Review Roundup - Audra McDonald Revives Tony Winning Performance in HBO's LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR & GRILL

Six-time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald brought her acclaimed portrayal of Billie Holiday in the Broadway smash LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR & GRILL to HBO on Saturday, March 12th. Filmed before a live audience at Cafe Brasil in New Orleans, the special featured McDonald in her history-making, tour de force performance as the jazz icon, which won the actress her sixth Tony Award.

Originally written for off-Broadway by Lanie Roberston in 1987, LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR & GRILL tells Holiday's LIFE STORY through the songs that made her famous, including "God Bless the Child," "What a Little Moonlight Can Do," "Strange Fruit" and "Taint Nobody's Biz-ness."

Let's see what the critics had to say:

Matt Taminini, BroadwayWorld: It seems cliché to call McDonald's performance a tour de force, but there is no better description. Under the direction of Lonny Price, as she was on Broadway, McDonald elevates the otherwise pedestrian material to something ethereal. The first half of the broadcast is charming, but doesn't capture the magic that I imagine was present at Circle in the Square, but when Lady Day begins her heroin-fueled breakdown after retrieving her dog Pepi, McDonald flexes her considerable performance muscles while staggering around the stage, baring her soul through a haze of drugs and booze.

Oliver Sava, A.V. Club: By the end of the play, Holiday is so high and worn out that McDonald can really get rough and sloppy with her line delivery, and that extra texture is what the rest of the script needs. McDonald still reaches a place of real pain and despair, though, and the tragedy of Lady Day At Emerson's Bar & Grill is seeing the bright firecracker from the start of the play fade into the dark place within herself. It's a change that comes through clearly in McDonald's body and voice, and despite the faults of the text, the central performance provides a heartbreaking, multifaceted portrayal of a black female artist yearning for respect, haunted by past mistakes, and tormented by addiction.

Daniel D'Addario, TIME: For her part, McDonald could easily win yet another prize for the role. The quirks of Emmy categorization mean that she's likely to be up against performers from miniseries like American Crime, The People v. O.J. Simpson, and Fargo, but McDonald, in her own zone, acts out her own miniseries in an hour and a half.

BWW will update with additional reviews when available.

McDonald made history and became Broadway's most decorated performer when she won her sixth Tony Award, for LADY DAY in 2014. In addition to setting the record for most competitive wins by an actor, she also became the first person to receive awards in all four acting categories. The show's run at the Circle in THE SQUARE Theatre on Broadway was extended four times.

Also the recipient of two GRAMMY AWARDS and an Emmy Award, McDonald was named one of TIME magazine's 100 most influential people of 2015. Aside from her Tony-winning performances in CAROUSEL, MASTER CLASS, RAGTIME, A RAISIN IN THE SUN, THE GERSHWINS' PORGY AND BESS, and LADY DAY, McDonald has appeared on Broadway in THE SECRET GARDEN, MARIE CHRISTINE (Tony nomination), HENRY IV and 110 IN THE SAHDE (Tony nomination). McDonald returns to Broadway this year in SHUFFLE ALONG.

LADY DAY AT EMERSON'S BAR & GRILL is directed by Lonny Price, who also directed the Broadway production, and produced by Allen Newman and Two Hands Entertainment. It was originally produced on Broadway by Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, Jessica Genick and Will Trice.

Photo Credit: Michele K. Short/Courtesy of HBO

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