Revisiting "Follies"

You may recall my post about my previous visit to Follies - it wasn't an altogether happy experience, mainly due to a seat neighbor.  Well, last week, my boss was standing outside my office and read a piece of mail aloud: he had been invited to see the show again, as a Tony voter, before it closed.  I immediately shouted out, "PLEASE TAKE ME!!!"  He very kindly did.  So, today, finally, I had my Follies transcendent experience.

Of course, I'm predisposed to have a transcendent experience, I guess.  I wanted one so badly.  I pretty much started crying from the entrance of the first spectral showgirl, and didn't stop until we left, though I will say the first act moved me much more than the second, which seems backwards.  Oh well.  I still felt so much aching and longing and beauty and joy.  It was lovely.  God, I love Stephen Sondheim.

The songs are all so lovingly handled, they're like master classes in acting.  I felt that the pace of the book scenes was tightened up since I saw it last, so I really felt the show move.  And yet, as it moved forward, it still seamed to float--a gossamer web of beauty.  I barely wanted to breathe, so I didn't disturb the magic and the connection I was feeling.

Blah blah blah.  Too much?  Too bad, I'll just wax rhapsodic.  Oh, ok, there are some issues.  Jayne Howdyshell didn't blow me away this time, like she did last time.  I don't know, she seemed a tad more mechanical.  Ron Raines STILL isn't a good actor, but my god, when he sings "Too Many Mornings," it hardly matters.  The music and the emotion just swept me away.  If HE didn't sweep me away, I'll live with it.  :)

Jan Maxwell is still divine, and I liked Danny Burstein even more today.  And I just find Bernadette Peters enchanting.  I fully understand people's problems with her interpretation, but it works for me.  Maybe because I understand Sally and how Bernadette is playing her.  Wasting years of her life over an old love, real or imagined, is something I can relate to.  Knowing whether things really happened the way we think they do--her acting choices are crystal-clear and shattering.  I could quibble with Bernadette's highly-visible emotion during "Losing My Mind" (it might be nice to get there myself), but it still was right for the creature she had created.

"One More Kiss" - gorgeous.  Both ladies were sublime.  And Elaine Paige completely blew me away.  I enjoy her well enough, but today, she was so ON and specific and right.  She was fantastic.  Much crying followed.

I'm so fortunate I got to see this magnificent show again, especially from the fantastic seats my boss got (thanks, boss!).  It's haunting and gripping, funny and tragic, gorgeously costumed and beautifully presented.  A perfect afternoon.  Excuse me, whilst I go to iTunes to download the cast recording and cry some more...