Powerhouse Broadway veteran Tovah Feldshuh stars in Gypsy at Bristol Riverside Theatre as part of its 25th Anniversary Season through January 15. With music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Arthur Laurents, the production is directed by Keith Baker and also features Robert Newman, Amanda Rose, Brittney Lee Hamilton, Joe Grandy, Bethe B. Austin, Kathryn Kendall, and Demetria Joyce Bailey. See what the critics had to say on opening night below!
Previews began Tuesday, December 6 with opening night on Thursday, December 8. Performances run Tuesday through Sunday until January 15. Tickets start at $40, with discounts for students and groups. Tickets are available visiting brtstage.org or calling the BRT Box Office at 215-785-0100. Bristol Riverside Theatre is located at 120 Radcliffe Street in Bristol, PA.
Howard Shapiro, The Philadelphia Inquirer: Feldshuh plays her as downright maniacal...It’s an interpretation that lets us see the show in a new way, and also makes allowances for Feldshuh’s middle vocal register, not as strong as her lower range. Her higher range has a lovely treble, but is altogether different, also, and sometimes when she sings, it’s like hearing three diferent voices. But Feldshuh comes across here as an actor first — her rendition of the show’s iconic end-song, "Rose’s Turn," in which momma becomes a star in her own mind, is relentlessly tense, passionate and pathetic.
Dewey Oriente/Tony Cassidy, Philadelphia Jewish Voice: Tovah's take on the iconic role took the character from the highs and lows living her life vicariously through her daughter's careers and wrapped them up in a truly unique package of when her character needed to take action, the fire in her eyes and the raving richness of her bellowing voice showed that she was a force to be reckoned with. Tovah's Rose never shuts down, as we can see she is always simmering even when she is in the background.
Walter Bender, Stage Partners: Ms. Feldshuh portrays Mme. Rose as a relentlessly driven woman, her frustrations over her own thwarted dreams of stardom pushing her children to perform in a vaudeville act that she wrote, directed, and choreographed...Ms. Feldshuh is brilliant as Mme. Rose, her energy palpable onstage as she shows the passion her character has to succeed. Her final number Rose’s Turn is amazing as she expresses her anger and frustration at how her plans have been thwarted, as well as finally expressing her wishes to have been a star herself.
