Old Friends review: Bernadette Peters and a glorious cast sing Sondheim

Two hours and 35 minutes, with one intermission.At the Samuel J.

Friedman Theatre, 261 West 47th Street.When Bernadette Peters elegantly opens her umbrella in the new Stephen Sondheim revue “Old Friends,” she’s becoming Dot, the Georges Seurat muse she famously played in “Sunday in the Park with George.” But she might also be using it as a shield against a typhoon of tears, so verklempt the audience is from seeing the Broadway legend back on the boards in that beloved part, if only for a moment.That lush and emotional all-company song, called “Sunday,” is one of 42 numbers in “Old Friends,” a supremely entertaining and altogether divine celebration of Sondheim’s legacy created by producer Cameron Mackintosh that opened Tuesday at the Samuel J.Friedman Theatre. It’s a rare and special experience to watch performers of the calibre of Peters and co-stars like Lea Salonga backed by a sensational 14-piece orchestra in an intimate room that seats just 600. That the glorious wall of sound is a massive selection from the late composer’s shows including “A Little Night Music,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Company,” “Follies” and “Into the Woods” makes the close confines all the more exciting for fans.And, I suspect, the concert will also absorb many Sondheim neophytes who don’t know Bobby from the Baker’s Wife.The vibe of here is different — more lively than usual — perhaps because it comes from London where musical performances lean larger. For this piece, directed with flair by Matthew Bourne, I like that.

Sondheim tributes so often tend toward the grandiose and stuffy.But “Old Friends,” as well as making your mascara run, bursts with joy and humor.  Peters, for example, is a riot as the “bump it with a trumpet!” stripper Mazeppa from “Gypsy” and when she dons Little Red’s hood for “I Know Things Now” from “Into the Woods.”Just as deftly, the Tony winner shatters us with two soft songs she’s sung many...