Starry, Starry Night

Liza Minnelli, Sutton Foster, Elaine Stritch, John Cullum, and many other stars honor Hal Prince at this year's Broadway Under the Stars concert.

By Michael Portantiere • Jun 28, 2006 • New York

The 2006 edition of the annual Broadway Under the Stars concert might as well have been retitled Broadway Under the Clouds, given the weather conditions on Monday evening, June 26. Held for the first time on the Great Lawn in Central Park, the event was a rousing success. (Highlights will be telecast by WCBS on Saturday, July 15 at 7pm.) It was a celebration of the legendary Harold Prince, featuring songs from several of the dozens of shows he has produced and/or directed. One of the audience's favorite numbers was "Buenos Aires" from Evita, performed by Carolee Carmello -- who showed more than a little touch of star quality -- and a bunch of hot male dancers choreographed by Chase Brock.

Among the other celebrity participants: Elaine Stritch, who sang "Broadway Baby" from Follies and "Why Do I Love You?", the number that Prince gave her to sing in his lauded revival of Show Boat...

...the scintillating Jane Krakowski, whose fabulous rendition of "Don't Tell Mama" from Cabaret made one think that she'd be an excellent Sally Bowles...

...Sutton Foster, trying here to bolster Noah Racey's confidence with "You've Got Possibilities" from It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's Superman...

... and John Cullum, a Tony Award winner for his performance in On The Twentieth Century, making the years melt away with his wonderfully athletic performance of that musical's showstopper, "I Rise Again."

Kelli O'Hara and Matthew Morrison, who played the young lovers in The Light in the Piazza, were reunited as another pair of young lovers in a magical rendition of the Balcony Scene from West Side Story.

Other highlights of the concert included Christine Ebersole's heartfelt rendition of "Not a Day Goes By" from Merrily We Roll Along...

...Michael Arden's exuberant performance of the title song from She Loves Me...

...Renée Elise Goldsberry's gripping version of "The Miller's Son" from A Little Night Music...

...Jersey Boys stars (and understudies) Christian Hoff, Dominic Nolfi, Michael Longoria, and J. Robert Spencer in a doo-wop arrangement of "All I Ask of You" from The Phantom of the Opera...

...Donna McKechnie's "I'm Still Here" from Follies...

...Brian d'Arcy James' "Oh, What a Circus"/"Sing, You Fools" from Evita...

...and Bebe Neuwirth's full-throttle-belt performance of the title song from Cabaret.

At the end of the concert, Liza Minnelli introduced Prince, who helped her get her theatrical start in Flora, the Red Menace. Not surprisingly, the great man received an ovation from both the cast and the crowd...

...and then Prince was given the greatest honor that any New Yorker can receive: a Central Park bench with his name on it!