Barbra Streisand: The Television Specials - A Must Have!
There's little argument that Barbra Streisand is one of the most highly
regarded performers of our time. Never has this fact been better
confirmed than by the thrilling performances evident on the recent DVD
release, Barbra Streisand: The Television Specials (Rhino Records), a long-awaited
beautifully packaged boxed-set collection of the star's first 5
television specials, which include - My Name is Barbra (1965), Color Me
Barbra (1966), The Belle of 14th Street (1967), Barbra Streisand: A
Happening in Central Park (1968), and Barbra Streisand...And Other
Musical Instruments (1973).
From her first sung notes in the black and white My Name is Barbra,
filmed while still appearing in Funny Girl on Broadway, Streisand
displays the voice, talent, and a ground-breaking approach that helped
catapult her to stardom. As we learn in the accompanying notes, the
unheard of granting of "complete artistic control" to Streisand is seen
completely throughout the special, and was a wise decision, as we witness her vision and touch, visible here in every detail.
For me, the most enjoyable of the specials are the earliest ones, where
her youth, passion and drive are most evident. The later specials, while
still well worth watching, become more polished - losing a bit of the
initial hunger. As the specials go on, you get to watch Barbra evolve as
a performer, from the tender age of 22, when the first special was filmed.
All of the television shows are dripping with Broadway material. Tunes
range from shows as varied as Showboat to My Fair Lady to Off-Broadway's
The Fantasticks. The Funny Girl material on the first disc is worth the price of the entire set (which is actually reasonably priced). The
mere hour of material shown on A Happening in Central Park, makes one
wonder what happened to the other 90 minutes of material referenced as
having been performed as well.
Accompanying this beautifully designed package of DVDs is a fascinating
60-page booklet, written by Streisand collaborators Jay Landers and
Richard Jay-Alexander. Sprinkled with many pages of never before seen
photographs from Barbra's archives, the notes provide further insight
into the making of the specials, as well as their place in history and
effect on the cultural landscape. Reading the booklet and watching
these awe-inspiring specials made me sad that talents like this
(assuming they're out there) are rarely showcased as well as they used
to be by television (which has surely grown into mass media).
It
is unlikely that we will ever witness an ascent such as Streisand's
again in our lifetime. She was the right talent, in the right place, at
the right time and nothing could have stopped her.
Barbra Streisand: The Television Specials, the 5 DVD boxed set, is a
"must-have" for fans of this true diva. It is also enjoyable for anyone
who wants to witness great musical performances, providing a master-class on earning the right to be called a star.
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 Robert Diamond founded BroadwayWorld.com in 2003, which has now become the largest theatre web site in the world. He also serves as the site's Editor-in-Chief, covering Broadway and beyond, with specific local coverage for 100 cities in the United States, 30 countries worldwide and 15 other related areas of entertainment - including dance, opera, fashion, concerts, comedy, films, television and more.The 2001 Syracuse University graduate (School of Information Studies) is also the owner of Wisdom Digital Media, an award-winning leading design company for entertainment and technology web sites. In his previous life, he held an executive position for the world's leading publisher of technology magazines, web sites and conferences and, as a result, was named among the "Top thirty magazine industry executives under the age of 30" by FOLIO Magazine. Diamond got his start in the entertainment field, accidentally, when he created the 'official web site' (while in college) for Michael Crawford, the popular actor and original Tony and Olivier Award-winning star of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. (He still blames Crawford - and credits him - for anything that goes particularly right or wrong during an average day.) As a respected member of the Broadway and theatre community, Diamond also served as Lead Producer for a series of sold-out shows using the BroadwayWorld.com 'brand' for a set of 'Standing Ovations' concerts, which also branched out into titles that included Holiday Shows and even more specific concerts like 'From Stage to Screen and Back Again' in tandem with publishers and movie studios. All proceeds were in turn donated to Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS, the industry's leader in aid for performers in need. Robert lives in Manhattan with his wife and two dogs, growing the business and getting little sleep. In addition, you can usually find him in a theatre many nights a week. Robert's very popular blog, 'The Broadway Pulse' appears daily on BroadwayWorld.com and he also writes weekly about theatre for the USA Network's Character Approved blog. In December of last year, Diamond was one of 5 Syracuse University Alumni, all having achieved success in the world of start-ups, business growth and venture capital, participating on a panel addressing young alumni who are currently pursuing their dreams of running their own business and experiencing the day to day challenges of a startup. It is part of the university's new Student Accelerator Program, for which Rob was recommended by Syracuse University's i-School.
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