As I said in Parts 1 and 2, this series is a rundown of shows that I’d really enjoy seeing at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts.  So, as promised in Part 2, here are the three I’d most like to see; in order – a diva, a duo, and a dame.

3.  Patti LuPone – In the various adaptations of Auntie Mame – whether in print, on stage, or on screen – Mame Dennis’ best friend is “Vera Charles, First Lady of the American Theatre.”  Yet, since the passings of such greats as Roz Russell, Helen Hayes, and Ethel Merman, no living person has more fully worn that mantle than Patti LuPone.  As any self-described GLEEk could tell you, LuPone’s work has played an incontrovertible role in the vernacular of contemporary musical theater.  Whether originating the roles of Evita (Evita) or Fantine (Les Miserables), or breathing new life into such legendary roles as Mama Rose (Gypsy), Joanne (Company) or Reno Sweeney (Anything Goes); this is one diva who has earned the label.  Best of all, this is one brassy broad who known how to spin a yarn for her audiences.  This fall, she will be seen on the FX series American Horror Story: Coven.  So, don’t cry for her, Argentina; because Patti LuPone dreamed a dream – and as long as we need she, you can bet that everything’s coming up roses.

2.  Kiki & Herb – As Kiki DuRane and her lifelong bff/pianist, Herb, Justin Vivian Bond and Kenny Mellman didn’t just merge cabaret, musical theatre, and stand-up; they smashed them together in a sonic clinking of highballs that rained down upon their fans in venues ranging from Broadway (earning them a Tony Nomination) to Carnegie Hall, where they were produced by David Foster.  The concept of a washed-up lounge singer (according to the backstory, they were actually thrown overboard while performing on a Princess cruise) and her touched accompanist is virtually custom-made for Las Vegas.  From their decidedly cracked Christmas carols (my fave: “People Die (Medley)” – an utterly ill mash-up of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” / “Smells Like Teen Spirit” / “Suicide is Painless” / “Miss World”), to their side-splitting comedy about topics including show-business martyrs (the Singing Nun, Marlene Dietrich, and Jesus Christ), to pathos-filled takes on songs ranging from “Love is a Battlefield” (Pat Benatar), “Love Will Tear Us Apart” (Joy Division), “Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?” (Stevie Nicks), “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (Bonnie Tyler), and Bond’s signature rendition of Kate Bush’s “Running Up that Hill” – a song just hasn’t been sung until it’s been given the Kiki & Herb treatment.  And while the two have gone their separate ways, perhaps a Vegas reunion might be just what it takes to get these kids back together.

1.  Dame Shirley Bassey – I could spend weeks listing the reasons why Dame Shirley Bassey needs to be belting out her songs in Las Vegas – she’s one of the few performers still living who knows the songbook of standards backwards and forwards, she’s all about the costumes and presentation, she sings with a full orchestra.  Heck, she’ll sing anything, from Foreigner’s “I Wanna Know What Love Is” to P!nk’s “Get the Party Started” – not to mention her trio of James Bond theme songs, or the songs written for her by such contemporary artists as  Rufus Wainwright, Propellerheads, and Pet Shop Boys.  But at the end of the day, it comes down to this: the Dame puts on a show, and that is some history worth repeating.  And for those of you who think she’s past her prime and wonder about her relevance, just watch clips from her recent appearances on BBC Electric Proms, at Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Concert, at the Glastonbury Festival, and this performance she gave at this year’s Oscars, that brought the entire audience to its feet for more than a minute of uninterrupted applause.

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