The critic Frank Rich once described the ferocious character of Mama Rose in “Gypsy” as the King Lear of musical theater — a voraciously ambitious stage mother who will stop at nothing to achieve with her children what she could not achieve for herself: theatrical stardom.The role would appear to be a good fit for Barbra Streisand, herself no shrinking violet. A half-century after the role of the ferociously ambitious Fanny Brice in “Funny Girl” that won her global fame, it appears that Streisand as Rose may finally happen after years of on-again, off-again Hollywood negotiations. The project seemed moribund last October when Universal, which had been developing it with a script by Julian Fellowes (“Downton Abbey”), put it back on the shelf. Streisand and co-producer Joel Silver shopped it around and, according to Variety, found a buyer recently, STX Entertainment, and a director, veteran Barry Levinson (“Diner”). Writer Richard LaGravenese is polishing Fellowes’s script and reportedly has the confidence of Streisand. After all, he wrote “The Mirror Has Two Faces” (1996), the last film she directed and in which she also starred.There has always been a sense of urgency surrounding the project because Streisand will turn 74 on April 24, which would make her decades older than most of the actors who’ve previously played this iconic character. Ethel Merman was fifty when she created the role in the Jule Styne-Stephen Sondheim 1959 classic. Following in her supersized footsteps were Angela Lansbury (48), Tyne Daly (43), Bernadette Peters (55), Patti LuPone (57) and, most recently in London, Imelda Staunton (60). Prior to this new undertaking, the musical has been adapted to film twice: the 1962 film starring Rosalind Russell and, in 1993, Bette Midler as Rose in a television special.What makes Streisand’s age significant is the fact that at the start of the musical, Rose is the mother of two young children, Louise and June. Although “Dainty June” is pushed forward as the star-in-the-making on the vaudeville circuit, it is the shy and less-talented Louise who will become world famous. Indeed, the musical was based on the memoir of Gypsy Rose Lee, whose steely mother Rose Hovick was the inspiration for Arthur Laurent’s widely acclaimed libretto. Among aficionados, “Gypsy” remains in the top five greatest musicals ever created, which accounts for why it has been revived so many times.And it also accounts for why Streisand is so eager to take on the role. It may well be her Last Hurrah, at least musically. Consequently, there is a lot riding for her on the film. That may be why she’s reportedly eager to share the screen with both John Travolta, as Rose’s love interest Herbie, and Lady Gaga, as daughter Louise. That may also be why she’s decided to forego directing the movie as previously announced. That’s perhaps the best news yet. In the opinion of many film fans and pundits, she is her own worst enemy when she is both behind the camera as well as in front of it (see “The Mirror Has Two Faces”). That said, Levinson will have his hands full. Not for nothing is “Barbra is Rose!” seen as a case of perfect typecasting, no matter how much Streisand has mellowed with age.
↧