When I am not thankful I found my way into the theatre.

In case I haven’t mentioned it before, I love theatre. I especially love musical theatre (maybe because it’s the one form I am really, really, really no good at).

That’s why I was so happy the other night to stumble upon a re-run of a PBS Great Performances presentation of Sondheim! The Birthday Concert.

Sondheim is a genius.

I’m fairly sure that’s an undisputed fact.

He has a birthday every year, of course, just like us non-geniuses.  His birthdays, periodically, are punctuated by tribute concerts that get televised—thus providing those far from Broadway with the opportunity to have a little taste.

This last one may be the best one yet.  (Maybe not.  They’re all good.)

There are lots of good numbers by lots of Broadway stars.  It’s great fun to see Chip Zien and Joanna Gleason, the original Baker and his Wife, from Into the Woods, and Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters, from Sunday in the Park with George, and two Sweeney Todds—George Hearn and Michael Cerveris—along with Patti LuPone, reprising numbers from those fabulous shows.

The pièce de résistance, however, is found near the end of the concert.  As described on PBS’s website, it’s a “parade of legendary leading ladies who cap the evening with a non-stop succession of showstoppers guaranteed to quicken the pulse of all bona fide show fans.”

I’m not sure what’s more wonderful, the totally terrific numbers or the amazing ladies who sing them.  First we get Patti Lupone and The Ladies Who Lunch, Marin Mazzie singing Losing My Mind, Audra McDonald and The Glamorous Life, Donna Murphy’s rendition of Could I Leave You, and Bernadette Peters’ beautiful Not a Day Goes By with Elaine Stritch capping it all off with I’m Still Here.

Big-voice belting and lyric sopranos.  Gorgeous voices, gorgeous music., the pre-eminent performers of our time.  It was kind of like dueling divas—but in a good way.  And it was clear that—had anything happened in that theatre that night—Broadway was gone for a generation.  (Fortunately, it’s all pre-taped, so any breathlessness at the end isn’t over fearing disaster but in tribute to the breathtaking qualities of the performances.)

I wish I could show you video clips of all of them, but we probably have to buy the DVD for that.  I think it will be well worth the $25 bucks.

For a little preview, though, here’s part of Patti LuPone’s finale.

And the link below (it won’t embed) is the official PBS preview.  Thirty minutes of selected numbers, including Elaine Stritch’s final number there at the end.

(And some of my readers, I know, will be interested to see John McMartin at time stamp 10:42.)

http://video.pbs.org/video/1661902012/

Enjoy!  I sure did.