“Liza!,” I Can’t Be There, and It’s Breaking My Theatre-Loving Heart – front mezz junkies, Theater News

Frontmezzjunkies reports: “Liza! at 80” Takes Carnegie Hall for One Night Only

By Ross

The moment I saw the announcement for Liza! at 80: A Celebration in Song and Dance, I felt that familiar jolt of excitement that only a true theatrical event can spark, followed almost immediately by the sinking realization that I will not be in the city on June 25. Some nights arrive with the weight of occasion, the kind you circle instinctively, the kind that gathers history, artistry, and sheer star power into one room. And after watching the marvelous talent that is Jinkx Monsoon play Judy Garland at London’s Soho Theatre Walthamstow in End of the Rainbow, this truly feels like one of them, and knowing it will unfold at Carnegie Hall without me feels like missing a once-in-a-lifetime curtain rising.

My connection to Liza Minnelli goes back to a very specific moment that never really let me go. I was a teenager when I first watched “Cabaret“, and something in that performance shifted the way I understood dance, film, and theatre. It was not just the voice, or the precision, or the electricity that seemed to radiate through the screen. It was the sense that a performance could be dangerous, intimate, and unapologetically bold all at once. Through her, I discovered the work of Bob Fosse, and from that point on, musical theatre stopped being something I simply enjoyed and became something I actively chased, studied, and loved with a deeper intensity. That connection is exactly why this celebration feels so personal, even from a distance.

This one-night-only event, presented by Transport Group, promises to honor a sixty-year career that has shaped the landscape of performance across stage and screen. The evening will feature musical selections spanning Minnelli’s collaborations with John Kander and Fred Ebb, drawing from works like Cabaret, The Rink, Liza With a “Z”, and New York, New York. With a 30-piece orchestra and reconstructed choreography from the Verdon Fosse Legacy, the concert is not simply a tribute. It is a full-bodied theatrical event built from the very elements that defined Minnelli’s artistry.

The lineup alone reads like a celebration in itself. Kristin Chenoweth, Andrew Rannells, Donna Murphy, Beth Leavel, Bonnie Milligan, Marisha Wallace, and Kate Baldwin are just a few of the artists stepping into this shared space, each bringing their own history and voice to the material. Add to that special appearances from Candice Bergen, Kathy Griffin, and Susan Stroman, and the night begins to take on the shape of something truly singular. These are not just performers showing up to honor a legend. These are artists whose own careers exist in conversation with the legacy being celebrated.

The event also arrives alongside the release of Minnelli’s memoir, “Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!“, offering another layer of intimacy to the evening. That sense of reflection, of looking back while still celebrating the vitality of the work, feels central to what this night represents. Under the direction of Jack Cummings III, with musical direction by Joey Chancey, the concert is poised to move between spectacle and storytelling, between performance and memory, in a way that mirrors Minnelli’s own career.

And that is what makes missing it feel so significant. This is not just a concert, but a gathering of influence, a recognition of the way one artist can reshape an entire medium and ripple outward into generations of performers and audiences. I was lucky enough to shake her hand one evening in Las Vegas many years ago, but it was that first encounter with Sally Bowles that changed the way you see everything that follows, even from afar. It is her special kind of energy that can’t be replicated or replaced. The spirit of that discovery feels ever-so-present in this celebration, carried forward by the voices and bodies that will take that stage for one extraordinary night. Cross your fingers, they are recording it for future streaming. I know I am.