TDF Stages

From Ethel Merman to Audra McDonald, a Mama Rose fan shares her memories of seeing the musical masterpiece on Broadway

---

It's been a while since we published one of our Theatre Lovers essays, but at Gypsy with Audra McDonald, I began chatting with my seatmate, who saw Ethel Merman in the musical back in the day! We couldn't resist sharing her memories of many Mama Roses. If you'd like to submit your story for consideration, email TDF Stages.

I was 10 years old in the summer of 1959 when my mother introduced me to my first Broadway show. We took the subway downtown from the Bronx to see a matinee of Gypsy starring Ethel Merman. Sitting in those center orchestra seats, my entire world changed.

Our tickets cost around $10, which was a lot of money back then. My family was very frugal: We never ate out and if we could walk where we were going, we did.

Growing up the Bronx, I rarely left the borough. I never went to camp or traveled. Movies and television, especially musicals, brought the world to me. Now there I was in a real Broadway theatre seeing Ethel Merman commanding the stage as Mama Rose in Jule Styne, Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents' masterpiece.

After the performance, my mother and I strolled to Central Park and saw Can-Can starring Genevieve at the Theatre-in-the-Park, an outdoor venue set up at Wollman Rink. Two shows in one day—I felt so very special! All these years later, I still consider it the best day of my life.

When I started sixth grade that fall, my teacher asked what we all did during the summer. I proudly told her and my class about seeing Gypsy on Broadway. My teacher seemed shocked and said a show about a stripper wasn't appropriate for a child my age. I countered that Gypsy was about sisters growing up in show business because at 10, that's what resonated with me.

Now as a 76-year-old grandmother, I see Gypsy as the tale of a mother who sacrificed everything for her children. I really relate to "Rose's Turn"—that could be my theme song!

At my request for my 11th birthday, my mom took me to see Ethel Merman in Gypsy again. From then on, whenever Gypsy was on Broadway, so was I.

In 1974, my son's father got us tickets to see Angela Lansbury in Gypsy for my birthday. I remember how Louise singing "Little Lamb" hit home. "Did somebody paint you like that, or is it your birthday, too?" Not being in a perfect loving relationship, I felt the same kind of loneliness and longing as Louise did. To this day, I often sing that song in my head and tear up.

Speaking of my son's father, in 1975 he took me to see Chicago with Chita Rivera and Gwen Verdon. When Verdon tossed roses into the audience, he caught one and swore she threw it to him! Nothing more needs to be said.

By 1989 I was an independent woman, and I went to see Tyne Daly in Gypsy on my own. I enjoyed the show because it was Gypsy, but I think knowing Daly from TV tainted my view of her as Rose.

In 2003, I treated myself to a ticket to see Bernadette Peters in Gypsy. As always, I sat in a center orchestra seat. The show was great because it was Gypsy but Peters will always be Annie Oakley from Annie Get Your Gun to me.

In 2008, I bought myself a ticket to see a preview of Gypsy with Patti LuPone. The tone of the production seemed more comedic than previous ones, but it worked. The strippers were very entertaining, and LuPone was such a superstar I decided to go again after opening with a friend who had never seen Gypsy. I was so glad she loved it, too… perhaps not as much as I did, but that would be impossible.

While I love the songs in Gypsy, I relate to the story, too. Like Rose, my mother gave up a lot for me, but I didn't realize that until I was older. The lost feeling that Louise has was me as a kid. Being an only child with my father in prison, I felt like an outcast.

When I saw that Gypsy was coming back to Broadway with Audra McDonald, I decided to buy myself a birthday present. Luckily, I found a single seat in the center orchestra on December 14, my actual birthday. Never having seen McDonald perform, I was both excited and nervous about the show, but she was amazing. In "Roses Turn" she rocked it—Ethel Merman would have been proud!

I'm always a little sad when people tell me they don't remember their first Broadway show. My son doesn't recall seeing Peter Pan with Sandy Duncan when he was 6, but my grandson remembers his first show, Finding Neverland at 7. We went backstage and met the two sheepdogs that played Nana thanks to my friend Heather Parcells, who was in the cast. You can't forget that!

Just like I'll never forget my first Broadway experience. I can still vividly picture Merman barreling down the aisle during Uncle Jocko's Kiddie Show and calling, "Sing out, Louise!" Now I have McDonald's spectacular performance etched in my memory, too. I am happy if she turns out to be my final Rose. They have all entertained me.

---

Gypsy is frequently available at our TKTS Discount Booths.

TDF MEMBERS: Go here to browse our latest discounts for dance, theatre and concerts.