Added: 5 years ago
From: steveshack
Views: 115,225
Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:
see all

All Comments (290)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • I cannot believe this doesn't have 5 million views. 150 percent American Musical Theater delivery. PERIOD. AMAZING!

  • A true "love match" between song, performance and capturing the very essence of an authentic enigma...I love the Beales ladies. Thanks for posting this version, so right you are!

  • Utterly breathtaking.... its funny, I found this ages ago and every once in a while I keep coming back to watch it again. Never gets old.

    Christine (and Edie, too, if you read this wherever you are) THANK YOU.

  • Wow. This is, simply, marvelous.  Thank you for posting.

  • Oh, my. This is beautiful. Thank you, thank you, thank you for capturing and posting this.

  • She was Little Eddie's voice down pat, but when she sings it completely goes away and it just loses everything. It's a total break in the character. I think she is great and this is a fantastic song but it seems like, ok here is Little Eddie talking and Christine Ebersole will be filling in for the singing.

  • @Kevertenor Musical theatre depends on the convention that otherwise average and normal people are also amazing singers. If you're not willing to accept that, fair enough, but musical theatre is not going to be your favorite.

  • @Kevertenor: I see your point. But, to me, when Christine begins singing the words "Around the world," that's her escapism to when she was a little girl/fantasy land/world where she's not taking care of her mother. Perhaps it's purposely a bit jarring to note the disjoint between reality/fantasy, caged bird/free bird, young dreams/current despair.

  • She might be the most extrordinary talent we have today.Simply stunning. Absolutely breathtaking. And too many people on Broadway today have no idea how to do this ... perform like a star and move an audience to tears..simply by standing still and singing with her whole heart. How lucky were those of us who got to see this once in a lifetime performer perform. I know I will never forget it. Thanks Chris!!

  • Chris is simply the best Music star in America. That's it.

  • Chris is simply the best Music star in America. That's it.

  • I mgiht cry...

  • Thank you so much for posting this. Heaven. Between this and Another Winter, this show has some incredible songs emoted to perfection by Christine Ebersole. What a strong counterpoint to today's "belt your head off and let artistry be damned" culture!

  • Thank you steve Shack! We need poeple like you to expose youtube fans to great art!!!

  • @gabrielleaviva

    Thank you so much. I"m just glad I was there to record it.

  • @steveshack you did a great job recording it - I would have been shaking like a leaf!!

    Thanks so much!!

  • @grai Oh, believe me. I was doing everything possible to keep a steady hand. It was really frustrating because what I WANTED to do was scream like a little girl. Luckily, since I hadn't seen the show, I didn't know what was about to happen, how great it was going to be.

  • @steveshack I have to watch this every few weeks. It comforts me to know there is still this kind of talent in the world. You don't get to witness it too often. We should send you cash for capturing this.

  • @scudder99 I was just at the right place at the right time. Isn't it amazing how her performance never gets old? I listen to it all the time, too. And such perfect songwriting. Amazing.

  • @scudder99 why would you think thanks=money. Quite annoying. You belong in East Hampton

  • @steveshack this gave her the tony and she is just amazing in this musical she was perfect a

  • WOW!! I am just discovering this woman and this show. Just beautiful!

  • Unbelievably spot on with her imitation of Little Edie! Really captures her essence- incredible!

  • I'm stunned

  • What I want to know is why the hell didn't she play the role in the film???? I was not pleased with Drew, although Jessica was wonderful! Christine rules!

  • TRULY AMAZING!

  • I literally can't stop watching this.

  • @shainaro23 Nor can I. It's just amazing.

  • Imagine, Nicole Kidman crucifying "Unusual Way" in Rob Marshall's take on NINE when musical theatre artists like Christine Ebersole are nowhere to be seen. She could have torn the screen up and sung the shit out of that stunning ballad!!! Too bad!!!

  • @breiver i went to see nine tonight, nicole barked her way through that song like a dog eating biscuits.. awful. u said to my friend wht dont they put real musical theatre stars in musical films?

  • I saw her do this show in New York when it came out, it was the BEST show I have ever seen!

  • this is simply an artistic smash, and it will never change no matter how I think and feel as I get older.

