Unassigned
For some, it’s Keith Richards and Mick. For others, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. But for me, quite possibly the biggest Evita fan that ever was, the thought of witnessing musical theatre legends Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin together again on stage again for the first time in 30 years is enough to send me running down Randolph street singing “What’s New Buenos Aires” at the top of my lungs.
The first reports coming in from this Rainbow Tour (officially titled An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin) seem like raves across the board. Charles McNulty of the LA Times says the “enchanting collaboration between LuPone and Patinkin renews our affection for these evergreen talents.” The Toronto Star’s Richard Ouzounian says “This is one you simply can’t miss.”
LuPone and Patinkin have not shared a stage since the production of Evita that earned both of them 1980 Tony awards and launched their careers. They will perform a repertoire of musical greats including Rodgers and Hammerstein, Kander and Ebb, Andrew Lloyd Webber, of course, and a whole lot of Sondheim. The running order has been described as seamless, weaving from banter to song with the ease and grace one would expect from two pros.
As for the chemistry between these two, that’s apparently just as strong as the talent. When the show hit Toronto in early February, LuPone told the National Post, “Mandy and I have a combination onstage of sexual energy, personal energy, work energy. You can intellectualize but … it’s just our chemistry.”
Just remember, excited fans, with that “energy” comes intensity, and LuPone’s reactions to crowd misbehavior have become the stuff of legend. So please, for this enchanted evening, let’s remember to keep those cell phones and cameras far, far away.
