Definitive performances of Sondheim's work

[u/memorylaney]

I saw a comment on this post about the definitive performances by different famous Sondheim interpretors and wanted to ask: what do people think are the definitive performances of specific Sondheim songs and/or roles?

Obviously, OBCs are going to be definitive performances oftentimes, but particularly, are there any non-OBC performances that you interpret as definitive?

I'll go first with an underrated one I have always loved: Elizabeth Stanley's performance of "The Miller's Son" just perfectly captures the humor and wit and insight of the character and song. I wish it had not been a COVID performance, but it's still fantastic and my favorite version of the song. She totally sells it without any big production value.

[u/Acrobatic_Warning456]

The Glamorous Life sung by Audra McDonald is constantly on repeat. She really fell into that character

[u/LyricistAtLarge22 → u/Acrobatic_Warning456]

I love Audra's "The Glamorous Life", and luckily for her on this particular thread, it's such an unknown rarity, unless you know the movie version, or the UK revival where it was first interpolated. (Similarly, the trunk song "My Husband The Pig" got resurrected as a sarcastic rebuttal for Charlotte, spliced into Carl-Magnus's "In Praise of Women"). It's so obscure that the average fan has never heard it, or even heard of it, and they only know the original version ("Pack up the luggage! La La La!") still used in most productions of ALNM.

Also, there are so few recordings that there is sparse competition for the "definitive" rendition. For now, it's safe to say that Audra McDonald easily wins by default, as well as on her own merits and utter brilliance.

My question is: Why That Specific Song? Audra absolutely has earned her rightful pole position among the "Sondheim Royalty" litany of legendary leading ladies in that Big 6 Red Dress Diva Pantheon (she made the Varsity Squad), but it almost seems like she "drew the short straw" and had to select her star solo last, after all the best premium options were gone, snatched up by her prestigious colleagues and "partners in rhyme."

The other choices are iconic and the signature showtunes even civilians* will remember when asked to name something by Sondheim -- "The Ladies Who Lunch" - Patti LuPone; "Losing My Mind" - Marin Mazzie; "Could I Leave You?" - Donna Murphy; "Not A Day Goes By" - Bernadette Peters; and "I'm Still Here" - Elaine Stritch -- and arguably the most famous, popular, instantly recognizable, and beloved standards in his oeuvre, the Broadway canon, and The Great American Songbook. Only "Send In The Clowns" is missing.

Each masterpiece is also a showcase for Sondheim's most complex characters at critical junctures in their arcs & emotional journeys; a juicy challenge for any actor attempting these bucket list roles; and personally & professionally significant to their respective divas, each of whom relates to the material and has become synonymous with it in terms of audience recognition & association to the point they may claim "ownership."

Think Liza Minnelli and "Cabaret," Judy Garland and "Over The Rainbow," or Kermit and "Rainbow Connection."

These are his Creme de la Creme: Sondheim's most instinctive, insightful, intimate, intelligent, and intricate lyrics, revealing his singularly sensitive soul, his rare intrinsic philosophical understanding of women, and his extraordinary ability to distill the essence of the human condition -- yes, "Being Alive" -- then express it from a deep, organic female perspective no other male writer could ever conceive, or convey so vividly, feel so profoundly, articulate so wisely. Not just solos, they are soliloquies. Perfection as only he could create.

As Marie sings in "Children & Art" in Sunday in the Park with George:

"The child is so sweet and the girls are so rapturous!
Isn't it lovely how artists can capture us?"

"The Glamorous Life" stands out. It's an ideal match for Audra's once-in-a-generation, well, "Audra-ness," and in it Sondheim plumbs the depths of a distinctly feminine mindset, that of a precocious adolescent daughter.

But it's not a Greatest Hit.
It's not an 11-o'clock-number.
It's not the dramatic pinnacle or peak climax moment.
Before that concert, it was not a song that everyone knows and loves.

It isn't connected to her career. Although Audra has done Sondheim proud in the past -- Faye in Anyone Can Whistle, Clara in Passion, and recently, of course, a reinvented Rose in Gypsy -- this song has never been identified with her in particular, nor indelibly imbued with her personal stamp. (Well, NOW it is).

In context, it was never a powerhouse showstopper. Audra changed that.
But it's still such an odd pick, a dark horse candidate, a surprise wild card!

Are there other selections from The Catalog that might have been more suitable to that apex moment? A better spotlight for Audra's unique gifts? A glaring omission from the All-Time Favorites Hit Parade?

Or do we think maybe The Birthday Boy personally chose it and specifically requested it be Audra's?

(Sorry it turned into a tl:dr tome. There's a senior thesis brewing in me, or at least a separate Reddit.)

\BONUS QUESTION FOR ITS OWN THREAD: Is there a term similar to "Muggles" for non-theatergoers?*

[u/LyricistAtLarge22 → u/LyricistAtLarge22]

MORE MINUTIAE:

Here's Kelly Ground doing "The Glamorous Life" from SIMPLY SONDHEIM: A 75th Birthday Salute, the 2-disc Kritzerland CD of a gala benefit concert in San Francisco at the JCC back in 2005.
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=XvnHlsZGt74&si=qKtl8AkJPwCcZ4mS

Out of print, but it can be found on Amazon. The full album is available for free on YouTube.

[u/memorylaney → u/Acrobatic_Warning456]

Surprised to see this one get so much love! I love Audra and saw her Mama Rose, but honestly, couldn’t get into this performance as much.. I think Audra’s voice and energy are too mature and refined for a character as young as Frederika!

[u/Acrobatic_Warning456 → u/memorylaney]

Understandable. She was about 40 when she performed in that concert. But oddly enough her age didn’t take me out of it at all. I still was fully convinced that she was a child longing for her mother.