Professor David Peimer
Barbra Streisand

Professor David Peimer - Barbra Streisand

- And hi to everybody, and hope everybody’s very well everywhere. So we’re going to dive straight into the quite remarkable, and I think incomparable and individualist person, Barbra Streisand. And I just want to say at the outset that there is so much that I think this remarkable person has achieved and done. And of course, this remarkable singing voice, that it’s quite difficult in a way, like it was when I did Elvis, and I think the comparison is valid, to choose which to focus on other than being just honestly personal in a couple of areas. You know, in as much of a tribute and a response to somebody who lives a life that she has lived and achieves what she has achieved in a way. The Beatles, Dylan, Barbra Streisand, Elvis and others, you know, they rank right up there in my mind, together, obviously with others, singers, poets, writers, you know, many other cultural iconic figures. But they really do. And I want to tease out just a couple of reasons why I think or what it is that is so powerful in her achievement and her singing. So, and I’m sure there are many people who know hell of a lot about her, as we did with Elvis, and I celebrate obviously everybody’s response. It’s music, it’s singing, it’s extraordinary, and it’s a life truly lived in the most creative way imaginable, and the most determined way imaginable, I think. I want to start out with something that, you know, one of the people I adored, Bob Dylan, said about Barbra Streisand, because as I’m sure some people know, you know, he wrote “Lay Lady Lay” for her. And she in response said, he said straight it was written for Barbra Streisand. “I’m very flattered that Bob Dylan wrote ‘Lay Lady Lay’ for me.

I remember getting flowers from him with a handwritten note asking me to sing a duet with him.” And I want us to imagine going back to the sixties, the seventies, if we can, and then all the decades subsequently and imagining, you know, this young poet Dylan, this young singer, and meeting, apparently having a brief fling, fantastic. But being not only enchanted and entranced with each other, but having such deep respect and admiration, seeing each other on such a level. Then when her, what to me is a really great film, “Yentl,” and I’m going to talk about the film in some detail a little bit later. When “Yentl” came out, Dylan wrote to her, and I’m quoting. “I’m looking forward to seeing your movie. Maybe you can direct me in one of mine. You are my favourite star. Your self-determination, wit, and temperament and sense of justice have always appealed to me.” And I think in one or two sentences, Dylan encapsulates what she means, I think for myself for myself and for so many people, you know, all over. And then of course, we have to add, and I’m sure Dylan added this at some point, her voice, one of the most remarkable singing voices, and the ability to use that remarkable gift of that voice, you know, in so many different ways. And I think I see today because it’s August, also it’s summer, it’s holiday, and also, you know, in a way it’s something of a tribute and a celebration of what she has contributed to many people’s lives, I think. And also, you know, to the reason why I think she should be a respected icon. So the other thing is James Dean, when he was so young, we are not sure of his late teens or early twenties, and he said one thing about acting. “When I act, I walk the line,” and I’m paraphrasing here, “Between defiance and vulnerability.”

Defiance like Brando, it’s vulnerability like Montgomery Clift. And it’s this ability, when you watch James Dean at such a young age, so when you watch him carefully in his acting, you never know is he going to be defiant? Which is an umbrella word, which can obviously incorporate many approaches of anger, rage, hurt, power, so many, you know, emotions under that phrase, that word. And vulnerabilities, which can also encapsulate so many suffering anxiety, worry, fear, and so on. So many things under defiance and vulnerability. And James Dean spoke about how you’ll never know which will come out when. Watching him carefully act, you never can predict which is coming when. And that’s what makes for such riveting presence, for such riveting power on screen, on stage, as a performer. Whether going back to ancient storytelling, singing, anything that involves characterization and some sense of performance. And I think that she captures it, that ability to almost contain defiance and vulnerability almost in the same note, or, you know, subsequent notes. And sometimes you see it in the eyes, the tone of the voice, or sometimes slight change in the register of the voice or slight attitude, the arms, the shoulders, the face, the head, anything. So and I think it’s part of the reason that she’s also an extraordinary actress and an extraordinary singer.

