USA: LIZA MINELLI PERFORMS AT THE HISTORIC PANTAGES THEATRE

Record ID: 496046

  • Title: USA: LIZA MINELLI PERFORMS AT THE HISTORIC PANTAGES THEATRE
  • Date: 22nd July 1997
  • Summary: LIZA MINNELLI PERFORMING ON STAGE
  • Embargoed: 6th August 1997 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BEVERLY HILLS AND LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA AND NEW YORK,NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVA6PCK61VOF1JOVI752DUC2EKP4
  • Story Text: Legendary song-and-dance lady Liza Minnelli brought her most recent tour to Los Angeles on Thursday (July 31) when she performed for a celebrity-packed audience at the historic Pantages Theatre in downtown Hollywood.

    Earlier in the week, Minnelli placed her handprints in cement at Planet Hollywood in Beverly Hills. They will be added to the restaurant's permanent display of celebrity prints.

    Minnelli's tour is now six months old and has been dogged by media reports that she has lapsed into past self-destructive behaviour, such as drug use and temper tantrums.

    Many feel she is following in the footsteps of her late mother, Judy Garland, who died of a drug overdose in London in 1969.

    Coincidentally, this year Garland would be turning 75 years old and Minnelli feels this is the right time to break a long-standing rule of hers and perform one of her mother's songs on stage. The song is "You Made Me Love You." The rumours of Minnelli's recent behaviour were made worse by a hospital stay in February for removal of a polyp from her vocal cords. She also had hip-replacement surgery two years ago.

    Minnelli's battle with drugs and alcohol has been well-documented. The media extensively covered her stay at the Betty Ford Clinic (for drug abuse) twelve years ago.

    But her troubles haven't slowed her down much. In addition to this tour, Minnelli is out with a new album, "Gently," which contains mainly love songs. It's sold a modest 100 thousand copies since its release.

    She also found time in early January to step in for Julie Andrews for four weeks in the lead of the Broadway run of "Victor/Victoria." Again, that performance set the rumour-mill spinning.

    There were reports Minnelli flubbed lines and missed rehearsals. Co-star Tony Roberts was reportedly so appalled with her behvaiuor that he sat out the rest of her performances, claiming to be ill.

    Despite all these troubles, Minnelli's star power pulled through. She still broke box-office records for the show in January, bringing in almost 800 thousand dollars per week during an otherwise slow month on Broadway.

    Now 51 years old, Minnelli is the recipient of a 1965 Tony Award for her performance in her Broadway debut "Flora, The Red Menace," an Emmy for her 1972 NBC concert special "Liza With A Z," and an Oscar for her part in the film musical "Cabaret." She accepted the Oscar along with her famous father, Oscar-winning director Vincente Minnelli.
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