  • Amazing.  Thank you for posting this.

  • I would love if my high school decided to do this production. We have a VERY talented program, and I think we could pull it off.

  • this is one of if not the most brilliant performances i have ever seen.

  • Such a heartfelt performance! My gosh her tone is so clear and delivery is just flawless.. Brava!

  • Christine Ebersole is one of the most refined, talented and powerful performers on the stage today. Amazing!

  • you tack them up so when you go the world will be the one you know

    I visit this every few months as a special treat

    its too unbearable to watch it regularly

  • bravo, sniff, tear, smile..encore christine:)encore:)

  • I've said it before but Ms. Ebersole is (to use a devalued and overused word), brilliant.

  • this is performance is flawless. and the song is just so moving, and she never misses a beat. wonderful

  • Too many things are called brilliant. The descriptor brilliant is not sufficient to capture what Christine Ebersole brings to this performance: so layered yet so forthright-so true. My heart is touched each time I listen to it, touched in many and varied ways.

  • Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

    MAGNIFICENT! I'm so disappointed that I may never be able to see Ms. Ebersole in perform this song or this role in person, but every bit I see brings me such joy. Oh PLEASE won't someone bring this show BACK???

  • this song made me cry, :-(

    The emotion she captured.

    True to Little Edie

  • awesome! love this song! her performance is so wonderful!

  • feckin amazin' , I've told everyone I know... she is THE BEST !!!!! This clip is even better than clips fromthe show .... THANK YOU so much

  • Hubbell, when I saw the show, I was almost disappointed that it didn't sound as good as this recording I made. I thought the orchestration got in the way of her interpretation, no fault of the ochestrator. I just think this song is best when it's just her and the piano.

  • You need to get the album or what ever songs you liked off itunes. They are professionally recorded and I got used to them so hearing the differences in this version throws me off. Still AMAZING though! :D

  • The first time I saw this lady perform "Grey Gardens" changed my life. I ended up seeing the show five times. It was the greatest thing I've ever seen in the theater: specifically, her performance. Absolute genius.

  • I can see why it would change your life. This is the kind of performance that illuminates a life that is really beyond explanation.

  • Absolutely gorgeous.

    Just....completely breathtaking.

  • So Great!

  • Super!

  • Oh goodness. Oh my... my heart just stopped for a minute.

  • PERFECTION

  • this song makes me tear up every time I hear it and Christine Ebersole's voice just kills me.

  • Totally.

  • I didn't see 'Grey Gardens' alas...... but I saw Ms. Ebersole a few years ago in 42nd Street (the musical not the street), a light frothy entertaining evening.......BUT......when she sang 'I Only Have Eyes For You' it was like a bolt of electricity through my body..........I felt I had never in my life heard such an exquisite voice live (and I have seen a lot of Broadway and West End shows). It really is beautiful. Please tell me Grey Gardens is coming to London.

  • I can't wait until Blithe Spirit! :D

  • I saw both performances and know exactly what you mean. :)

  • I am totally obsessed with this....Christine Ebersole is mind blowing....

  • i know what you mean

  • Yeah, I've had this song stuck in my head all this week.

  • christine Ebersole is stunning. there is no one like her. Nothing like this song. I agree, my heart stops and I can't help but tear up. breathtaking

  • the road around the attic wall....

  • This is the best song from this show...devastating-----so moving----around the world....rose bouquets---so beautiful----though I do feel badly the bouviers---GOD- Christine----so precious----

  • The show, the documentary, the music, it is all wonderful. Look forward to the movie.

  • I am a GG fan. First saw it in the late 70's.

    Am amazed (and very pleased) at the life it's taken on in recent years.

    I am also a musical theatre and musical film fan going way back and so my standards are on the high side and this is...

    breath taking in it's truth (Little Edie's truth and our own truth as we relate to her no many levels)and it's originality.

    I am stunned by the perfection of the music and lyrics and further blown away by Christine Ebersole's performance!

  • This number effects my on an extremely deep level. So deep I can scarcely begin to talk about it.