You know, and I see this when I watch fantastic Ella Fitzgerald and so many of the other, Judy Garlands, the other great singers of the past, and contemporary. I think Amy Winehouse has it, you know, as a more contemporary, I’m not comparing their singing at all, but just this quality of being able to encapsulate defiance and vulnerability almost in the same moment or in very few moments together in the tone of voice, in the look, the eyes, the singing, the body. You know, just the instinctive all conscious, doesn’t matter, interpretation. So a couple of these things, and her, as Dylan has said, “The determination, the wit, the sense of justice and temperament have always appealed to me,” in his words. So let’s just begin at the beginning a little bit. I don’t want to talk too much about her life, ‘cause I’m sure many people know a hell of a lot, but a couple of key things do stand out. Can never forget she’s a singer, an actor, a director, a producer, a co-writer. That’s an extraordinary achievement. I mean, that is an extraordinary range of gifts and qualities for one individual. Two Oscars, five Emmys, 10 Grammys, 11 Golden Globes, a Tony, the list goes on. Presidential medal, et cetera, et cetera. First film she produced, “Yentl,” made her the first woman to direct, produce, write, and star in a major movie. First woman to direct the Golden Globe as director, best director. First female composer to get an Academy Award for best original song, “Evergreen,” the love theme from “A Star is Born.” So we can go on and on with the list, but that’s, at the same time, and let’s remember, she’s starting in the sixties.

There’s the Beatles, there’s Dylan, there’s the Stones, there’s, you know, obviously, so, so many others. Nevermind the jazz greats and all the musical theatre greats. And yet she’s a chart rival with all of them. How does she make these old songs, old and very pompous, sound so new, sound so fresh, and so riveting? What is she doing all the time with it? At the age of five, she says, “I was the kid on the block who had no father, but a good voice.” And she speaks about, and I think this captures it for me, and I’m quoting her here, “I emphasise the emotion with the sound. I emphasise the emotion with the sound. I focus on the character portrayed in the song. And I’m always thinking, what is this person going through?” Piaf said something similar, and many, many others, where it’s not just stand and sing, but what is this person going through in the singing, emotionally, intellectually, physically? What are they actually going through as these words and the music comes soaring out? And that makes a, it’s subtle, but it’s a huge shift in how to also, in a sense, help somebody or somebody becoming a remarkable performer, what we call this vague word, presence, on stage or on screen. Okay, if we go on to the next slide, please. So this is, I’m starting somewhere a little bit different, where she received an honorary PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem for having set up an institution and a building in her father’s name. I’m sure many people know her father died when before she was two years old, and I will come into the family background in a moment. But this is what she said when she received this award from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. We can play that, please.

• As you’ve heard, it also houses the Emanuel Streisand building for Jewish studies. I was 15 months old when my father died. He was only 35, but he was a scholar, a teacher, and a religious man who devoted life to education. And as a young girl, I went to yeshiva as my father had done before me. So my childhood was steeped in tradition, and yet I was a walking contradiction because I respected my elders, but I didn’t accept things at face value that didn’t make sense to me. I always wanted to know why. And I remember being five years old in yeshiva, and we were told not to say the word Christmas out loud. So when the teacher left the room, I would say it over and over again while I prayed that God wouldn’t strike me dead. And maybe that’s why I got D in conduct. I got A scholastically, but the D was always there in conduct. I remember going to shul with my grandfather, listening to his beautiful voice join the chorus of other voices in prayer and blessing. And those moments with my grandfather showed me the power of the human voice, to praise, to bless, to sing, to celebrate the wonders around us, and also to call out when we see that the world is in need of repair. When I was 16 I wanted to be an actress, and I fell in love with Ibsen and Chekhov and Shakespeare. And at that time, I had no idea that the same playwrights that my father had written about in a thesis on how to teach English, so I guess that’s DNA for you, but he loved literature and I think he would be very proud to know that this esteemed institution is honouring his daughter.

