That’s Greatness

Last night, my fantastic Godchild’s Birthday Party (totally fun and lovely).
Major progress at my morning jump rope routine. (Seriously, getting boxer-worthy).
Awesome lunch with Amy Ahlers and Susan; spectacular food and even more spectacular visualizations.
Fell in love with a new hangout, Cafe Puccini.
Bikram class –– with my new breathing consultant “enemy” in the exact same spot.
And now home –– beyond exhausted, and just as I was tapping for some clarity about … well, everything … an amazing fan email for UPWARD DOG appeared and put everything in perspective.
And I just have to share this too: Somehow I’d never seen the clip of Jennifer Holliday live at the Tonys in 1982 until today. My Face Place friend Adam Feldman singled it out in TIME OUT NYC this week as the single greatest Tony performance ever and frankly, he’s probably right. It’s insanely raw and animalistic.
To quote him:

“No matter how many times you watch Jennifer Holliday’s massive performance of Dreamgirls‘ rafter-ripping Act I finale, the only adequate response remains awe. After a bickering backstage setup, the sequence kicks into gear at the three-minute mark; playing a woman in a spiral of personal and professional rejection, Holliday grabs her aria by the throat and squeezes every breath of wailing pathos from it. (Astonishingly, she was just 21 years old at the time.) A master of dynamic stagecraft, director Michael Bennett opts for aching slowness here. Holliday’s ogreish movement grounds her in implacable abjection, right up to the number’s startling penultimate image: After a giant gasp, her face a Kabuki mask of pain, the singer moans out a final note and reaches a desperate arm out for rescue as she sinks behind the golden waves of a falling curtain. That’s not just showbiz: That’s greatness.”

And again, he’s right.
I think this LINK plays better, but here it is on youtube, too.

That’s Greatness

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