Skip to main content

Angela Lansbury, 1925-2022

 Angela Lansbury won a Tony for "Gypsy"; Ethel Merman did not.


Lansbury spoke candidly about the role of Momma Rose. She said she (Lansbury) brought emotional and intellectual understanding to the work; the implication was that Ethel Merman was a bit less of an artist.

When I think of Lansbury, I think of Mrs. Lovett in "Sweeney Todd"; the recording makes you believe there really is a person called Lovett, somewhere in history. There isn't any winking at the audience; you'd think Angela Lansbury really does sound the way she sounds. There seems to be no gap between the actress and the role she is playing.

Everything Lansbury does in "Sweeney" is iconic, but my favorite of her many great moments is "Wait." Here, she is trying to persuade Sweeney Todd to put aside his obsessive groaning about the "on-hold" status of his murder-efforts--put this aside, for just a bit:

Don't you know, silly man?
Half the fun is to plan the plan.
All good things come to those who can....wait.....

Lansbury didn't write this, but she *sells* it. As an amoral sociopath, Mrs. Lovett has no issues with Sweeney's homicidal dreams. She is just tired of the whining. Unforgettably, she attempts to redirect Sweeney's attention:

I've been thinking flowers--maybe daisies--
To brighten up the room!
Don't you think some flowers--pretty daisies--
Might relieve the gloom?

Gilly flowers, maybe?
'Stead of daisies?
I don't know, though....
What do you think?

It's so shocking to jump from death to daisies. Mrs. Lovett's attempts at manipulation are hilariously ineffective--and we've all done this. We've all tried to change the subject. Wonderful writing--beautifully acted. I've loved that performance since high school.

Labels:

Comments

  1. Adolfo ProfumoOctober 25, 2022 at 3:31 AM

    Death to daisies... I love it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. ReaderOctober 25, 2022 at 7:01 AM

      Thanks! Just noticing all the strategies "she" (via Sondheim) uses in this song: (1) Don't whine because this time is really the best part, (2) don't whine because it's more fun to talk about daisies, (3) don't whine because this time isn't even notable, it moves so quickly.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Host a Baby

-You have assumed responsibility for a mewling, puking ball of life, a yellow-lab pup. He will spit his half-digested kibble all over your shoes, all over your hard-cover edition of Jennifer Haigh's novel  Faith . He will eat your tables, your chairs, your "I {Heart] Montessori" magnet, placed too low on the fridge. When you try to watch Bette Davis in  Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte , on your TV, your dog will bark through the murder-prologue, for no apparent reason. He will whimper through Lena Dunham's  Girls , such that you have to rewind several times to catch every nuance of Andrew Rannells's ad-libbing--and, still, you'll have a nagging suspicion you've missed something. Your dog will poop on the kitchen floor, in the hallway, between the tiny bars of his crate. He'll announce his wakefulness at 5 AM, 2 AM, or while you and another human are mid-coitus. All this, and you get outside, and it's: "Don't let him pee on my tulips!" When...
3 comments
Read more

Joshie

  When I was growing up, a class birthday involved Hostess cupcakes. Often, the cupcakes would come in a shoebox, so you could taste a leathery residue (during the party). Times change. You can't bring a treat into a public school, in 2024, because heaven knows what kind of allergies might lurk, in unseen corners, in the classroom. But Joshua's teacher will allow: a dance party, a pajama day, or a guest reader. I chose to bring a story for Joshua's birthday (observed), but I didn't think through the role that anxiety might play in this interaction. We talk, in this house, quite a bit about anxiety; one game-changer, for J, has been a daily list of activities, so that he knows exactly what to expect. He gets a look of profound satisfaction when he sees the agenda; it doesn't really matter what the specific events happen to be. It's just about knowing, "I can anticipate X, Y, and Z." Joshua struggled with his celebration. He wore his nervousness on his f...
2 comments
Read more

Josh at Five

 Joshie's project is "flexibility"; the goal is to see that a plan is just an idea, not a gospel, not a guarantee. This is difficult. Yesterday, we went to a restaurant--billed as "open," with unlocked doors--and the owner informed us of an "error in advertising." But Joshie couldn't accept the word "closed." He threw himself on the floor, then climbed on the furniture. I felt for the owner, until he nervously made a reference to "the glass windows." He imagined that my child might toss himself through a sealed window, like Mary Katherine Gallagher, or like Bruce Willis, in "Die Hard." Then--thank the Lord!--I was able to laugh. The thing that really has therapeutic value for Joshie is: a firetruck. If we are out in public, and he spots a parked truck, he wants to climb on each surface. He breathlessly alludes to the wheels, the door, the windows. If an actual fire station ("fire ocean," in Joshie's parla...
Post a Comment
Read more