• Thanks, and we can hold there, please. Thank you. So I just wanted to start with this because, I mean, not only is it so obviously intelligent and articulate and thoughtful of her, but the respect for the father, the connection between the father and daughter is so powerful, is so obvious here. I’m going to come in contrast with her mother a little bit later. But also the sense of education, a tradition, Jewish tradition in particular, and how the utter importance of education through the father and through a sense of a real, almost inherited Jewish tradition. And this together with that is a constant challenge and questioning, you know, with a wit, with humour. I’m not going to allow you to say the word Christmas. Well, I’m going to say it all the time. How many of us have been through that? That stubbornness, that determination to never stop, never give up, never stop questioning and seeking out an education to understand things in whatever way, which I think is such a Jewish trait. And of course, with other religions and other nations around the world, I’m not setting up a simplistic comparison, but I think it is something profoundly deep. We can discuss and argue about the reasons why, which goes way back, of course, but it is a reality, I think. And she encapsulates this. It’s not only her sense of justice or social justice, but it’s this questioning, challenging, determined, and I would say and stubborn spirit that is so, you know, powerful, and I think perhaps missing in quite a lot of people today. So many people who’ve achieved what she’s achieved don’t necessarily do what she’s doing. You know, they might have achieved financially or they might have achieved fames or status-wise and in other ways.

But for her to have achieved such a range, from artistic ability to education, to this determination to become famous and real and achieve her dream, but also this powerful urge to question, question and seek education, which obviously comes out in the movie “Yentl” so strongly. And, you know, it’s one of the reasons I think why that movie is so powerful. One doesn’t have to be, you know, endlessly glowing and say everything about it, but I think one of the reasons is that it has that spirit so deeply inside it. Okay, if we can go to the next slide, please. So I want to go onto one of the very, very first early recordings that she made with Columbia Studios, became her studio for many, many years afterwards. And “Cry Me A River.” And in this I think she does capture that sense of individualist determination. I’m going to interpret this the way I want. You know, one of the great classics. I’m going to do it the way I want. I’m young, I’m stubborn, I’m determined, I’m challenging, and I’m going to find my own way in with this. I’m also going to find what she talks about, how the character is portrayed in a song. What is this person going through? And I think we can see how defiance and vulnerability go together. One music critic wrote, “Each word that she sings in this song is like a stab to the heart. She’s trying to recreate someone who made me cry like a river.

She’s saying, 'You’ll cry a river over me.’” She’ll flip it, in other words, into defiance, but it’s obviously so rooted in vulnerability. Those two qualities to me come roaring out. And watch her carefully, her face, her gestures, her body, and of course the tone of the song. If we can play it? Oh, sorry, this is, sorry, just before we start, this is a video compiled much later as if she was singing it right there. You know, as if it were the first recording in the nightclub in New York City. Of course, it’s not, it’s compiled and made later, but I chose it for the clarity of the sound. The other versions are way too scratchy and, you know, a bit off-putting. Okay, thanks.

• This is my boyfriend’s suit. ♪ Now you say ♪ ♪ You’re lonely ♪ ♪ You cry the long night through ♪ ♪ Well, you can cry me a river ♪ ♪ Cry me a river ♪ ♪ I cried a river over you ♪ ♪ Now you say ♪ ♪ You’re sorry ♪ ♪ For bein’ so untrue ♪ ♪ Well, you can cry me a river ♪ ♪ Cry me a river ♪ ♪ I cried a river over you ♪ ♪ You drove me ♪ ♪ Nearly drove me out of my head ♪ ♪ While you never shed a tear ♪ ♪ Remember ♪ ♪ I remember all that you said ♪ ♪ Told me love was to plebeian ♪ ♪ Told me you are through with me ♪ ♪ Now you say ♪ ♪ You love me ♪ ♪ Well, just to prove you do ♪ ♪ Cry ♪ ♪ Me a river ♪ ♪ Cry me a river ♪ ♪ I cried a river over you ♪ ♪ You drove me ♪ ♪ Nearly drove me out of my head ♪ ♪ While you never shed a tear ♪ ♪ Remember, I remember all that you said ♪ ♪ Told me love was too plebeian ♪ ♪ Told me you were through with me ♪ ♪ And now ♪ ♪ You say you love me ♪ ♪ Well ♪ ♪ Just to prove that you do ♪ ♪ Come on, come on ♪ ♪ Cry me a river ♪ ♪ Cry me a river ♪ ♪ I cried a river over you ♪ ♪ I cried a river ♪ ♪ Over you ♪

