Sunset Boulevard, the movie starring Gloria Swanson as the iconic character Norma Desmond, is considered one of the greatest films of all time. If you've seen it, you know that it's a biting look at the Hollywood movie system that ate up and spit out silent movie stars as the shift was made to talking films. When Andrew Lloyd Webber created a musical version of this classic film in the mid 90s, there was a collective sigh and eye roll in the entertainment community. Why remake something that was close to perfect?
Keep this in mind I am no Andrew Lloyd Webber apologist. While I think Evita is one of the greatest musicals of all time, I also think Cats and especially the roller skating musical Starlight Express are two of the worst things to ever grace musical theater. All that said I think the musical version of Sunset Boulevard is some of Lloyd Webber's best work and perhaps one of the most underrated and unfairly maligned musicals in existence.
I first saw Sunset Boulevard in 1995 on the London Stage. I had heard the mixed reviews, but I was new into my fandom of musical theatre, so I was very excited to see the show. Some of the reviews were right. The show was a bit of a mess. The show was known for its expensive, over the top large set pieces and frankly they were a bit much. They were a distraction. Take that away and what was left was a melodic piece of biting satire as well as a damnation of our culture's treatment of women past a certain age. I left the show feeling not disappointed but also not entirely fulfilled. The groundwork of an amazing musical was there but not fully realized.
Generally even the people who hate the show could appreciate Glenn Close's portrayal of Norma Desmond in the original Broadway version. She and the musical won Tony's in an admittedly weak year for musical theater. But Close's performance was over the top and grandiose in the moments where it should be and in the next moment childlike and vulnerable. Glenn Close is perhaps my all time favorite actress and when I heard that she was going to be portraying Norma Desmond again in a semi staged smaller scale version of the show in London, I had to find a way to go.
I expected that Glenn Close would be amazing and she definitely was. I definitely felt like I was witnessing greatness in her performance in a way that I don't often feel when I see movies,television, theater or music performance. But what did surprise me was how good the show stood on its own without the big set pieces and with the orchestra on stage. The focus could now go on the performers who were all excellent and the beautiful music and clever lyrics. If you were able to get past the fact that it was a remake of one of Hollywood's finest movies, you were able to witness greatness.
I expect that based on the sold out month of shows in London that this version will make its way to Broadway with or without Glenn Close. If you open your mind to it, you may be surprised by how well done this show really is.
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