You know what I always find really annoying? It’s when diehard Broadway fans of one star’s performance can’t handle the thought of a subsequent star having a chance to shine in a revival.
Take GYPSY, for example. Ethel Merman originated the role and audience members who saw it when it premiered in 1959 and have never forgotten it. A tiny clip of her performance still exists and, having viewed it, I can see clearly why it’s so well remembered. She did an amazing job.
That, however, was in 1959, which is a year that’s long over.
When Angela Lansbury performed in the first revival of GYPSY (which was the first Broadway show I ever saw), it was in the mid-1970s. She was absolutely phenomenal. Fascinating. Stellar! Yet I remember reading that she was concerned about playing a role “that another actress made musical history with.”
I also remember that when Patti LuPone played in the same role – circa 2008 – and knocked it out of the ballpark, she commented in an article that people who weren’t even born yet when Ethel Merman played it were comparing her performance to Ethel’s. She seemed to think it was outrageous and I definitely concur.
I’m sorry, folks, and the diehards will probably be up in arms at me for this – but it’s ridiculous!
Why? Because as great a job as Ethel did in the production, Ethel wasn’t the actual woman she was portraying on the stage, Rose Hovick – and the real Rose Hovick wasn’t Ethel Merman. And if Ethel wasn’t the real Rose, neither was Angela or Patti, or for that matter any of the other Roses I’ve seen, Tyne Daly, Bette Midler, Rosalind Russell, Linda Lavin, or Bernadette Peters. It’s a role, yes. A great role. It can be played any number of different ways. Some are better, some worse. But there’s not just one person who can play it.
Now we come to 2022 and the much anticipated revival of FUNNY GIRL starring the wonderful Beanie Feldstein. This is another musical, like GYPSY, very loosely based on the life of a real person. The role was originated by the fantastic Barbra Streisand, she of the Broadway belting voice.
Beanie did an amazing job playing Monica Lewinsky in AMERICAN CRIME STORY: IMPEACHMENT and I highly recommend that little mini-series. I didn’t want it to end, I enjoyed it so much. So I for one am delighted that Beanie Feldstein is playing “Fanny Brice” in this new production of FUNNY GIRL. Apparently the script has been overhauled by Harvey Fierstein and incorporates some material the real Fanny presented and a speech she once made, too.
Yet there has been a lot of action on social media regarding, of all things, Barbra vs. Beanie. Why does there have to be a “versus” here before this production even officially opens on April 24th? I’ve seen several productions of FUNNY GIRL over the years, without Barbra in the leading role, since I was too young to see that one on Broadway, and they’ve all been just fine. It’s the story of comedian Fanny Brice, not Barbra Streisand – terrific as she was said to be when she played her on Broadway. Okay, Beanie may not be Barbra, folks – but Barbra wasn’t the real Fanny, either. Fanny was known as funny, not for being a musical belter. It’s odd the way certain people confuse the one with the other to begin with, and then can’t let it go. Other performers deserve to have a chance, and a fair chance, at that, not some “versus” silliness.
I for one am looking forward to seeing this new rendition of FUNNY GIRL. And I say BREAK A LEG, BEANIE FELDSTEIN! Best wishes for a phenomenal opening night next week!
Rehearsal of FUNNY GIRL. It’s joyous!
![2278[1]](https://carolynquinn.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/22781.jpg)
Splendiferous Everything 