• Let’s go home now.

• Thanks.

• Let’s go home.

• So, okay, if we could just hold that for a moment there. Thank you. So, it’s extraordinary, the defiance, the vulnerability in every moment, in every tone, almost in every register in the singing. Such a young age, as well. Sometimes rage can be very powerful. Sometimes rage and vulnerability are also extraordinary to observe, whether in life, or of course on stage or on the screen. As Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols once said, “Anger is an energy.” Don’t underestimate. The question is how it comes out. Okay, so to go on with Streisand, she brought the works of writers like Oscar Hammerstein, Cole Porter to the pop charts. Now that’s a massive achievement. You know, we have Dylan, the Beatles, the Stones, Elvis, you know, going the other way around in a way, or taking, you know, from rock and roll based in blues, soul, Black soul, South, et cetera. But she is taking these great classics and coming in and it’s going to the same charts that they’re on. I mean, one can’t underestimate the power of that ability for one second. She began performing in nightclubs just like this tries to recreate, “Cry Me A River,” in this compilation put together later. Broadway theatres in the early sixties. What’s important is also that she signed with Columbia Records, same as Dylan.

But what was so crucial is that she insisted on maintaining artistic control, and in return did the deal that she would have a lower pay in exchange for keeping artistic control. And there are many examples of this that go through her life. You know, a more needy or desperate wannabe young artist would think, “Oh, I’ve got this contract, I’ve got this reward. I I’ll do anything for it.” You know, it’s a recording contract. Yeah, anything. But at such a young age, determined understanding in a way. I got to keep artistic control. She released her debut, “The Barbra Streisand Album,” 1963, and Columbia Records and many of the others, producer, nobody was really convinced it’s going to be a hit or it’s going to achieve much. Of course, she wins Grammy award for Album of the Year. Later going on, we have the movie “Funny Girl.” Of course, in 1968 she wins the Academy Award for best actress. Let’s never forget, this is somebody in their twenties. “Hello, Dolly,” ‘69, the scruple comedy, which is a lot of fun. “What’s Up, Doc?” '72. And of course, “The Way We Were,” and so on. So, and then of course, “Yentl” comes up in 1983. If we can go on to the next slide, please. So I want to go, I want to play this one song in a moment, but just before, a little bit about her family. As we know, she’s born in 1942 in Brooklyn. Mother Diana and Father Emanuel. Her mother had been a soprano and her father, as she said in that speech at Hebrew University, that he was a high school teacher, had the emphasis on education, teaching, learning, questioning.

