In his most recent book, Andrew Rannells writes about heading (solo) to a performance of "Follies," wishing "to have my heart broken by Bernadette Peters."
I know what he means. Peters's character--Sally Durant Plummer--has a special place in my own inner landscape.
One kind of musical theater heroine tells the audience exactly what she wants: I'm thinking of Maria ("I Have Confidence"), Dolly ("Put on Your Sunday Clothes"), Marian ("My White Knight"). Certainly, Sondheim was capable of writing this kind of character: I'm thinking of Momma Rose ("Some People"). But Sally, in "Follies," doesn't fit the mold.
Sally's "I Want" moment--when we expect her to be candid and articulate, i.e., "I'm not throwing away my shot"--is actually a song called "Don't Look at Me." And--though she is a stranger to herself--she suggests to us that her great, unexamined wish is to crawl into the fetal position, and sob.
Now, folks, we bring you....
Di-rect from Phoenix....
Live and in person....
Sally Durant!
Here she is at last...
Twinkle in her eye...
Hot off the press....
Strictly a mess.....
Nevertheless.....
Sally's neediness is exhausting; she describes herself as "fat" (though she tends to be played by Peters, Victoria Clark, Imelda Staunton).....She defends herself through faux-humor (If I call myself a mess, then you can't use the word....If I acknowledge that I live "like a shut-in," then *I* am the author of the joke...)
When Sally spots her former lover, Ben, she struggles to form a complete thought:
No, don't look at me--
Please, not just yet.
Why am I here? This is crazy!
No, don't look at me--
I know that face...
You're trying to place...
The name...
Say something, Ben, anything.
Sally has spent weeks preparing for this reunion--and her masochistic inner voice tells her that the special guy, the one that got away, doesn't even remember her name. If Ben could possibly feel affection for Sally, Sally is sure to ruin the moment with self-sabotage; the accusation ("You're trying to place the name") seems unfair and annoying.
I love Sally because I see myself in her. Cannot wait for the "Follies" concert at Carnegie Hall.
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