Susan Granger’s review of “End of the Rainbow” (Belasco Theater 2011-2012 season)
Admittedly, it’s difficult for me to review this show about the tragic demise Judy Garland, who died of an accidental barbiturate overdose on June 22, 1969, at the age of 47. Growing up on the M.G.M. lot, I was fortunate to meet Miss Garland several times and see her, even more often, when she was a guest in my parents’ home. That was during the 1950s, when she was married either to director Vincente Minnelli or producer Sid Luft.
Set at the Ritz Hotel in London in December, 1968, six months before her fatal overdose, the narrative follows Judy (Tracie Bennett) as she desperately tries to stage a five-week comeback at the Talk of the Town nightclub, only to succumb, once again to pills and booze. As it begins, she’s settling into a suite with her manager/soon-to-be-fifth husband, much younger Mickey Deans (Tom Pelphrey) and her long-suffering gay pianist, Anthony (Michael Cumpsty). Although her determination wavers, her famous contralto voice soars.
Imported from London’s West End, it’s written by Peter Quilter and directed by Terry Johnson (“La Cage Aux Folles”), riddled with Judy’s, literally, begging on her hands-and-knees for Ritalin, threatening imperiously, “I decide if and when I do shows.”
In a bravura performance, perhaps the best on Broadway, petite Tracie Bennett embodies all of Garland’s nervous mannerisms within her richly textured portrayal of a struggling, tortured soul who simply refuses to concede defeat to the personal demons that have plagued her for most of her life, going back to studio days with Mickey Rooney and venturing down the Yellow Brick Road through Oz. The highlight is her uncanny rendition of “Come Rain or Come Shine,” accompanied by bongos in overdrive. And it’s a miracle that Ms. Bennett has the stamina to perform eight emotionally and physically strenuous shows a week.
But for those who have had the pleasure of knowing Judy Garland, albeit in person or on the screen, it’s an embarrassing experience, venturing into a very eerie realm of impersonation that goes beyond the uncomfortable. So it’s understandable that Liza Minnelli, Judy’s daughter, skipped the show in London and has not been spotted in the New York audience.
As an added footnote: Anne Hathaway has signed to play Garland in the upcoming biopic, “Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland.”