurry, especially if you have a large television. Watching it on a smaller tv makes it clearer. Therefore, my question, is why was it not redigitized. I did not realize that some of the songs were lip-synched, until I read the earlier reviews. Seeing Gwen Verdon and Chita Rivera together was a true treat. Hope they make more of these DVD's, but please spend the money and digitize them

I own the first two volumes of the Lost Treasures series and am waiting for the third to arrive on my doormat. They are brilliant and I hope more volumes appear on a regular basis.
Why though, must I suffer for purchasing these titles when they are released by not being able to get The Plays volume without buying them all over again?
I suspect (and hope) that it will eventually be released seperately but in the meantime I can only say that if you don't already own any of these and are a fan of Broadway, theatre or the performing arts in general, buy this today! A fantastic showcase of theatrical talent.

I saw this on PBS and immediately decided to buy myself a copy!
While these excerpts are not from the broadway shows themselves, they are from the Tony Awards and are therefore, 'live.' And it's just wonderful to experience the level of 'energy' that great actors project when performing live on a stage.

There are a couple of songs that I don't particularly care for myself (Worst Pies in London), but most are wonderful, and the performances, while not 100% flawless (this WAS filmed live) are almost all engaging.

A few comments:
Yul Brenner manages to project more energy just standing there in the background than his co-star singing her heart out in "Shall We Dance." She is, alas, a fairly indifferent actress, and is overwhelmed by her enormous dress!

Lip-synced or no, Robert Preston in "Music Man" is wonderful. As is Joel Grey's fabulous MC in "Caberet." Again, it's all about energy.

I'd honestly never even heard of Patti Lapone before I saw this show, but she blew me away with her powerful voice. (Evita.)

"All that Jazz" and "Nowadays" from "Chicago" is, alas, much too short,but delightful.

The most unintentionally funny bit -- Twiggy looking either utterly bored or utterly terrified (but completely out of character, regardless) as she struggles with a simple dance routine in "Kicking the Clouds Away," (From "My One and Only.") She must have not realized that the camera had her in close up ...

Recommend this 100%

Never again will we see the likes of Zero Mostel as Tevye, Yul Brynner as the King or Robert Preston as Professor Harold Hill. These are legendary Broadway performances from another era, a Golden Age, and the most any of us can do is listen to original cast CDs from the 1950s and 1960s. However, in 1971, the Tony Awards choose one number from each previous year's winning musical and had an original cast member perform it. I saw the original broadcast and have wished for over 30 years to see it again. Now we all can and it is worth it! If you love musicals, you WILL NOT be disappointed. Get this one before the parade passes by.