Through the Years with Bernadette Peters

On The Town (1971)

There were two revelations when seeing Ron Fields' revival of "On the Town" when it had its tryout at the Shubert Theatre in Boston in the fall of 1971. The first was the great whoosh of Bernstein's score filling the theater – a mix of boogie-woogie, Broadway, and classical modernism. The second was Peters, who played Hildy, the men-hungry taxi driver, who all but kidnaps an unassuming sailor who only wants to go sightseeing while she has more intimate things on her mind; and she was hilarious – sublimely over-the-top, yet just right. Theater historian Ethan Mordden wrote: "Peters scored the first big win of so far short but busy career. Driving aa tiny, campy taxicab around the stage in her launching scene and then taking over the place for a major 'I Can Cook, Too,' Peters caught the essence of 'On The Town's' New York." With terrific dancing, a strong cast, dreamy sets, imaginative period costumes (co-designed by Bob Mackie), and, of course, Bernstein's remarkable score, how could it go wrong? It did, closing in three months. Critics gave it the bums rush – even knocking Bernstein, but not Peters. "Best of all is Bernadette Peters as the Bronxly nasal taxi driver, who wants to go to her place and has a heart as big as the Stage Door Canteen. Miss Peters sings, acts and dances, in that order, with a saucer eyed naughtiness and wide vowelled drawl that is totally enchanting," wrote Clive Barnes in the New York Times. The show closed in December, but the following May, Peters received her first Tony nomination.