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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
THE BROADWAY DIVA IN CONCERT, May 31, 2005
For more than 25 years Patti LuPone has been one of the greatest female performers in the modern musical theatre. During that time she became renown not only for her capability to portray strong characters, but also for her amazing vocal power, which enabled her to sing the most demanding scores the musical business has to offer. Before we get to the CD at issue here, here is the basic info about Ms. LuPone's career.
After completing her training with the first class of the Drama Division of New York's Juilliard School, she began her career as a founding member of John Houseman's The Acting Company playing a variety of leading roles, both on and off-Broadway and on tour throughout the United States. Among her first roles were Rosamund in the 1976 production of Robert Waldman's and Alfred Uhry's "The Robber Bridegroom" and "The baker's wife" in the Stephen Schwartz's piece of the same title. Her big brake came in 1979 when she wowed New York audiences with her stunning portrayal of Eva Peron in the 1979 Broadway production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Evita. The electrifying magnetism of her vocals and her strong stage presence earned her the Tony award as a best actress in a musical for 1980. The 80-is saw her tackling a large variety of parts, such as Vera Simpson in "Pal Joey", Nancy in "Oliver", a truly moving Fantine in the London production of "Les Miserables" and a charming Reno Sweeney in the 1987 revival of Cole Porter's "Anything goes". She was also no stranger to the TV screen at the same time, appearing, among other things, for four seasons of "Life goes on".
So at the beginning of the 90-is, Patti decided it was time to do a solo show. Los Angles was chosen and she began conceiving a program with Scott Wittman, who is nowadays known as a lyricist for one of the current Broadway hit musicals, "Hairspray". This double CD is thusly a live recording of that Patti's LA concert. The repertoire, together with her unique interpretation, guaranteed a sold out show. To start with, the first disc features Patti tackling some of the classics, from Kurt Weill, Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, and Billy Strayhorn to her full-lunged rendition of Stephen Sondheim's "Being Alive". One of the things that impresses on this CD is the fact that she makes all these songs sound as if they were written especially for her; she gave each of them a new life. The arrangements are neatly made and carried out by a well played orchestra and powerful back vocals of an African-American vocalist group, "The Merman", who give Patti a strong backing.
The heated atmosphere gets even more ecstatic on the second disc on which Patti performs the most noted songs from the shows she starred in up until that time. There is no mistake here: from her overpowering deliverance of "Don't cry for me Argentina", through gentle and lullaby-tuned "Sleepy man" from "The Robber Bridegroom" till the comic beats of "Anything goes", you can't help but be amazed by the sheer strength that shines out of every note Patti belts here. Add to that the fact that all the songs on this disc are cleverly interwoven with Patti's witty and funny monologues about each of the shows she was in and you end up with an immensely enjoyable musical and comical experience all wrapped up in this 2-disc set. By and large, this recording shows that Ms. LuPone is not only an outstanding singer and actress, but a consummate entertainer as well.
My only regret would be that here we are not treated with Patti's breath-taking interpretation as Norma Desmond in Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Sunset Boulevard", which premiered in July that year in London. She sang those notes like no one else managed afterwards and my favorite composer should have known better before canceling her contract for the Broadway production, only to replace her with a "bigger name", namely Glenn Close, who never came near of bringing that character to life, neither vocally nor in terms of good and convincible acting.
Taking everything into account, this CD captures the very essence of Patti LuPone's appeal to the avid musical theatre connoisseurs: amazing vocal range and power, in addition to humorous life attitude and acting ability. This recording proves that real talent can conquer and endure at the same time.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I Bow in Patti's General Direction.....Magnificent!!!!!!!, September 30, 1998
By A Customer
Any fan of Patti LuPone's (or theater fans in general) will be enthralled with this set. She has a way of grabbing her audience by the heart and keeping them there......favorite tracks: Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens, Surabaya Johnny, I Dreamed A Dream, Sleepy Man, Heaven, etc.....the list goes on forever! Run, don't walk, to buy this wonderful set!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This CD is fabulous; Patti is the most carismatic preformer!, February 21, 1999
By A Customer
I JUST LOVE THIS cD!PATTI LuPONE IS SUCH A SPECTACULAR SINGER, AND THE SONGS SHE CHOSE,ARE ADORABLE AND PERFECT FOR HER VOICE. MY FAVORITE SONGS ARE "SUN IN THE MORNING...", AND "THE SUPERMARKET @ OLD PEKING". I COULD LISTEN TO THIS CD OVER AND OVER AND NEVER GROW TIERD OF IT!
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