omg is right!!! why USE head voice? it literally doesn't match the intensity of the song and her voice gets softer when she goes into head voice .... to me it's a strange choice....
Honestly considering the recent revival success i would love for them to get stephanie j block as a replacement or for a tour. (And not just because it'd be interesting to see stephanie j block covered in fake blood while taking bows.)
I was at the closing matinee. She kills it in the video but it truly does not do justice showcasing how powerful her voice really is live. The only other Norma I've heard come close was Elaine Paige. The recordings didn't do her justice either
@@salcanepa36 I was in the front row for the closing matinee performance. I could not agree with you more. It's still nice to have a copy of the show though. There were quite a few audio captures and three video captures of the production.
Thanks for posting this. The visual validates my memory of just how brilliantly acted SJB’s Norma was. She wasn’t just singing to sound pretty or impressive; every vocal choice was fully in character and intentional.
@@Broadwayriah BTW did I end up giving you the Audio I made from the closing matinee? It was recorded from the front row and at times you can actually hear the actors over the sound system.
She is so underrated! She is so great! But IMO and preference, the last note - me - sounded so "forced". It was appropriate for her to do that in the reprise in the ending
The last note was very oddly placed. She is a stunning singer and always has been one of my favorite vocalists in musical theatre. However, that last note sounded like it was pushing her range in an odd way. Every singer is different and it feels like the note just did not land comfortably for her. She goes from having a lot of warmth in her sound to an oddly clipped tone. I am not sure if it was an acting choice, or just a matter of the range of the song being ill suited to her vocal placement. But it did not seem to land and I am not sure why because she is a phenomenal vocalist.
@@joea4058 saw both and honestly it's almost impossible to compare the two productions. I admit I have a bias towards Stephanie in anything she is cast in, but Nicole was absolutely phenomenal. The new cast album and bootlegs do not do her justice.
This is odd… It didn’t occur to me until now that this song sounds an awful lot like Richard Carpenter’s “Karen’s Theme,” an instrumental that he wrote after Karen passed away.
Seeing this full production was the first time Sunset Boulevard really "clicked" for me. I think the way Norma is often played makes her feel so over-the-top and almost mythological that it's hard to connect with her as a person at all. I think SJB brought a humanity and vulnerability to the role that really made me connect with the characters more and made the stakes feel more real.
Block is a force! This is the only performance that almost gives this trainwreck of musical validity. (my opinion only) Block is a perfect marriage of voice and role. It’s not the “trick” casting this show has been. Oh, Klena is yummy in everything!
@@mburns75 this is my absolute favorite musical of all time. I saw the original Los Angeles production with Glenn Close when I was a teenager and I have chased this show all over the place ever since. I first saw Stephanie and The boy from Oz and then again in Wicked. It has literally been my dream casting since then to eventually see her in this role. She was everything I hoped she would be and more. It definitely wasn't trick casting, in fact she is the one who chose the show. They wanted her and Sunset Boulevard was how they got her. I had a couple of issues with some of the choices made by the director, but Stephanie was flawless. Derek has been great and everything I've seen him in, this included, and the chemistry between him and Block was fantastic
This is the only ALW musical I can stomach, and I totally agree about Ms. Block. I do wish this production had moved to Broadway after the KC, but now that the Jamie Lloyd production has played it will be several years before another revival is considered.
Just wait to your see Nichole Scherzinger. You'll then see how wrong every other performance has been. I was sceptical about a minimalist production before I saw it in London. It turned out to be the best production of, and performance in, anything I've ever seen on stage
The Australian production is on now in Sydney with Sarah Brightman in the title role. Not sure with her operatic voice she can carry the tune like SJb!! What a great interpretation.
She was wonderful. Her Norma was similar to a faded Mary Pickford -- America's Sweetheart. To refer to her performance as "the best" is silly, though. There have been other interpretations that were quite fine. Glenn Close's Norma was thrilling and a bit scary.
Meh 🫤 and I love SJB Glenn Close will always be my favorite. Over the top under the top between the top. I don’t care what you wanna say about her. She was brilliant in that role. ❤
@@michaeldemarco7694 I love the Glenn Close in the role personally. She is what began my obsession with the show when I was a teenager and saw her in the original LA production. To say this show has consumed my life as an understatement. With Glenn close, her mediocre singing voice I think actually worked to her advantage with the character. Her acting was absolutely brilliant. That's true for the revival as well.
