Whilst theatres and concert halls are still dark, and the return to theatrical normailty threatened and uncertain, many companies and producers are doing all they can to fill our lives with online material. One such effort came this weekend in the form of the release of a special concert given by doyenne of Broadway, Bernadette Peters, in a charity special in aid of the charities Broadway Cares and Broadway Barks.
The hand-picked band was headed by one of Peters' most loyal MDs, Marvin Laird, and in the full-length one-woman show, she was aided and abetted by Broadway Barks joint founding member Mary Tyler Moore for the opening, as well as some of the members of the original Broadway cast of 'Into The Woods'. Whilst the start of the second half saw her introducing us to many of the dogs her charity has rescued.
Bernadette Peters, for any musical theatre fan, needs no introduction, and of course her set in this concert included some of the songs from the roles which made her famous from 'Into The Woods', 'Sunday In The Park With George' etc. but it was where Peters diverged from her standard repertoire which interested me more. In between songs from 'Gypsy', 'Company' and 'Follies', there were a couple of real jewels. One such song was one that I had never heard before from a musical of which I have no knowledge, "Goodbye For Now" from 'Reds'. A favourite in the second half was the title song to the Musical 'Shenandoah' sung to solo harmonica accompaniment, which was hauntingly beautiful. And my overall favourite was her version of the Peggy Lee hit, 'Fever' as she slouched seductively on top of the grand piano.
The concert finished with a song that Peters composed both lyrics and music to herself, 'Kramer's Song'. A lullaby for dogs.
A charity concert which has never been released before, and so most definitely a privilege to have been able to watch this, and if it's still out there, then this is a 'must-see' for any fans of Broadway shows.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 12/7/20
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