Elaine Stritch: At Liberty (Image)
If Broadway musicals are your passion, this DVD set has your name on it. The
incomparable Stritch is in great form, recreating moments from her
often turbulent stage career and offering some surprisingly frank
recollections. From her romance with Marlon Brando to her triumph in Company and
beyond, she shares her struggle with the ups and downs of alcohol addiction
and a unique 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 this show on 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
made a few minor missteps in his attempt to make the dated 1947 plot more relevant to 1968
audiences, but overall, the results are very entertaining. This solid cast
has a blast with Burton Lane and Yip 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 the
"rich" soil near Fort Knox. His breezy song and dance take on
"When the Idle Poor Become The Idle Rich" is a particular treat.
Petula Clark is delightful as Astaire's comely daughter, and
Tommy Steele gives his best-ever screen performance as a romantically
inclined leprechaun sent to retrieve the gold. Coppola's commentary track
is rather self-serving, but will be of interest to serious film buffs.
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 in the
title role, and Rodney Gilfrey is hunky
perfection as the romantically challenged Danilo. The supporting cast is
musically and dramatically excellent, the sets and costumes are gorgeous,
and the refusal of the two leading characters to admit their obvious love
for each other still works its timeless magic. Mostly faithful to the original
text, new touches include a fun female reply to the male complaints about "Women,
Women, Women." If you only know the Widow through her
Hollywood screen versions, this production will be a revelation. Sung in
German, the English subtitles are tops, as are the sound and widescreen
picture quality. This is miles above any other version currently
available on DVD. One suspects that composer Franz Lehar would be quite happy
with this handsome presentaion of his most popular work, and I 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 format.
The DVD includes two fascinating comparisons of numbers as they looked in
rehearsal and then fully staged. There is also a too-brief behind the
scenes featurette, but overall this is well worth seeing.
Royal Wedding (WB/Turner)
Because of a moronic copyright snafu, MGM long ago lost 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 finally released a top
quality remastering of this exceptional film (in a twin set with the
pleasant but less well known Belle of New York). The performances
of Fred Astaire, Jane Powell and company can be relished anew (their
"How Could You Believe Me" duet is still a comic treasure), 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.
Even the uninitiated will get a kick out of seeing his legendary dance on the ceiling.
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 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 era of American expansion, heavy immigration and
uneasy social evolution. That might sound heavy, but fear not -- Tintypes is a warm,
delightful and well-crafted revue performed here by its original 1981
Broadway cast, including future Tony winners Jerry Zaks and Lynne Thigpen.
Each performer embodies a type of the period, and such iconic figures 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."
Narration is minimal, allowing the 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 fine cast romp through a rich variety of period
numbers. The DVD edition includes no additional features, just one great little show.
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