Patinkin is a talented guy, even brilliant at times. However, he can be very off-putting on stage, and he was that way well before The Wild Party.
My partner and I caught his one person show Dress Casual at Chicago's Shubert Theatre in Sept., 1992. Apparently, the day before our performance Patinkin had pulled a ligament in his leg. He did the show anyway, seated in a chair, and dressed in a baseball sleeves shirt and what appeared to be boxer undershorts. He was kind of surly, almost rude when addressing the audience. He told us about his accident, said he didn't have to be here, and almost dared people to leave if they didn't like his appearance or the way he was going to do the show. A few individuals (not many) did actually get up and leave. Nevertheless, once he settled down and began performing, the show was quite good.
I saw him as Burrs in The Wild Party in Apr., 2000. Brilliant score and mesmerizing show, but not for all tastes. I loved it, but it was one of the rare Broadway musicals that did not receive a standing ovation. The Lippa Wild Party was greeted with thunderous applause when I saw it on the same trip. However, I much prefer the LaChiusa version. |