This is only ok. The energy she portrays is all poured outward. The singing is the same.... all belt unless she's on a pitch/vowel that she can't reach with that method. There's no nuance and no drawing in of the audience, which is a missed opportunity with the underlying sadness of this song.
Absolute disgrace to the material. She made Norma this weak and pathetic woman. Also Block has one of the best voices in theatre misplaced that voice for this run.
@@crazyguy98456978 I don't think she did that at all. I think there was some poor choices by the director, but I don't think Stephanie played her as weak. In certain places she was manipulative, and in others she was very clear to him that he was going to do what she wanted him to. The lady's paying would be a great example of that. When he tells her he gives into going to her New Year's party, the way she delivers the line "of course you do" made clear she knew he was going to capitulate. Or during the New Year's scene when he asks what right she has to take him for granted, she made clear he probably didn't want to go that route. I believe she acted weak at times to manipulate him and get what she wanted, but I don't think she actually was weak. This is a great example of how two people can see the same production and walk away with a completely different take
@@dorothyflanagan9535 Because only Streisand, LuPone and Buckley (at times) have sung "me"....very bad lyrics to end a power note on a vowel sound that is challenging to sing.
@@dorothyflanagan9535 the vast majority of actresses (English speaking) that have played the role do it. As far as the original production Patti LuPone and Linda Balgord we're the only two (not counting u/s and s/b) didn't do it that way. Buckley stopped doing it towards the end of her Broadway run but it was never consistent. My guess would be that it is because it's easier to project and belt "maaaaay" than it is to belt "meeeee"
@@kevinwilson3609 Linda Balgord also did "meeee". And Betty Buckley never did it consistently. She did it more often towards the end of her Broadway run, but she consistently did it the other way during her London run.
@@cnp3205 how can you even attempt to compare the two productions. They are two completely different takes on the show. I have literally chased this show around the globe and I've never seen anything remotely close to the version that is on Broadway right now. The production is absolutely genius, you'll get no argument from me on that. That being said, this version was true to the source material and takes place in 1950. There were changes made to the book to accommodate the revival production and they removed most references to the time period. It's seriously like watching two different shows
@@BarryCorbett-x9m not a rehearsal, she's wearing a wig and in full makeup. Not to mention the reviews were universally positive. Two standing ovations mid-show, one in each act, suggest the audience did not feel the same way about her you did.
SJB was by far the most sympathetic and 'human' Norma I've seen. Far less hammy and over-the-top than Glenn Close (and I like Glenn in the role, but she was absolutely chewing the scenery).
Pretty darn impressive!!
Is there anything this woman can't do? Exceptionally sung and acted, as always!
@@princepeterwolf and she is the nicest person
I love this score and the full orchestra is ao lush
Bless you! Thank you!
I love the confidence she plays her with here.
I just want to watch this slime everyday!!!!
Omg her head voice!
omg is right!!! why USE head voice? it literally doesn't match the intensity of the song and her voice gets softer when she goes into head voice .... to me it's a strange choice....
FABULOUS!!!!
Amazing. Thanks for sharing. I was there in DC that week. Went just for SJB. Was really hoping she’d get to do this on Broadway.
Me too! I would’ve paid so much to see it again!
Honestly considering the recent revival success i would love for them to get stephanie j block as a replacement or for a tour. (And not just because it'd be interesting to see stephanie j block covered in fake blood while taking bows.)
I was at the closing matinee. She kills it in the video but it truly does not do justice showcasing how powerful her voice really is live. The only other Norma I've heard come close was Elaine Paige. The recordings didn't do her justice either
Literally superb!
sjb does not miss . incredible work
I was lucky enough to see this from the 2nd row....this does no justice...it was a performance for the theatrical history books!!
@@salcanepa36 I was in the front row for the closing matinee performance. I could not agree with you more. It's still nice to have a copy of the show though. There were quite a few audio captures and three video captures of the production.
I LOVE LOVE LOOOOVE her interpretation!!!!
This performance was remarkable. She played up the mental illness aspect and it REALLY worked!!!
omg yes.
Where did you get the bootleg I NEED IT
Wow! Acrobatic vocals! Thank You ♥️
DEREK！
Thanks for posting this. The visual validates my memory of just how brilliantly acted SJB’s Norma was. She wasn’t just singing to sound pretty or impressive; every vocal choice was fully in character and intentional.
@@brianives4369 she was absolute perfection in this role
@@chrisjacobs7417Did she get a mid-show standing ovation after ‘As If…’ the day you saw it? She did when I was there - very much earned.
