Broadway legend Patti LuPone, Les Miserables' original 'Fantine' and the first to make 'I Dreamed A Dream' her own, said she was brought to tears upon seeing Susan Boyle's performance of the number on Britain's Got Talent.
LuPone called in to CBS' The Early Show to praise Boyle, asked by co-host Harry Smith what LuPone's compliments meant to her, Boyle simply answered, "That'll do." You can watch the emotional segment right here on StageTube!
Boyle, an unemployed woman who's "nearly 48," talked about her cat, and joked around with the judges, noting that she had "never been kissed." She revealed her dreams of being a singer and compared herself to beloved British musical theater star Elaine Paige.
The entire audience prepared for the worst as she began her song, but, once she starting singing the crowd and judges were transported by her emotional and theatrical take on the number!
Patti LuPone created the role of Fantine in the the RSC production of Les Miserables, a role she subsequently played on the West End. For that performance, as well as the reprise of her performance in the London production of The Cradle Will Rock, she won an Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical. LuPone created the role of Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard (1994 Olivier nomination, Best Actress in A Musical), and recreated her Broadway performance of Maria Callas in the West End production of Master Class.
Patti LuPone swept the 2008 theatre awards winning the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for Best Actress in a Musical and the Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance for her performance as Rose in the critically-acclaimed Broadway revival of the classic Jule Styne-Stephen Sondheim-Arthur Laurents musical Gypsy, directed by the show's author, Mr. Laurents.