  • This is even better then when I heard it on stage, or either studio recording. Wonderful show,but this number actually transcends the rest of the material in complexity. It is brilliantly composed and not likely to be regularly performed because of the powerful dramatic and vocal phrasing it demands. The orchestration is actually after Chopin's "Revolutionary Etude"--beautifully fitting since this Edie's great moment of rage and rebellion. What Christine does here really needs to be archived

  • ..and studied. Not to overstate it, but I think she made history with this show, specifically with the Little Edie role. With such a thin plot, this role is ALL gestalt..not something commonly seen in commercial musical theater. I really think that's one of the reasons it closed--it was not an easy experience for the pedestrian audience you need to keep selling tickets.

  • I just now saw your comments on this video and I totally agree. It's a great composition, and the delicacy with which she tackles every micro-moment of the song is the thing most composers can only dream of.

  • I play this often with my singers but I really want this arrangement of it - Scott plays it beautifully hear and Christine Ebersole, a vision.

    Does anyone know where I can get such an arrangement?

  • I confess I do not know if such an arrangement even exists. It's possible the composer was just playing from his heart.

  • No no, because I've heard the show pianist play it in another video on here so it must be the show version. It's just slightly different (better) here and there, than the version in the vocal selection book.

  • have you tried the score? it might be different to the vocal selections

  • Hmm no I haven't - know where I can get hold of that?

  • Its not possible its what happens in live performance. YES. You will never find arrangements of living composers performances.

  • She is perfect!!!

  • I thanked you for this a year ago or more - and all I can do again is say THANK YOU. Breaks my heart - I come back often......

  • One of the best performances in theater history in my opinion! I saw it on Broadway and she was simply perfection!

  • You were one of the lucky few who realized what they were seeing. She is almost unparalleled in talent.

  • Everyone is absolutely entitled to their tastes and opinions and it is probably to long a philosophical argument to have on here but I do believe in absolutes and Christine Ebersole is possessed of one of the most beautiful voices of our time and that,s not even addressing her acting and interpretive talents.............to use the language of our inarticulate age...........this woman ROCKS!

  • She is so spectacular in this role. I completely agree with you.

  • I can't stop watching this.

    I'm not generally a fan of her work, but WOW...she really nailed this one.

    This material is awe-inspiring.

  • i just saw a local production of this play. this song is awesome. the gal in the one i saw was really good, but this was even better

  • There are many Broadway divas at the top.... Christine ranks at the top if not THE TOP!!!!!

  • Two things...

    1) emotional complexity

    2) vocal expressive control

    ...make Ms. Ebersole's character & performance of this song simply exquisite: powerful, vulnerable, profound, honest.

    In other words: EXCELLENT, just excellent!

  • The line "around the world with stones and shells the nicest one I lost " is so heartbreaking for no reason and at the same time for lots of reasons

    Thats when you know the text is genius

  • Very good observation. It's in these tiny details that you feel the full character fleshed out. And for the singer, what a great line to get to sing. You don't have to act it at all because the emotional content is already present.

  • also "a bird cage for a bird who flew away Around the world" which is something she never managed to do

    Every time I watch it it reveals another level of feeling and meaning and leaves me wrecked!

    I wonder if there is a chance she'll do this in London

    have you heard anything?

  • I saw the play on Broadway with her in it and am only now starting to realize what a rare experience it was to see one of the great theater performances ever.

  • One of the amazing things about genius is that, unlike when it's portrayed in movies, it doesn't announce itself with dramatic music or camera angles.

    She was just there on the stage -- so completely immersed in the character that you didn't see "acting." You only saw the character. And that's really amazing considering the fact that Little Edie is, well, insane.

    So, I'm not surprised that the realization of her accomplishment is something you begin to truly value in retrospect.

  • My friend wants me to sing this for a competition, but I'd be too scared to do it because I could never measure up to Christine. She's absolutely amazing.

  • she is perfect...

  • very very moving piece, it's really sad, i couldn't have those feelings toward my mother, this piece describes so many feelings. the depressing music adds a great feel, it adds emphasis on Christine's own words.... I love the add-in from Robert Frost, very nice, I love Christine Ebersole!

  • i love christine ebersole. she's so good. but i might be a tiny bit biased since she lives around the corner from me

  • I wish they'd release the play on DVD :( I'd buy it.

  • Sheer genius. This is it.

