Mellifluous Mandy Patinkin
Nov. 22nd, 2014 06:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nikiwhiteHave you seen The Princess Bride? Do you recognize the line: "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."? Are you a fan of Saul Berenson, the taciturn yet powerful ex-CIA officer in Homeland?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you know who Mandy Patinkin is. And if the answer to the first was no, go watch that movie when you're done here!
Or, for the sake of accuracy, you know what Mandy Patinkin can do as a big and small screen actor. I hesitate to presume, as I did before I went online and the general public bowled me over with its ignorance, that you are aware of Mr. Patinkin's status as a musical theatre treasure. And if you are aware, here are some virtual cookies.
Don't get me wrong, Mandy Patinkin should absolutely be credited for his acting, but his singing is--put it this way, if he decided to announce plans for world domination, I'd be willing to hear him out as long as he sang them. I deliberately do not own the solo albums he's produced, because of the irrational fear that I will lose any desire to be productive in preference to listening to those pure high notes all day long.
Unlike the other actors featured here, Mr. Patinkin's had a comparatively typical rise to fame. Born as Mandel Bruce Patinkin in Illinois, he found his voice singing in church choir and majored in acting at Juilliard before starring in his first Broadway show. Granted, said show was the Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice phenomenon Evita, and he was 26, a-a-a-nd sang half of its songs. Ok, maybe that's not exactly "normal".
Evita earned him a Tony Award, and his second musical, Sunday in the Park with George (remember that title), earned a Tony nomination. After some films (including Princess Bride) he played a pivotal character in the musical adaptation of The Secret Garden, before spending the mid 90's and early 2000's recording those solo albums I mentioned, and making TV appearances (for an overview of his work, see this link).
In recent years--from 2011 onward--Patinkin has kept his voice in such good shape (no mean feat for a man of 61!) that he's been able to do worldwide concerts in addition to his Homeland gig. I can honestly say from attending two that they've all been sold-out affairs, and the music's ranged from Broadway classics to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" to songs sung entirely in Yiddish.
The first song presented for your enjoyment is "High Flying, Adored" from Evita, where Patinkin, portraying the narrator, Che, speaks directly to the Argentinean political leader (Evita). Don't let those almost shy opening notes fool you, this piece packs some amazing crescendos!!
The Secret Garden musical took many liberties with the classic children's book it was based on, the most obvious being that instead of the adult characters doing nothing but providing toys and marveling at the resourcefulness of the children in their care, they are made as crucial to the plot development as the inquisitive youngsters. The result, along with making all the Americans put on flawless British accents, was songs like "Race you to the Top of the Morning", a gorgeous ballad that uses the allegory of a fairy tale to explain a father's emotions regarding his ill son.
Now that you've learned--if you didn't already know--that there's more to Mandy Patinkin than revenge seeking and mentoring Claire Danes, I hope you'll check back here next week. I won't say anymore here (mostly because I gave you a pretty big parenthetical clue), but I'm not quite finished with him yet!!!
Patinkin's oeuvre is so vast that a full discography would be an entire post of its own. But, as a mark of how much I value you, dear reader, below you will find Amazon links to a sampling of those non-musical recordings I've been studiously avoiding; also as a mark of my affection, I'm only providing Amazon links to avoid overwhelming you. But never fear, these titles are also available on Itunes; and if you want DRM-free versions, Amazon MP3 also boasts many of them (though alas, not all, which is why I found the links to the audio CDs for your ease of use).
If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you know who Mandy Patinkin is. And if the answer to the first was no, go watch that movie when you're done here!
Or, for the sake of accuracy, you know what Mandy Patinkin can do as a big and small screen actor. I hesitate to presume, as I did before I went online and the general public bowled me over with its ignorance, that you are aware of Mr. Patinkin's status as a musical theatre treasure. And if you are aware, here are some virtual cookies.
Don't get me wrong, Mandy Patinkin should absolutely be credited for his acting, but his singing is--put it this way, if he decided to announce plans for world domination, I'd be willing to hear him out as long as he sang them. I deliberately do not own the solo albums he's produced, because of the irrational fear that I will lose any desire to be productive in preference to listening to those pure high notes all day long.
Unlike the other actors featured here, Mr. Patinkin's had a comparatively typical rise to fame. Born as Mandel Bruce Patinkin in Illinois, he found his voice singing in church choir and majored in acting at Juilliard before starring in his first Broadway show. Granted, said show was the Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice phenomenon Evita, and he was 26, a-a-a-nd sang half of its songs. Ok, maybe that's not exactly "normal".
Evita earned him a Tony Award, and his second musical, Sunday in the Park with George (remember that title), earned a Tony nomination. After some films (including Princess Bride) he played a pivotal character in the musical adaptation of The Secret Garden, before spending the mid 90's and early 2000's recording those solo albums I mentioned, and making TV appearances (for an overview of his work, see this link).
In recent years--from 2011 onward--Patinkin has kept his voice in such good shape (no mean feat for a man of 61!) that he's been able to do worldwide concerts in addition to his Homeland gig. I can honestly say from attending two that they've all been sold-out affairs, and the music's ranged from Broadway classics to Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" to songs sung entirely in Yiddish.
Talent Exhibition Time
The first song presented for your enjoyment is "High Flying, Adored" from Evita, where Patinkin, portraying the narrator, Che, speaks directly to the Argentinean political leader (Evita). Don't let those almost shy opening notes fool you, this piece packs some amazing crescendos!!
The Secret Garden musical took many liberties with the classic children's book it was based on, the most obvious being that instead of the adult characters doing nothing but providing toys and marveling at the resourcefulness of the children in their care, they are made as crucial to the plot development as the inquisitive youngsters. The result, along with making all the Americans put on flawless British accents, was songs like "Race you to the Top of the Morning", a gorgeous ballad that uses the allegory of a fairy tale to explain a father's emotions regarding his ill son.
Now that you've learned--if you didn't already know--that there's more to Mandy Patinkin than revenge seeking and mentoring Claire Danes, I hope you'll check back here next week. I won't say anymore here (mostly because I gave you a pretty big parenthetical clue), but I'm not quite finished with him yet!!!
Selected Solo Albums
Patinkin's oeuvre is so vast that a full discography would be an entire post of its own. But, as a mark of how much I value you, dear reader, below you will find Amazon links to a sampling of those non-musical recordings I've been studiously avoiding; also as a mark of my affection, I'm only providing Amazon links to avoid overwhelming you. But never fear, these titles are also available on Itunes; and if you want DRM-free versions, Amazon MP3 also boasts many of them (though alas, not all, which is why I found the links to the audio CDs for your ease of use).
- Mandy Patinkin,
- Mandy Patinkin In Concert: Dress Casual,*
- Experiment,
- Mandy Patinkin Sings Sondheim,
- Mamaloshen (this album is composed of songs sung entirely in Yiddish).
