Patti LuPone Loves Sunset Blvd. Revival

Broadway legend Patti LuPone, who is currently in the final week of performances of The Roommate on Broadway, took her night off to catch a performance of Sunset Blvd., the Jamie Lloyd-helmed revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, which is an adaptation of the cult classic film by Billy Wilder about a washed-up silent movie star angling for a comeback.

LuPone has a storied history with the show. She originated the role of Norma Desmond in the first West End production with the understanding that she would transfer with the show to Broadway. She later learned that she was being replaced on Broadway by Glenn Close — from a gossip column. Outraged, she sued Lloyd Webber for breach of contract and received a sizable settlement (reportedly more than $1 million) which she used to finance the construction of the “Andrew Lloyd Webber Memorial Pool” at her home in Connecticut.

Obviously, it’s not her happiest theatrical memory.

But LuPone was all praise about the new Broadway revival and its star Nicole Scherzinger on a call to NY1’s Frank DiLella, who posted the Tony winner’s review to his Instagram. You can listen here:

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“I saw Sunset Blvd. last night. I went in with trepidation because I have strong feelings about the show — not what happened to me in the show, but the show, period.

I love this production!

I thought Nicole and Tom were stunning. I thought Nicole was unbelievable! She broke my heart! She is a force!

I thought the cast was fantastic. The lighting, the use of the filming was something I questioned because, where am I, at a film? At the theater? This worked brilliantly. The whole thing, the whole thing. I was energized when I left the theater. I loved it.”

TheaterMania critic David Gordon similarly praised Scherzinger, saying hers was “one of the greatest performances I’ve ever seen.” You can read his full review of Sunset Blvd. here.