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Carolyn
Registered User
Registered:
1/20/2005
From:
Mississippi | posted: 4/23/2006 at 5:16:38 PM ET
I just got in from seeing the concert. She was marvelous and she looked and sounded wonderful! The audience was so receptive with hoops, hollers, and whistles in all the appropriate places. Her hair was very full and has gotten much longer.
I was on the second row sitting next to a division that divided both our rows so I had a perfect view of her. She looked at me many times. All of her dialogue was the same as other concerts except when there was a very loud sound from one of the instruments during "You Give Me Fever". She turned back to the sound, laughed, and very loudly said, "YOU GIVE ME FEVER!" to much laughter and applause from the audience.
She sang "Shanendoah" (sp?) with very light piano music. I had not heard this before. I was dissappointed that she did not sing "Time Heals Everything" and "Rose's Turn"
Rest assured that she was very upbeat, happy, and gracious through out the concert. I thought it was better than last April's concert in Houston.
Carolyn
|  Jean
Registered User
Registered:
6/7/2003 | posted: 4/23/2006 at 5:50:04 PM ET
Thanks for letting us know how the concert went--glad you got to go after all. Of all of the songs in the world for her to add, "Shenandoah" is not even on my list. I'm not sure, but I think it falls in the area of old traditional early American standard--did she sing it rather slowly, with feeling.
I'm frankly surprised that she didn't sing Rose's Turn, not at all surprised about Time Heals...
I assume that she did NOT mention Michael?
And I assume she was wearing the silvery spilt up the middle gown we've seen for the last several concerts?
How long was the concert?
Did she end with "Count Your Blessings"?
| jmslsu01
Registered User
Registered:
6/9/2003
From:
northern VA | posted: 4/23/2006 at 5:51:39 PM ET
quote:
She sang "Shanendoah" (sp?) with very light piano music. I had not heard this before.
Shenandoah-as in the folk song? "Oh, Shenandoah, I long to hear you/Look away, you rolling river"? I love that song. It's a very sentimental song.
Jean, from what I've read of reports here, after the second concert, she made no mention of him.
Shenandoah information from the Library of Congress
I remember my mom singing that song. She loves folk songs (and it looks like Bob Dylan made a recording of it).
Carolyn, thank you for your post!
Jenn
| Karen
Registered User
Registered:
5/3/2002 | posted: 4/23/2006 at 5:58:57 PM ET
That sounds great. I love "Shenandoah." Judy Garland used to sing a very moving rendition on her TV show and in concert.
| jmslsu01
Registered User
Registered:
6/9/2003
From:
northern VA | posted: 4/23/2006 at 6:02:11 PM ET
Perhaps trying it out before the May concert? It's in my head now (not a bad thing, as I haven't thought about it in years).
This is very interesting-folk songs....
Jenn
| TheNarrator
Registered User
Registered:
3/2/2004 | posted: 4/23/2006 at 6:57:41 PM ET
The concert was very good. The first half was the Alabama Symphony Orchestra playing music from Broadway shows. She came in during the second half and performed for little over an hour.
She gave a very moving rendition of "Shenandoah." My favorite parts were when she sang "Fever," "Being Alive," and "Children Will Listen." I was disapointed that she didn't sing Rose's Turn, but she sang most of the other songs I wanted to hear.
|  Sister Rose
Registered User
Registered:
5/4/2004
From:
NYC | posted: 4/23/2006 at 7:22:49 PM ET
Good report - but I hate it when the local symphony plays first - UGH! They did that in Houston too and I was ready to riot. Who is there for the symphony anyway????
http://sarahbsadventures.blogspot.com/
| Jean
Registered User
Registered:
6/7/2003 | posted: 4/23/2006 at 8:46:29 PM ET
The "local symphony" is also playing first in Ottawa:
"Canadian conductor Rudi Schlegel and the NAC Orchestra will kick things off in the opening half of the programme with Saint-Saëns's "March Militaire française" from Suite Algérienne followed by Gershwin's evocative jazzy orchestral classic An American in Paris."
(sorry, don't have the source but it's from maybe a week ago.)
| Karen
Registered User
Registered:
5/3/2002 | posted: 4/23/2006 at 9:00:59 PM ET
It may sometimes be a frustration for the audience, but I bet having the symphony carry the first part of the concert is often a huge relief for Bernadette (and other performers).
| PTM
Registered User
Registered:
6/26/2003 | posted: 4/24/2006 at 1:43:21 AM ET
From the Birmingham News
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Peters wows 'em with symphony
This review gets five stars out of five
Rarely does a standing ovation mean much these days. Audiences will stand for most anything, whether deserving of the applause or not.
But in a spectacular, hour-long set with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra Saturday night, Bernadette Peter earned the ovation she received. Some say she is the best theatrical singer out there these days, and you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone in the audience that disagreed.
With her trademark curly-red hair (she blamed it on the Alabama humidity), the Tony Award-winning actress barrelled her way through a dizzying mixture of Broadway and standards. Whether adding a sexy twist to “There is Nothing Like a Dame” or singing “Mr. Snow” as plain and simple as Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote it, the diminutive Peters, dressed in a flesh-colored, sequined gown that very few 58-year-old women could pull off, was pitch-perfect. She was personable and funny, but when it came down to the music, all business.
Highlights were many, but there’s no denying that Peters is one of the foremost interpreters of Stephen Sondheim’s music. She sang several of his songs, most notably the beautiful “Children Will Listen” from “Into the Woods” and her knock-your-socks-off version of “Being Alive,” the anthem from “Company.”
The ASO preceded Peters with some Broadway tunes of their own, getting the audience primed with music from “The Pajama Game,” “The Light in the Piazza,” “Sweeney Todd” and “The Music Man.” Conductor Christopher Confessore, as usual, was informative and fun from the podium.
But the night belonged to Peters, who made the best of every moment of her first visit to Birmingham.
Alec Harvey
PTM
| Jean
Registered User
Registered:
6/7/2003 | posted: 4/24/2006 at 7:06:17 AM ET
"dressed in a flesh-colored, sequined gown that very few 58-year-old women could pull off"
I guess that answers my question.
Many thanks, PTM--it's really great to have folks at different time zones, you can catch something when we're sound asleep!
Now I'm reconsidering what she might wear on May 1--will ponder as I go through my day.
===>>Karen--I never thought about it that way--interesting though...
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