Few theatrical stars command as much respect, admiration and awe as singer and actress Patti LuPone. Since taking charge of the Great White Way with her spellbinding, Tony Award-winning portrayal of the title character in "Evita" in 1980, LuPone has been regarded as one of the brightest lights of the Broadway stage, appearing in such masterworks as "Sweeney Todd," "Noises Off," "Can-Can" and "A Little Night Music." Earlier this year, she completed a stint on Broadway in the production of "Gypsy," for which she won a second Tony Award in 2008 playing Rose, the ultimate hellbent stage mother.
LuPone, 60, has appeared in a host of movies, including "Witness," "Driving Miss Daisy," "City by the Sea," "State and Main" and "Heist." She also had roles in television shows such as "Will & Grace," "30 Rock," "Ugly Betty" and "Life Goes On," a series in which she co-starred from 1989 to 1993.
Although LuPone has long been a revelation on large stages, one of her newest projects celebrates her triumph on a considerably smaller one. While LuPone was earning her Broadway cred in "Evita" back in 1980, she would dash to the far west side after each Saturday night show to perform her cabaret act at a nightclub called Les Mouches. That weekly tour de force became a cult hit, attracting stars and beautiful people galore. Late last year, Ghostlight Records released "Patti LuPone at Les Mouches," a digitally restored recording of a performance from that time that finds her tackling a set list so varied as to include "I Got Rhythm" and "Mr. Tambourine Man."
Now, LuPone is doing a concert tour with Mandy Patinkin. Bankrate caught up with her recently to talk about her cabaret recording, her Tonys and the state of the theater in troubled times.
Bankrate: Why release this cabaret concert recording after 29 years?
Patti LuPone: Because we found the tape. It was quite a wild ride back there 30 years ago, every Saturday night at midnight at Les Mouches. We were given tapes by the sound guy every Saturday night. He said, "Here's your performance." And I would go, "Aw, jeez, another piece of junk I got to carry around." I think I threw out a majority of those tapes. It was my quaker phase: Less is more. But David (Lewis), my musical director, actually held on to quite a few.
Bankrate: You would sing there at midnight, after performing earlier that evening on Broadway in the demanding role of Evita. How did that affect the nature of these late night performances?
Patti LuPone: I was just so delighted to get out of the blond wig that I was giddy when I got down to Les Mouches. That was a very, very hard part, Evita. So I was really quite thrilled to get out of the wig and go down to Les Mouches and be myself.
Bankrate: So it was you at your freest, in a sense?
Patti LuPone: Yes, absolutely!
Bankrate: How does singing in a nightclub setting differ from singing on the Broadway stage?
Patti LuPone: It doesn't really. But I realized that I learned more about presenting a musical by performing in cabaret than I had ever learned at Juilliard as an actor. There's just something about not wearing the mask of the character. One is vulnerable, exposed. I have to look at the audience, but I'm not looking at the audience as Evita or as Rose, but as Patti. So either I tell the truth, or they can see me lying. It taught me an enormous amount. After performing (cabaret), I would go back to "Evita" with a renewed performance.
Bankrate: How would you pick your songs for these late night performances?
Patti LuPone: I didn't pick any of them. David Lewis picked them all. I just showed up and went, "OK," because I was completely overwhelmed by "Evita." Not that I would have known what to do, anyway. I've never put together a cabaret act, and that's what he does.
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Bankrate: In that show, then, I'm assuming you sang some songs you hadn't been very familiar with. Did you come out with an added and possibly surprising appreciation for certain types of music?
Patti LuPone: No, because I've always listened to all kinds of music. Rock 'n' roll was my favorite; I wanted to be a rock 'n' roll singer as a kid. I knew I had a Broadway voice, but I wanted to be a rocker. I used to listen to every kind of music. My dad would listen to jazz, my mother listened to opera, and I listened to rock 'n' roll. There was always classical, jazz or Broadway show tunes in the house. So there was always a lot of different music.