Whenever a musical is over-hyped, I am usually disappointed. But, this was not the case with "Gypsy." I honestly had to remind myself to breathe at certain points in the musical. I had a great seat 7 rows from the stage near right aisle and was right next to Patti LuPone when she screamed, "Sing out, Louise," while running up the aisle.
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Having heard Patti LuPone's voice for decades on recordings and TV programs, I was aware that she had an amazing voice. What doesn't translate on recordings is how much energy she she sends out as she performs. I could not take my eyes off of her and having heard "Rose's Turn" dozens of times, it was the first time that I truly felt the anger and frustration of Rose, making the song so much more powerful.
But Patti was not the only standout, Laura Benanti, who plays Louise who transforms into Gypsy Rose Lee was equally amazing. Her transition from the "other daughter" into a successful stripper was one of the best interpretations of the part I have ever seen. Her scenes with Patti near the end of the show were some of the best I have seen on a Broadway stage.
One of my favorite songs from Gypsy is "You Gotta Have a Gimick," which is sung by the strippers to Louise as she is about to become Gypsy Rose Lee. The three woman who played the strippers in this production had me nearly rolling in the aisles, they were just that funny. Overall, this is a near perfect production of one of the best musicals ever written.
Whenever a musical is over-hyped, I am usually disappointed. But, this was not the case with "Gypsy." I honestly had to remind myself to breathe at certain points in the musical. I had a great seat 7 rows from the stage near right aisle and was right next to Patti LuPone when she screamed, "Sing out, Louise," while running up the aisle. ,_photo_by_Joan_Marcus.jpg)
Having heard Patti LuPone's voice for decades on recordings and TV programs, I was aware that she had an amazing voice. What doesn't translate on recordings is how much energy she she sends out as she performs. I could not take my eyes off of her and having heard "Rose's Turn" dozens of times, it was the first time that I truly felt the anger and frustration of Rose, making the song so much more powerful. 
But Patti was not the only standout, Laura Benanti, who plays Louise who transforms into Gypsy Rose Lee was equally amazing. Her transition from the "other daughter" into a successful stripper was one of the best interpretations of the part I have ever seen. Her scenes with Patti near the end of the show were some of the best I have seen on a Broadway stage. 
One of my favorite songs from Gypsy is "You Gotta Have a Gimick," which is sung by the strippers to Louise as she is about to become Gypsy Rose Lee. The three woman who played the strippers in this production had me nearly rolling in the aisles, they were just that funny. Overall, this is a near perfect production of one of the best musicals ever written.
