Elaine Stritch: At Liberty (Image)
If Broadway musicals are your passion, this DVD has your name on it. The
incomparable Stritch is in great form, recreating great moments from her
often turbulent stage career and offering some surprisingly frank
recollections of private
moments. From her romance with Marlon Brando to her triumph in Company and
beyond, we see a star struggle with the ups and downs of alcohol addiction
and a life in show
business. Director George C.
Wolfe and author John Lahr helped shape these memories into a riveting
evening of theatre, and Rob Bowman made a small orchestra sound several
times its size. Even if you already have the CD, this DVD version is
simply too delightful to miss.
Finian's Rainbow (WB/Turner)
An underestimated pleasure! Young director Francis Ford Coppola may have
been mislead in his attempt to make the dated 1947 plot more relevant to 1968
audiences, but it is fun to see a solid cast have a blast with Burton Lane and E.Y,
Harburg's delicious score. Fred Astaire is a joy in his last musical
screen role, playing an Irishman who has stolen his country's legendary
crock of gold and taken it to America, hoping it will grow in richer soil.
Petula Clark is utterly delightful as Astaire's comely daughter, and
Tommy Steele gives his best-ever screen performance as a leprechaun sent to
retrieve the gold. Astaire, as always, provides some memorable moments. Coppola's
commentary track is painfully self-serving, but will probably be of interest to
serious film students.
Die Lustige Witwe/The Merry Widow (Art Haus Musik)
This ravishing stage production of The Merry Widow was taped live
at the Zurich Opera House in 2004. Dagmar Schellenberger is lovely if
vocally unexceptional in the title role, but Rodney Gilfrey is hunky
perfection as the romantically challenged Danilo. The supporting cast is
musically and dramatically excellent, the sets and costumes are knockouts,
and the refusal of the two leading characters to admit their obvious love
still works its timeless magic. Mostly faithful to the original text, new
touches include a female response to the male complaints about "Women,
Women, Women." If you only know the Widow through her
Hollywood screen versions, this staging will be a joyous revelation. Sung in
German, the English subtitles are tops -- and both the sound and widescreen
picture quality are excellent. This is miles above any other version currently
available on DVD. One suspects that composer Franz Lehar would be quite happy
with this handsome production of his most popular work, and I happily suspect
most fans of The Merry Widow will love it too.
Once Upon a Mattress - 2005 (Disney)
This anxiously awaited remake of a stage and TV classic was a genuine winner,
with Tracey Ullman a riotous Winifred, Denis O'Hare
perfect as the frustrated Prince Dauntless, Edward Hibbert a scene-stealing Wizard,
and the glorious Carol Burnett (who co-produced) hilarious as the conniving
Queen. Burnett even finds a fun excuse to reprise a bit of her old
showstopper "Happily Ever After." Handsome sets & costumes, (Burnett's
eye-poppers were designed by Bob Mackie, of course) plus Kathleen Marshall's
outstanding choreography and well-balanced direction make this a worthy successor
to the previous small screen versions of Burnett's career-making Broadway hit.
This was the first time a TV musical was presented in widescreen hi-definition
format. The DVD includes two fascinating comparisons of numbers as they looked in
rehearsal and later when fully staged; there is also an all too brief "behind the
scenes" featurette.
Royal Wedding (WB/Turner)
Because of a moronic copyright snafu, MGM long ago lost its copyright control over
Royal Wedding. As a consequence, all sorts of third-rate pirate DVD
editions have flooded the market, with poor picture and sound quality. A
bit late in the day, Turner Entertainment has finally released a top
quality remastering of this exceptional film (in a twin set with the
charming but less well known Belle of New York). The performances
of Fred Astaire, Jane Powell and company can be relished anew, and the
Burton Lane-Alan Jay Lerner songs sound as magical as ever. This is a
must-have for serious collectors, and a great gift for any Astaire fan who
will relish seeing that legendary dance on the ceiling one more time.
There is no commentary track (a real loss), but Robert Osborne's fascinating
TCM interview with director Stanley Donen is a worthwhile added feature.
Show Business: The Road to Broadway
Ever wonder why some Broadway musicals make it and others don't? This
film offers a vivid behind the scenes look at how four
musicals made their way to Broadway in one busy season: Taboo,
Caroline or Change, Wicked and Avenue Q. Anyone with an
interest in the theatre must see this documentary, which dispenses with
narration and lets the images speak for themselves -- and oh, how they
speak! Viewers can finally see what professionals already know -- that
Broadway truly is a crapshoot where success hinges on intangibles. As this
year-long journey unfolds, you can almost hear the dice roll as hundreds
of lives and millions of dollars hang in the balance. Not to be missed!
Tintypes (Kultur)
Great fun! The popular songs of the early 20th Century are woven together to
tell the story of an uneasy era of American expansion, immigration and social
evolution. That might sound heavy, but its all a delight in Tintypes, a warm,
well-crafted revue performed here by its original 1981 cast, including
future Tony winners Jerry Zaks and Lynne Thigpen. Each cast member
embodies a type of the period, and such personalities as Teddy Roosevelt,
Emma Goldman and Anna Held come to life along the way, with endearing
results. Example: the giddy juxtaposition of Held's "It's Delightful to be
Married" with the feminist viewpoint of "It's Fifty-Fifty"
-- letting songs and a few quoted headlines tell the story. Taped in a studio,
this performance has fine sound and picture quality. Most musical theatre fans
will enjoy seeing this cast romp through a rich variety of period numbers. The
DVD edition includes no additional features -- just one great little show.
Back to Musicals on DVD Index
Back to Musicals101 Homepage |