The whole year I kept thinking about this show having only seen it one time and it was and still is one of my favorite theatre pieces I’ve seen!
Ahhhh
thank u for letting it run all the way to that line at the end 😂😂😂
One of the best Normas to grace Sunset Boulevard!
@@Broadwayriah She was absolutely amazing. It was worth every second of the 12 hours of driving it took to get there. She was memorizing.
@@Broadwayriah BTW did I end up giving you the Audio I made from the closing matinee? It was recorded from the front row and at times you can actually hear the actors over the sound system.
Brilliant Performance Nothing like Good a Theatre Performance
@@TJ1920 she was absolutely incredible from beginning to end. I made a 12-hour drive to see this production and it was worth every second in the car.
I have to say ''wow''
She is so underrated! She is so great! But IMO and preference, the last note - me - sounded so "forced". It was appropriate for her to do that in the reprise in the ending
The last note was very oddly placed. She is a stunning singer and always has been one of my favorite vocalists in musical theatre. However, that last note sounded like it was pushing her range in an odd way. Every singer is different and it feels like the note just did not land comfortably for her. She goes from having a lot of warmth in her sound to an oddly clipped tone. I am not sure if it was an acting choice, or just a matter of the range of the song being ill suited to her vocal placement. But it did not seem to land and I am not sure why because she is a phenomenal vocalist.
Block and Klena should take over Scherzinger and Francis after a year.
@@joea4058 saw both and honestly it's almost impossible to compare the two productions. I admit I have a bias towards Stephanie in anything she is cast in, but Nicole was absolutely phenomenal. The new cast album and bootlegs do not do her justice.
This is odd… It didn’t occur to me until now that this song sounds an awful lot like Richard Carpenter’s “Karen’s Theme,” an instrumental that he wrote after Karen passed away.
nobody has managed this except Elaine Paige. The best Norma….
I'm sure she was excellent. The Norma I saw onstage was Betty Buckley back in 1996. Still get goosebumps from the memories.
Uh, hello….. Betty Buckley 🤷🏽♂️
Seeing this full production was the first time Sunset Boulevard really "clicked" for me. I think the way Norma is often played makes her feel so over-the-top and almost mythological that it's hard to connect with her as a person at all. I think SJB brought a humanity and vulnerability to the role that really made me connect with the characters more and made the stakes feel more real.
Nicole Scherzinger eat your heart out; this is how it's done!
Ha. Have you seen Nicole? Sorry but her feral, intense, disarming, Sonheimesque unhinged performance makes this look like a Disney cartoon.
Perfectly stated. And Probably has Not seen Nicole. Just saw on Broadway and was mesmerized throughout and Still. @Woofers617
Block is a force! This is the only performance that almost gives this trainwreck of musical validity. (my opinion only) Block is a perfect marriage of voice and role. It’s not the “trick” casting this show has been. Oh, Klena is yummy in everything!
@@mburns75 this is my absolute favorite musical of all time. I saw the original Los Angeles production with Glenn Close when I was a teenager and I have chased this show all over the place ever since. I first saw Stephanie and The boy from Oz and then again in Wicked. It has literally been my dream casting since then to eventually see her in this role. She was everything I hoped she would be and more. It definitely wasn't trick casting, in fact she is the one who chose the show. They wanted her and Sunset Boulevard was how they got her. I had a couple of issues with some of the choices made by the director, but Stephanie was flawless. Derek has been great and everything I've seen him in, this included, and the chemistry between him and Block was fantastic
This makes me nervous for Nicole 🫨
You must be joking
This is the only ALW musical I can stomach, and I totally agree about Ms. Block. I do wish this production had moved to Broadway after the KC, but now that the Jamie Lloyd production has played it will be several years before another revival is considered.
Just wait to your see Nichole Scherzinger. You'll then see how wrong every other performance has been.
I was sceptical about a minimalist production before I saw it in London. It turned out to be the best production of, and performance in, anything I've ever seen on stage
Please let me know where I can find more of this production! I’ve been looking for clips since last year absolutely stellar cast
The Australian production is on now in Sydney with Sarah Brightman in the title role. Not sure with her operatic voice she can carry the tune like SJb!! What a great interpretation.
Betty Buckley by far the best Norma!
No gurl, stop comparing professional actress
She was wonderful. Her Norma was similar to a faded Mary Pickford -- America's Sweetheart. To refer to her performance as "the best" is silly, though. There have been other interpretations that were quite fine. Glenn Close's Norma was thrilling and a bit scary.
