Stage to PageBernadette Peters Shares Her Cherished Theatregoing ExperiencesPlaybill.com launches its new feature series, Their Favorite Things, which asks members of the theatre community to share ten of the Broadway performances that most affected them as part of the audience. We are thrilled to kickoff this new series with two-time Tony winner and Broadway favorite Bernadette Peters, who is currently starring in the critically acclaimed revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Goldman's Follies.
By
Andrew Gans
January 04, 2012
Bernadette Peters
Derek Jacobi in
Cyrano de Bergerac.
Derek Jacobi and Alice Krige in Cyrano de Bergerac
"I brought that inspiration home with me."
Sada Thompson in
The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds.
Sada Thompson
"I was in awe!"
(Thompson starred in the Off-Broadway production; the play would later be produced on Broadway with Shelley Winters.)
Lena Horne in
Lena Horne:The Lady and Her Music
Lena Horne
"Magical!"
Carol Channing in
Hello, Dolly!
Jay Garner and Carol Channing in Hello, Dolly!Joan Marcus
"I had never seen her do it until her last go-around in 1995. I bowed to her when I saw her afterwards."
Vanessa Redgrave in
Orpheus Descending.
Vanessa Redgrave
"Don't ever miss her."
James Earl Jones and
Jane Alexander in
TheGreat White Hope.
James Earl Jones in The Great White Hope
"Wow!!!"
Elaine Stritch in
Company.
Elaine Stritch
"That performance was, 'What is she doing, and how do I do that?!'"
Eileen Atkins
Eileen Atkins
"In anything!"
Natasha Richardson in
A Streetcar Named Desire.
Natasha Richardson and John C. Reilly in A Streetcar Named DesireJoan Marcus
"I went back twice and sat in the second row. She was amazing! AMAZING!"
Al Pacino
Al Pacino
"In anything...He just 'is' on stage — you have to see it!"
Zoe Caldwell in
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie.
"I had one more, and I know I will think of many more, but, for now, this is my list. Happy holidays!"
By Logan Culwell-Block | April 7, 2026
