This is breath taking! Having known Gary for 54 years, it is nice to be reminded of why I looked up to him. He was my mentor, my teacher, and most importantly my friend. I'll never forget him bringing over the cast album of Ethel Merman's Lincoln Center Revival of "Annie Get Your Gun," which we had seen together, and he, Jim Gassett and I sang and danced the entire thing around my living room for hours! It wasn't the first or last time we did this. I skipped classes to go see him as Hopkins in "1776," saw him in "Annie," "Something's Afoot," "Doonesbury," "The Mooney Shapiro Songbook," "Beauty and the Beast," "The Producers," "La Cage Aux Folles," "Spamalot," and last but not least as Thenardier in "Les Miserable." Somewhere in there, were his performances regionally in "South Pacific," "A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Forum," "Guys and Dolls," and the infamous "Legends" with Mary Martin and Carol Channing. Read James Kirkwood's hilarious book "Diary of a Mad Playwright"on the experience that was "Legends," and find out just how hilarious that experience was for Gary. But his BEST performance was with me in our second level initiation in the northern Virginia chapter of Demolay that we both belonged to, and which was so secret, that I can't tell you much about it, except that it was structured as a little play. It culminated with Gary storming in and confronting me in a highly dramatic screaming match. We won every award you could win. i will never forget him and his affect on my life, and I miss him terribly! "Life's not worth a damn, til you can say, "Hey, World! I am what I am!!" And he was. He most certainly was.
Lovely reminisce and thanks for the biographical information. I hadn't realized that Gary was such a "Broadway Baby" as Ethan Mordden paraphrases it. I teach young people, my musical theatre students, the Lincoln Center "Annie Get Your Gun." It always amazes me when their parents hear it performed they think of it as a new song. Or when kids go home and say "Mama, have you ever heard of Ethel Merman?" I currently have "I am What I am" on my to-do list. Whenever we get back to school, I will be sure to show them this video of the late great, Mr. Beach!
I must admit that this is my favorite version of this song I have experienced...and I saw the original when I was a kid with my parents. I cannot help but feel that Mr. Beach was singing this song as much for himself as he was for Albin, the character. His singing "Springtime for Hitler" in 'The Producers', so funny. The theatre world is a sadder place without him and he needs to be thanked for making us laugh and cry for the many years he shared with us.
Ugh, watching this and the loss of Gary Beach is felt again...it makes me sad that we're never going to see a new performance from this awesome , talented man. RIP.
The minute I heard about his death, I cried for 7 hours straight, no joke. He was such a gift. I miss him every day. Gary, thank you. Actually I cried for weeks
This is THE best performance I have seen of this song. Gary Beach is a god damned treasure. I saw him in The Producers years ago (He was the last of the OBC at that time) and I remember floating out of the theater and overhearing conversations of other theater goers exclaiming that "The director stole the show!". And he did. He is an incredible performer.
I couldn't agree more. I saw the original production of The Producers 2 days before it opened. My first ever Broadway show and I will never ever forget it. It was truly amazing. Everything about it was stunning but I knew then and there that Gary Beach would would his Tony award. I was literally blown away by his performance as Roger Dubrie. One of the top five performances I have ever seen....and i've seen a lot. This man can do anything. A great US treasure.
this is the best version of the song. I've listened to just about every one, and Gary Beach has the most emotion but still manages to sing beautifully and powerfully.
I saw this production at the time and I still think it is the best La Cage I've ever seen....soooo much better than that last bare bones revival..how that english guy farcing it up ever got a Tony and Gary Beach didn't is beyond my comprehension...
Haven't seen either production (saw the original twice), but judging from the cast album and this clip, I agree Mr. Beach must have been so much better. I understand about the Tonys, he had recently won for playing another drag queen, but he did deserve it for this. Did you see Daniel Davis or Goulet?
I so agree with you Papa Bear. I was at the Stonewall raids in 1969 and I find gays today have not a clue what it felt like to not be able to congregate with friends at a bar with each other, dance drink and be merry. I recall so vividly the cops filing us out and arresting the young drags, I didn't know I was participating in history I just know life was not worth living like it was and it felt great! when so many of us banded and got rid of our fears.
My husband and I saw him in "The Producers" and he was incredible! We also saw him in "La Cage" with my favorite, Daniel Davis. We were staying at the Marriot too. We saw the matinee and when Albin finished this song he walked up the aisle of the theatre and out the door. It was great. So sad that Daniel Davis was fired for his attitude. I met him once and he was quite gracious.
