Add Liza Minnelli to the list of entertainers I’ve seen in Vegas. Why Liza Minnelli? Why not? Crazy voice. Crazy energy. Just plain crazy. Seriously, there were a couple of times during her performance when I thought she might have been drunk and the train was about to fly right off the tracks. In fact, part of me was hoping for it. But she managed to keep things in check and gave a great, if somewhat short, performance (the show clocked in at just 90 minutes with a significant portion devoted to the vocal stylings of her accompanist as well as lengthy introductions for each member of her 12-piece band). A performer in every sense of the word, she commanded the stage with a fascinating mix of confidence, charisma, and most interesting of all, neediness…for the audience’s affection, for a fifth of vodka, for some oxygen… She just seemed really out of breath at times, particularly in the first half of the show. Later on, she belted out some crazy notes. All in all, a good show.
Interestingly, at times it felt like I was watching an over-the-top Liza Minnelli impersonator rather than Liza Minnelli herself. Her voice and mannerisms are so distinctive and exagerrated that she appeared to be a caricature. The thing was, THAT WAS REALLY HER. So the next time you see someone doing a Liza Minnelli impression and you think it’s too out there, think again. It’s probably spot on.