Monday, October 30, 2006; C03
"There Is Nothing Like a Dame," Exhibit A: Broadway baby Bernadette Peters sashaying across the stage at the Music Center at Strathmore Saturday night, singing a blush-worthy version of that "South Pacific" tune. With her trademark fairy-tale curls tumbling toward a dazzling low-cut gown, Peters flirted with the customers in the front rows, cooing the lyrics before revving into her va-va-va-voom chorus. Let me entertain you, indeed.
"Nothing Like a Dame" and a steamy rendition of "Fever" sung while reclining on the piano added up to the brief burlesque portion of the concert (which was scheduled to be repeated yesterday). Bombshell chops and easygoing humor duly reaffirmed, the 58-year-old multiple Tony Award winner then cruised with her longtime music director Marvin Laird and members of the National Philharmonic through a selection of impeccably arranged, thoughtfully sung show tunes.
"The Gentleman Is a Dope" was given a jazzy treatment with the full orchestra; a delicate medley of "My Romance" and "The Way You Look Tonight" featured Laird's delightfully adventurous accompaniment on piano. A cello and piano version of Stephen Sondheim's "No One Is Alone" showcased Peters's gift with lyrics as she rendered certain lines almost conversational without throwing away a note of the exquisite melody.
Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Unexpected Song" from Peters's Tony-winning turn in "Song and Dance," more Rodgers and Hammerstein in "Mister Snow" and "Some Enchanted Evening" (Peters put out an R&H CD a few years ago): These and other numbers went by comfortably. But come the finish and a flurry of Sondheim tunes drawn from her signature roles and her standard concert repertoire, the performance accelerated from very good to authoritative. Peters singing the alternately reflective/propulsive "Move On" from "Sunday in the Park With George" remains one of the great thrills in musical theater, and her delivery of "Being Alive" was indomitable enough to lift the crowd to its feet.
Encore: the dramatic hurricane of "Rose's Turn" from Peters's recent Broadway stint in "Gypsy," rendered in black sweater and somewhat more sensible shoes, leaving the audience with socks blown off.
-- Nelson Pressley