It's nice to see that some things never change: Joes still can't act.
Meh 🫤 and I love SJB
Glenn Close will always be my favorite. Over the top under the top between the top. I don’t care what you wanna say about her. She was brilliant in that role. ❤
@@michaeldemarco7694 I love the Glenn Close in the role personally. She is what began my obsession with the show when I was a teenager and saw her in the original LA production. To say this show has consumed my life as an understatement. With Glenn close, her mediocre singing voice I think actually worked to her advantage with the character. Her acting was absolutely brilliant. That's true for the revival as well.
Stage to video doesn't really work as it seems so over the top. But, well done.
This is only ok. The energy she portrays is all poured outward. The singing is the same.... all belt unless she's on a pitch/vowel that she can't reach with that method. There's no nuance and no drawing in of the audience, which is a missed opportunity with the underlying sadness of this song.
Absolute disgrace to the material. She made Norma this weak and pathetic woman. Also Block has one of the best voices in theatre misplaced that voice for this run.
@@crazyguy98456978 I don't think she did that at all. I think there was some poor choices by the director, but I don't think Stephanie played her as weak. In certain places she was manipulative, and in others she was very clear to him that he was going to do what she wanted him to. The lady's paying would be a great example of that. When he tells her he gives into going to her New Year's party, the way she delivers the line "of course you do" made clear she knew he was going to capitulate. Or during the New Year's scene when he asks what right she has to take him for granted, she made clear he probably didn't want to go that route. I believe she acted weak at times to manipulate him and get what she wanted, but I don't think she actually was weak.
This is a great example of how two people can see the same production and walk away with a completely different take
Why does last word sound may instead of me. Glenn Close also.
@@dorothyflanagan9535 Because only Streisand, LuPone and Buckley (at times) have sung "me"....very bad lyrics to end a power note on a vowel sound that is challenging to sing.
@@dorothyflanagan9535 the vast majority of actresses (English speaking) that have played the role do it. As far as the original production Patti LuPone and Linda Balgord we're the only two (not counting u/s and s/b) didn't do it that way. Buckley stopped doing it towards the end of her Broadway run but it was never consistent. My guess would be that it is because it's easier to project and belt "maaaaay" than it is to belt "meeeee"
@@kevinwilson3609 Linda Balgord also did "meeee". And Betty Buckley never did it consistently. She did it more often towards the end of her Broadway run, but she consistently did it the other way during her London run.
She sounds great. Not a fan of her acting.
Her acting and hands movement are rough, don’t have the mystique of a star from the silent film era.
Sorry, I love SJB, but the original, without the transposing of the finale phrases, is the best. Lupone, Lupone, Lupone!
@@JohnJehl-tg8gr I thought Patti sang the hell out of the two main Arias, but beyond that I agree with the critic who called her miscast and unmoving
I saw her in this twice. She wasn't right for this part at all. It cost ALW a million dollars to replace her, but he was right to do it.
meh. arrangement is too fast. after just having watched nicole performed this on broadway, this performance seems over-sung and amateur.
@@cnp3205 how can you even attempt to compare the two productions. They are two completely different takes on the show. I have literally chased this show around the globe and I've never seen anything remotely close to the version that is on Broadway right now. The production is absolutely genius, you'll get no argument from me on that. That being said, this version was true to the source material and takes place in 1950. There were changes made to the book to accommodate the revival production and they removed most references to the time period. It's seriously like watching two different shows
She is NOT ready for her close-up!!! Is this a rehearsal? She isn't in hair and make-up for the character? Can't stand her anyway...
@@BarryCorbett-x9m not a rehearsal, she's wearing a wig and in full makeup. Not to mention the reviews were universally positive. Two standing ovations mid-show, one in each act, suggest the audience did not feel the same way about her you did.
Totally miscast@@chrisjacobs7417
Oh, she's played it for comedy (hammed it up) - "interesting" choice.
SJB was by far the most sympathetic and 'human' Norma I've seen. Far less hammy and over-the-top than Glenn Close (and I like Glenn in the role, but she was absolutely chewing the scenery).
That was my thought. I usually like her but this feels all kinds of wrong.
Very confused by what I was watching. And all of the breaking into the pseudo operatic weak head voice.
If "interesting" means unfortunate, I agree. She is quite miscast in this role.
This is campier than Carol Burnett as Nora Desmond. 😬
@@barbraseville8984 not even close. Going to take a shot in the dark and say you didn't see the production.
Everything about this is wrong. Panto. It's not her fault, it's horrendous direction.