What you were was a bright light of the theater who brought joy to many as well as a great representative of our community. RIP Gary. You will be sorely missed.
I saw him in the Producers 3 years before this and I remember thinking, wow, this man is a gift from god. And then I ironically saw la cage aux folles there years later and let me tell you, I’ve never seen such a performance from a actor in my entire life. Gary beach is the most talented actor.
@Toby Hine. You obviously are unfamiliar with the show. The song isn't joyous and triumphant. He's actually just had a fight with his husband Georges after George tells him that he and his son Jean-Michelle plan to hide their relationship from Jean-Michelles fiances family. This song is a declaration. An act of defiance. And the irony that he is expected to go on stage doing the happy Les Cagelle version of the song celebrating who they are after finding out his own family is denying him is too much for him to handle... so he stops it. neither joyous nor triumphant.
There are different interpretations, but Gary, being a gay man , convey the physical and mental emotions that only someone like himself, can truly express. I saw him twice. He will always be the best.
This was a beautiful production. I was lucky enough to see it three times. Wonderful memories. The dancers were beyond talented and I couldn't believe what they were able to do in those shoes they were wearing.
I was fortunate enough to see this production back in 2005. Gary Beach absolutely stole the show. Daniel Davis (the butler from The Nanny) played Georges, Albin's husband. Gary and Daniel did not get along personally, but you'd never know that watching them on stage. Eventually their struggle ended in Davis' firing. He was replaced by Robert Goulet.
Glorious, heartbreaking, devastating. A cri de coeur that just tore mine right out of my chest. I don't know how the hell he did this night after night.
This was one of the last shows that I saw on Broadway before I moved from NY. Gary Beach was fantastic. He carried the show. It was as if he were trying to make up for Robert Goulet, who was just going through the motions in his performance.
I've seen many, many performances of this song by many performers. But I just stumbled upon this one tonight. It is without a doubt the best I have ever seen.
saw it live years ago. Saw Douglas Hodge and Harvey Fierstein. Gary Beach, by far was the best. You could feel the emtion... the anger... in his voice. Jut great!!! Hodge was good... in a straight guy as Ethel Merman sort of way. Harvey.... what I can Isay.. I love Harvey and to see him in the part he wrote was phenomenal, but his voice! Oye Veah... it must hurt to sing!
An incredible performance by an absolutely amazing performer. But in reading the comments below, it's interesting. For me, the absolute power and greatness of this song is that it can be done different ways for different settings. As with many other gay men, this is my anthem. After Orlando, I sang it full of rage and defiance at the world. At Pride celebrations, it is one of joy and celebrating who we are. This song can be done different ways depending on the mood of the performer, the purpose of the performance. And that may be the most amazing thing about this song -- it's ability for so many emotions, so many reasons.
for that man to do that song in a Judy Garland style gown, was truly magnificent, I saw George (Hearn) in the original, but agree with that amazing as George was, Gary Beach really understood the pain of being gay, and used both his voice and emotional voltage as a release for this brilliant lyrics. Please never forget that La Cage came out during the aids crisis, and the conservative of the Regan 80s, and all the bullshit that came with the republicans, back then, but it still has so much punch, and so much merrit, when you think of the Matthew Sheppards of the community, or the kids who are gay that there parents disown them, or the simply fact that we have to fight so hard for what the heteros take for granted, even in the 21st century, give this song and Gary Beach the ammo he needs to knock this baby out of the ball park in every way possible. Bravo!!!
Omg u have le cage aux folles broadway you rock this video I's phenomenal!! Thanks for sharing!!! Do you have the whole show of le cage? I would love to see it!!!
You must be too young to remember the venom that we used to get. Those days well before La Cage. If you had received that kind of hurt, you would play it angry.
You're free to interpret however you like. I'd ask why the text demands for Albin to stop the number and get rid of all the dancers to stand and sing a joyful, triumphant song? If you can come up with a good reason that doesn't make Albin just a spotlight-hog, then please share - I'd be interested. For the record, I don't think Gary's 'doing' angry - maybe defiant, rather than 'happy', but he's definitely triumphant!
This video isn't even close to how electric this moment in the theater truly was. The script was never written to be a "happy moment" for Albin. Having just been told to hide absolutely everything he is (or has created) from the world to appease a family who wouldn't understand his art or lifestyle choices, he is left to fight! How dare anyone tell him to be anything less than he is! Defiant and proud! Standing Ovation Gary! you were extraordinary!
![I am what I am - Gary Beach LA_CAGE [BDWY_2005]](/img/logo.svg){kind=logo}
