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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated) Binding: DVD EAN: 0054961871797 Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC Label: Acorn Media Languages: Manufacturer: Acorn Media MPN: 8717 Number Of Items: 4 Publisher: Acorn Media Region Code: 1 Release Date: May 02, 2006 Running Time: 82 minutes Studio: Acorn Media Theatrical Release Date: 2006 Editorial Review: Amazon.com: The Broadway's Lost Treasures Collection consists of the three volumes previously released on DVD plus a never-before-available fourth disc, The Best of the Tony Awards: The Plays. The first three discs deliver what the title promises: historic performances of great moments in American musical theater televised on the Tony Awards starting in the 1960s and into the new millennium. Unlike some other arts, theater has rarely been well-documented, so it's a treat to see these numbers performed by the original artists rather than experience them through audio recordings or tepid movie adaptations. Sure, sound and picture quality are only adequate, some of the numbers are minimally staged and some appear to be lip-synched, and some of the performances that do have excellent film counterparts seem rather lackluster here. But those are minor drawbacks compared to the chance to see Gwen Verdon performing "All That Jazz" and "Nowadays" from Chicago and "Whatever Lola Wants" from Damn Yankees; John Raitt singing The Pajama Game's "Hey There"; Alfred Drake singing Kiss Me Kate's "Where Is the Life That Late I Led"); a 33-year-old Jerry Orbach performing Promises, Promises' "She Likes Basketball"; and 12-year-old Andrea McArdle breaking hearts in Annie's "Tomorrow." The second and third volumes feature newer, fully staged performances that are almost indistinguishable from an actual show, including scenes from splashy, high-energy revivals such as Anything Goes (Patti LuPone and company performing the title tune) and Guys and Dolls (the fabulous "Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat"), and new shows such as Grand Hotel (Michael Jeter and Brent Barrett in a gloriously exuberant "Take a Glass Together"), Les Miserables ("One Day More"), La Cage aux Folles (George Hearn solo and with a chorus line in drag in "I Am What I Am"), Ragtime (the opening number), and You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (Kristin Chenoweth's "My New Philosophy"). The new generation of splashy dance-oriented musicals are also represented by the likes of the 42nd Street revival (the title tune and "We're in the Money"), Fosse ("Sing, Sing, Sing"), and Crazy for You ("I Can't Be Bothered Now"). The Best of the Tony Awards: The Plays features 19 of the dramatic and comedy excerpts showcased on the Tony Awards telecasts between 1969 and 2001. From 1969 are James Earl Jones and Jane Alexander in The Great White Hope and Art Carney in Lovers, and other performances include Maggie Smith and Margaret Tyzack in Lettice and Lovage (1990), John Lithgow and B.D. Wong in M. Butterfly (1988), Joan Allen and Peter Friedman in The Heidi Chronicles (1988), and Joe Mantegna and Ron Silver in Speed-the-Plow (1988). The performances aren't specifically organized by date or performer, but the collection concludes with four excerpts from August Wilson works followed by three Shakespearean works. The excerpts are brief, lasting 2-3 minutes each, and even though each segment is introduced by a narrator, this format clearly works better for musicals than it does for plays. Regardless, it remains a rare chance to see stage performances that for the most part are not available on home video. Collectors who already own the three musical volumes, however, will have to weigh how badly they want The Plays when they consider mostly duplicating their purchase with the Broadway's Lost Treasures Collection. --David Horiuchi Description: A comprehensive collection of great performances captured on film as part of the annual Tony Award® broadcasts. Broadway royalty and Tony® winners, including Lauren Bacall, Bebe Neuwirth, Robert Goulet, and Harvey Fierstein, serve as hosts and share their own Broadway and Tony® memories. Produced as PBS specials, Broadway's Lost Treasures I, II, & III feature legendary stars—including Patti LuPone, Nell Carter, Jerry Orbach, Gwen Verdon, Ethel Merman, Kristin Chenoweth, Angela Lansbury, Joel Grey, and many more—performing musical numbers from legendary shows—including Anything Goes, Man of La Mancha, Guys and Dolls, Ain't Misbehavin', Chicago, Fosse, Miss Saigon, Crazy for You, and many many more. The Best of the Tony® Awards-The Plays features acting greats, such as James Earl Jones, Maggie Smith, Annette Benning, Kevin Kline, and Morgan Freeman, performing key scenes from 19 celebrated plays, including The Great White Hope, The Heidi Chronicles, Fences, Hamlet, and Long Day's Journey Into Night. For theatre lovers, it doesn't get any better than this! Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Broadway Lost Treasures is greatAll three tapes are great but the first one is my favorite. The dance Michael Jetters did, which we saw on broadway,, shows what a talent he was. TV should have had him dance. We also saw the great talent of Jerry Orback. His Law and Order character did not do him justice even though he was very good. It was fun to hear the songs being performed by the Broadway people and see some wonderful actors when they were young even though they are still as talended if not more so. Rating:  - Broadway's Lost TreasuresThis DVD package is exactly what I have been looking for. Nothing can compare to it. Rating:  - Broadway's Lost Treasures - OK not GreatDon't buy this DVD if you are looking for high video quality images. If you are interested in the basics of legendary or at least well known Broadway performers in the roles they made famous or became famous because of, buy it. Rating: - DissapointingI really really really wanted this to be what was advertised. After several years out of the theater I was hoping to get my fix. Instead I sat, dissapointed as the songs selected were not the ones I would have liked to have heard, the sound quality on the DVD cut in and out on my surround sound, and the productions were just the pared down recreations from that years Tony awards. The epic dance numbers were missing, or cut down to a meager 8-10 dancers. The sound during Angela Lansburys Worst Pies ... Read More Rating: - Good but....some quality is lacking!I would still purchase this item due to the vintage appeal I have and my love for the musical. However, many segments are of poor quality or low definition. I have a ceiling mount projection screen/surround sound basement theater. I was greatly disappointed in the visual quality of the Ethel Merman segment. |
