A few years ago, there was an announcement that led to me posting this here, in part…
Barbra Streisand is reportedly dickering to direct and star in a motion picture remake of Gypsy. I'm not sure this is a good idea and I'll tell you why. It's not because the last film version was so good or even any good. It's because what was wrong with it will probably be wrong with a Gypsy starring Streisand. This show is about a woman — Momma Rose — who was willing to do anything (lie, cheat, steal, anything) to make at least one of her daughters a star. Why? Because Momma Rose didn't want her kids to live in near-poverty as she had, and also because Momma Rose couldn't have been a star herself so she wanted to live vicariously through her kid. That's what the whole "Rose's Turn" number is all about: I did it for you but I also did it for me.
The movie starring Rosalind Russell never worked for me because, among its other flaws, Rosalind Russell could not suppress her image as an elegant, successful woman of talent and breeding. That is not Momma Rose. It's like Cary Grant trying to play a guy with no looks and no class. I obviously never saw Ethel Merman do the original on Broadway but when I hear the cast album and imagine her up there, she seems perfect to me. Ethel Merman had the star power and talent necessary to carry a lead role like that but she looked and talked like a waitress in a greasy spoon cafe.
Nothing more has been heard about Streisand's version of Gypsy but I just saw one that'll be hard to top. Imelda Staunton is the ranking musical superstar in Great Britain, having starred in many shows to rave acclaim. She recently completed a run in a revival of Gypsy in the West End that was a stunning success.
Before it ended its deliberately-limited engagement, the show was captured on video and it was recently shown on BBC4 over there. I got a copy and it's just about perfect — easily the best rendition of the show I've ever seen. Imelda Staunton is the main reason as she plays the meanest, most self-centered Momma Rose in history…but actually, everyone in this version is terrific. She does the same thing Merman must have done: To be a star who convinces you she herself could never be a star.
And yes, the show was recorded with a live audience. I don't think it would have worked without one, especially during the "Rose's Turn" number.
Can you see it for yourself? Well, there are reportedly talks ongoing to bring it and Ms. Staunton to Broadway but you're probably interested in seeing this video. A couple different versions of it (some missing some numbers and/or with poor video) have been uploaded to YouTube and I assume the folks who own the production are working to get them taken down.
The whole show is online for the next few weeks on the BBC4 website but you have to be logging in from an IP address in Great Britain to view it. Or you could employ a program that spoofs your IP address to make that website think you're in Great Britain. Also, I'm told that a deal is underway to release the video on DVD for American players. It's well worth waiting for.