| GYPSY - Monday @ 7:00 | |
| Last Edit: robert_j 11:58 pm EST 12/30/24 | |
| Posted by: robert_j 11:54 pm EST 12/30/24 | |
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| GYPSY is back, and wow, is it a stunner. Or, rather, Audra is. This is my second attempt at seeing the show this week, after my 12/26 performance was canceled. You would never know the cast had been ill. They are giving 150% — especially Audra. I don’t know how they can sustain it. The production is conventional but it works. The evening moves quickly, though it runs long. I checked my watch, and it started at 7:02 and I was out at 9:55. The sets, etc., are fine but nothing special. The production is all about the acting, so much so that I wonder if that accounts for the mixed reactions. I think it helps to be close. When my performance on Thursday was canceled, the rest of my party could not come back so soon, so it was just me tonight, and I decided to spring for something near the stage (using one of the codes that are still out there). I think that affected my experience. Joy Woods in particular is giving a beautiful but subtle performance, and I wonder if it is carrying. Unlike the Junes, who are playing to the rafters. But then Louise is always a difficult role to pull off. Of course we are all here for Audra and she does not disappoint. It is difficult to separate my feelings about Audra from my feelings about her Rose, but I guess that is just how it goes when you cast an established Broadway star. Audra is my third Rose on Broadway, after Bernadette and Patti (and all at theaters right next to each other). All were exceptional in their way, with Bernadette more sensuous and fragile and Patti an unstoppable force. Audra is probably the most well rounded, with her softer moments making the ferocious ones stand out more starkly in the act one closer and, especially, Rose’s Turn. I am not sure that she ever fully reconciles these sides of her character, but maybe that is the point: this Rose is driven by something within that she cannot fully control. The vocal performance is incredible, and fearless, and whether she is belting or using head voice, etc., is beside the point. She is using her instrument in service of the character, and I don’t think she really cares what it sounds like. Rose’s Turn is not pretty. But is it supposed to be? I am not sure I care to listen to it on disc, but I was galvanized in the theater. Raw, honest, and one of the few times I felt a mid performance standing ovation was fully deserved. It is interesting to compare Audra’s performance with Nicole Scherzinger’s across the street, another performance I admired. You get the sense that Nicole is using all of her energy to make herself sound as gorgeous as possible, which I suppose suits that character. Audra does not seem to be concerned about any of that, and she is equally transfixing. How fortunate we are to have such wonderful performances, and performers who are willing to give their all to us. I do hope it is sustainable! They are putting themselves out there for us, and I can’t imagine the toll it must take. I hope they keep well. |
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