  • I cannot believe how truly accurate they adapted the anecdotes from the documentary into this number. When Edie talks about not having time to hang the birdcage, I shudder because it is too incredibly touching--- what with all the mementos!

  • You meant 'MemoraBEALEia'? lol

  • Oh my God... is it sad that I cry every time I watch this? I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!

  • Not sad at all. It's a great work of art and her performance is transcendent.

  • true that.... I would kill to see this musical...

  • that was soo beautiful! im so annoyed i never got to see this show! i love it!

  • Hey Steve...watching again for the 6th or so time :) Was wondering where this was performed and what it was for. Looks like a college or benefit of some sort?

  • It was an ASCAP awards show for young and upcoming performer/composers.

  • Oh I love this musical! Christine Ebersole is simply brilliant.

  • Is this coming back to New York?! Please someone let me KNOW!!!!

  • There are no plans for this to come back to New York.

  • Shw was in London a couple of months ago and the thinking was that it was to do with bringing Grey Gardens over here. Certainly hope so!

  • We keep waiting for a London run to be announced, but so far nothing. If anyone hears anything...please make a post.

  • Is this coming back to New York?! Please someone let me KNOW!!!!

  • Christine's voice just sends chills up my spine!

    Her voice is INSANELY beautiful!!! ;]

  • She's like the Meryl Streep of Broadway...amazing.

  • i could not have said it better. i have yet to see the play but love it just the same!!!!

  • The performance brought tears to my eyes, along with new understanding and sorrow in my heart for Little Edie.

  • Wow.

  • She's incredible.

  • This is my new favorite song! :]

  • You're right Steve. I am addicted to this song! Christine is fabulous.

  • That face. That voice.

  • Christine Ebersole will go down as one of the all-time greats. But I must all, Scott Frankel's music AND his magnificent piano playing here takes my breath away.

  • I so agree about Scott's brilliant piano. I love this recording WAY more than the orchestrated version, and that's no disrespect to the orchestrations. It's just the power of this piano combined with that voice, it's stripped down to its most powerful edge.

  • such a beautiful piece and performer. i was so happy to have seen this show when it was open on broadway. christine and mary louis were stunningly brilliant.

  • i can't stop watching it, this is just stunning. Thankyou so so SO much for the upload! Hard to believe this kind of thing isn't shared.

  • Please feel free to share this video anywhere you wish. I didn't know anything about this song before this night. It was all I could do to hold the camera steady, I was so overwhelmed by her performance.

  • Steve, you did an incredible job, for an incredible performance. Too bad I wasn't there!

  • Oh, thank you. I still can't believe I held my hand steady. I wanted to jump around and shout during this song.

  • this is amazing

  • AMAZING. She evokes so much emotion in her performance, and she barely moves. When I admit I was skeptical of her playing little Edie, but when saw her Tony Awards performance I knew she would win.

  • I've read the musical is supposed to open in London next year. I hope it does but I wonder who's going to play Little Eddie and if anyone will be able to fill Christine's shoes.

  • I think Christine is going to be in the London production.

  • I'd only ever seen Miss Ebersole in the movie version of "Amadeus." Her part was not big but I liked her and remembered her. How wonderful to see and hear her in this number. I look forward to seeing other footage you've gotten. Thanks.

  • I know her face. She plays in Richie Rich and often shows up in the LMN movie network.

  • The only thing that sucks about this is that this version is so much better than the Cast Recording.

    The cast recording is heavily orchestrated and I think it works better with just the piano. Plus her performance here is way better than the one on the CD.

  • I can't listen to the CD anymore without thinking how much better this live performance is.

  • I actually don't love the musical as a whole, though. The first act is too long and it contains more than one completely pointless throw away song. The second act is a lot better though.

    They shouldn't have tried to force a story on it with the first act and instead simply started out with the older versions of themselves. I don't think it would have been as popular or conventional that way, but it would have been a better musical.

  • I absolutely LOVED Act One. It never occurred to me that Big Edie was the cause of Little Edie's mental breakdown. To see what Big Edie used to be made her later condition that much more vivid.

