Barbra Streisand Talks About Theatre, Her Netflix Variety Special, & Not Being A Diva

Streisand sat down with The Hollywood Reporter for their exclusive 'Awards Chatter' Podcast, which has hosted such guests as Oprah, Meryl Streep, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and more - which you can listen to here. In it, she discusses her new Netflix variety special, "Barbra: The Music... The Mem'ries... The Magic!".

Listen as Streisand talks about everything, from growing up ("I was known as the kid on the block with no father and a good voice") to her love of directing ("To get the best performances out of the actors - that's really my job and it's what I love to do").

She even addresses her reputation she's garnered over the years. "I am not a diva," she insists. Streisand, like many successful women in the industry, has been been given the diva label or been called 'hard to work with' simply because she demanded creative control over her work. "They weren't used to someone like me - who had opinions, by the way," she says.

Not to mention, being a theatre kid at heart, she talks quite a bit about theatre, too. When she was younger, she babysat so she could afford acting lessons. "I wanted to be a classical actress. I wanted to be in the theater," she said.

So, what's the dream role of someone so legendary? Mama Rose in Gypsy, apparently! "I really wanted to play that part," she tells The Hollywood Reporter. "That would have been my farewell on screen. It was a bookend, to me, to Funny Girl, written by Jule Styne; and I love Stephen Sondheim's work; and I know that character because my mother was kind of like that."

For the full article and to listen to the podcast, click here.

Netflix audiences worldwide can now enjoy a fresh selection of content from EGOT Winner Barbra Streisand's library, including award-winning My Name Is Barbra (1965), Color Me Barbra (1966), Barbra Streisand: A Happening in Central Park (1968), Barbra Streisand and Other Musical Instruments (1973), Barbra Streisand: The Concert (1994), and Barbra Streisand: TIMELESS (2001). Netflix is also thrilled to present a special edition of Barbra Streisand's classic movie A Star Is Born (1976).

Widely recognized as an icon in multiple entertainment fields, Barbra Streisand has attained unprecedented achievements as a recording artist, actor, concert performer, producer, director, author and songwriter. Streisand has been awarded two Oscars®, five Emmy® statuettes, 11 Golden Globes®, eight Grammys plus two special Grammys, a special Tony Award®, and two CableACE Awards - the only artist to receive honors in all of those fields of endeavor. Streisand received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama, and her many other honors include the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award, the National Endowment for the Arts Medal, two Peabody Awards and France's Légion d'Honneur. She is also the first female film director to receive the KENNEDY Center Honors. Streisand became a Broadway legend for her portrayal of Fanny Brice in the original production of Funny Girl in 1964, a role she also played on the big screen in the widely successful film adaptation. With the longest span of number one albums in history, Streisand has recorded 52 gold, 31 platinum and 13 multi-platinum albums in her career. ? She is the only woman to make the All-Time Top 10 Best Selling Artists list. She is also the only artist in history to achieve a No. 1 album in six consecutive decades.