Patti LuPone is the toast of Broadway right now, and with good reason.

Her turn as “Mama Rose” in the current revival of Gypsy is drawing comparison's to Ethel Merman's original characterization of the stage mother of all stage mothers. I've always been envious that my mother saw the original run of Gypsy, but not anymore. (Well, at least not as much as before.) I think Ben Brantley of The New York Times summed up Lupone's performance beautifully.

“When Ms. LuPone delivers “Rose's Turn,” she's building a bridge for an audience to walk right into one woman's nervous breakdown. There is no separation at all between song and character, which is what happens in those uncommon moments when musicals reach upward to achieve their ideal reasons to be.”

And that's what I love so much about musical theater – those moments when the actor, the character and the song all merge together into one utterly captivating entity. It's a combination of the strength of the performance and of the material. (For the record, I did not experience any moment like that when I saw David Hasselhoff in Jeckyl and Hyde.) These moments are why I rail against stunt-casting. I don't want to see performers who are a curiousity; I want to see performers who make me get lost in the show.

I had been wanting to see Patti LuPone in a Broadway show for ages. I saw 12 zillion Evita commercials when I was a kid, and she was always this Broadway great that I had never seen.

So, I'm thrilled to have finally seen her in all her greatness. Of course, over the years I've seen my fair share of great performances. And I'm going to indulge myself by reminiscing about a few of them. … continue reading

Last week, E! Online's Reel Girl posted her "Incomplete Top 10: Great Cameos." The list ranges from obvious (Marshall McLuhan in Annie Hall) to random (this must be the only best list on which Dumb and Dumber appears, courtesy of Cam Neely) to wrong (Meryl Streep, yes, but in Stuck on You? No).

While I understand Reel Girl's "good lighting" theory (a well-done cameo makes everyone look better), I prefer scene-stealers to film-stealers, special moments of brilliance rather than lone moments of brilliance; even Streep doesn't make a lame comedy worth my time. Also, while blink-and-you-miss-it cameos are fun (see Cate Blanchett in Hot Fuzz or Julie Delpy in But I'm a Cheerleader), they don't require much, so they're not included.

My favorite bit parts fall into a few categories, and I'm sticking with the ladies exclusively. I'm also sticking to film — sifting through all of the Simpsons and Will & Grace cameos is daunting enough; add The Muppet Show and it's nigh impossible. Since the following is therefore an unscientific bunch of personal observations, discuss away!

The Hat-Tip Cameo: Chita Rivera, Chicago

Hollywood producers are far too obsessed with remakes, but if they must go there, I appreciate it when they doff their proverbial caps to original stars. Respect wins points every time, and as the creator of Velma Kelly on Broadway, Rivera deserves every ounce of respect she gets and then some. Her cameo as cell block diva Nickie in the 2002 movie adaptation is too brief, but any more would be unfair to successor Catherine Zeta-Jones — can't have the new star too far in the shadow of her elder. … continue reading