  • Isn't it great that we have both, though? I'm just so happy that I was there. If I hadn't turned on my camera, this incredibly powerful performance would be lost to us. What amazes me is that I still feel the same jolt of electricity, seeing it here, that I did seeing it live. This is the essence of a true world class performer meeting the perfect material and role.

  • Omg, i can't believe you got out your camera and captured this timeless moment in musical theater history. For someone like me who would have killed to see the show live but lives in Israel, this video is an incredible compensation. A million thank you's! May you take that magic camera of yours wherever you go!

  • That makes me very happy to hear. Be sure to check out the other little musical theatre moments I've found. They're all here on youtube, I think. I just manage to get into some very interesting places.

  • That whole musical is pure genious. It's a shame it couldn't stay on but I can see how it wouldn't appeal enough to those who don't know the documentary.

    Christine's impersonation is dead and her performance is amazing. Not just the singing. When she says "Fine" at the end of the song "Mother Darling" she's conveys so much with just the inflection and the tone of her voice! 1000 Tony awards wouldn't have been enough.

  • drew barrymore and jessica lange are playing the edie's in the upcoming movie.

  • But the movie isn't this musical, is it?

  • no its not. drew is playing young edie a la erin davie and jessica is big edie. i think for now its just scheduled to be an HBO movie.

  • did they cast her in the movie?

  • Is a movie in the works?

  • So beautiful and so sad...it made me cry!

  • Wow

  • I've watched this sooo many times, I just have to watch it over and over. I love this so much!

  • hazelwind, it really is mesmorizing, isn't it?

  • it is... i could watch this forever and never get tired of it

  • Outstandingly pathetic. Can you imagine? I have loved Grey Gardens since I saw bootleg years and years ago. Ebersole is so incredibly haunting. I can't imagine anyone ever taking her spot. Awesome.

  • OMG!!!!!!! she effing has me in tears!!!!!!!!

  • Her total concentration is what's so magnificent about this performance. It's not just a person singing a song and trying to sound pretty. This is an immersive performance. She's not acting. She is just being that character. It's astonishing.

  • Thank you. I hope that says it all.

  • Amazing!

  • I can't stop watching this, this is too amazing. Hands Down.

  • I know what you mean. I have listened to it dozens and dozens of times. And I'm still knocked out by how good my little camera did in picking up the sound.

  • one word: flawless! where did you video this?

  • I taped it at an ASCAP Foundation Awards ceremony where some young people were getting grants for their artistry as composers. I believe the writers of Grey Gardens were also awarded something. Her appearance was a surprise to us and we hadn't yet seen Grey Gardens. That I held that camera steady was a sheer act of will. All I wanted to do was swoon like a little girl. It's impossible to state how she made me feel, hearing it live. I was stunned.

  • Christine Ebersole is the best actress on stage.

  • Oh god! I didn't get to see Grey Gardens, but I am totally enchanted with the story. It really hits home...it makes me cry!

  • Christine Ebersole is an artist. A true artist. And Scott Frankel is no slouch either. LOL

  • I would kill to see her live!

  • Well, if you live in the NY area, she's performing in Dec. and doing "Applause" in Feb.

  • What is she performing in december?

  • She's giving a concert Dec. 5, 6, 7 and 8 at Birdland. She sings jazz, Broadway, a little of everything it seems. She's amazing in concert. I really enjoyed the ones I've been to. She's worth catching in concert.

  • amazing!!! simply... better than the track...so amazing

  • oh my heart

  • Ditto. This performance makes my chest ache. Good good good.

  • i stumbled on to this due to william sledd's video when ebersole mentioned him on the view and i'm glad i found it.

  • This is gorgeous. I wish i saw this instead of Avenue Q. (which was awesome). I thought my family might not be too into this though.

  • absolutelly beautiful sound

  • Beautifuly orchistrated and Christen Ebbersol os however you spell it , rofl is tooooooo amazing!

  • wow.

  • SHE FREAKIN' ROCKS! YEAH!

  • Christine truly is remarkable, as well as being a wonderful person. At the last Saturday matinee, she came outside and signed autographs and posed for photos, she didn't turn anyone away and had a big smile for everyone who approached her. Extremely rare she really appreciated everyone who came to see her, I wish her all the best she deserves it!