For me, that is so vital, that goes with it. And if I may add on a little note, it’s something that’s so lacking, I think, in so much of education globally today. Question, challenge, the right to do so in any way. Father, the family’s obviously Jewish, and on the father’s side, they’d immigrated from Galatia, modern-day Poland, Ukraine, everyone knows. The mother’s side from the old Russian empire. Her grandfather had been a cantor there. It was in 1943 that, as she mentioned, her father died and she was not yet two. He was 34, from complications of an epileptic seizure. And the family fell into near poverty, her mother working as a very low-paid bookkeeper. As she said, “Everybody else’s father came home from work at the end of the day. Mine didn’t.” There’s an interview with her by Mike Wallace, which I thought carefully about, but I chose not to show, and I’d rather just say it in a way, because I think he’s really provoking and really being, I think he’s been pretty sensationalist with her to do it in such a public forum, because he’s pushing and shows a clip from the mother with them. And, well, you know, where Mark Wallace says to her, “Well, I believe you haven’t seen your mother very much, and you know, your mother doesn’t see you,” almost accusatory as Streisand says. And she starts to cry in that interview. And obviously, this is her mother and father he’s talking about. And the mother is then quoted as saying, “Well, you know, my daughter doesn’t have much time to see anybody.” So, you know, obviously he’s doing it to press a button and to upset her, to get, let’s say, a sensationalist, emotional response from somebody that they’re interviewing.

And I think he crosses a line. I really do. And you know, it’s so obvious, and she has spoken so often, well, quite often about it, you know, that the mother was critical of her many times in her life. You won’t achieve, you’re never going to showbiz, you can’t achieve as a singer, you can’t achieve, all this endless negative attitude. You know, and obviously an idealisation probably about her dead father, and completely understandably. But instead of doing it with an understanding in the interview, Mike Wallace does it, you know, constantly just sort of pushing the knife in and almost getting journalistic relish out of it in a way. And I don’t like it because of that, so I’d rather say this because we do see her, and it’s so clear how the effect of the mother and the father is so powerful, which is why I wanted to also start with that speech at the Hebrew University and obviously their celebration of her father. And it’s so obviously linked, I think, I don’t want to get into a whole Freudian analysis with the movie “Yentl” and the interpretation. I want to play this one song before going on a little bit about her life. And we all know this great, great classic, and the maturing of this voice and the singing from the early “Cry Me A River” and what I mentioned about it. And just, let’s imagine this character that she’s trying to portray, going through every emotion and trying to capture it in so many nuances of singing, sound, pitch, tone, as we go through. We can play it, please.

♪ Memories ♪ ♪ Like the corners of my mind ♪ ♪ Misty watercolour memories ♪ ♪ Of the way we were ♪ ♪ Scattered pictures ♪ ♪ Of the smiles we left behind ♪ ♪ Smiles we gave to one another ♪ ♪ For the way we were ♪ ♪ Can it be that it was all so simple then ♪ ♪ Or has time re-written every line ♪ ♪ If we had the chance to do it all again ♪ ♪ Tell me, would we ♪ ♪ Could we ♪ ♪ Memories ♪ ♪ May be beautiful and yet ♪ ♪ What’s too painful to remember ♪ ♪ We simply choose to forget ♪ ♪ So it’s the laughter ♪ ♪ We will remember ♪ ♪ Whenever we remember ♪ ♪ The way we were ♪ ♪ The way we ♪ ♪ Were ♪

• I think there’s such an extraordinary sense of nuance, subtlety, together with some anger and defiance. There’s also a sense of, you know, thoughtfulness. Lost dream, lost hope. You know, what was, regret, lamentation, mournfulness. All of these things, you know, which are easy words to say, but to inhabit as if you’re a character, singing them and letting them come out, I think is an incredible achievement, you know, which is why I also wanted this recording, not just a clip from the film. So, to go on about her life, she sees the “Diary of Anne Frank” as a play at the age of 14 and is determined to become an actress, and goes to acting classes, spends time in the library, reading about and studying Eleanora Duse, Sarah Bernhardt, reading plays, as she mentions in that speech, Hebrew University, studying acting theories of the great Russian theorists. Stanislavski, Michael Chekhov. You know, all the classic acting theories, some of which became known as method acting and others different direction. Won’t go into it now. She’s going to a school called Erasmus High School in Brooklyn in '56. Classmate is Neil Diamond. And as I’m sure many of you know, also at the same school, almost in the same class, is Bobby Fischer. Can we imagine for a moment Neil Diamond, her and Bobby Fischer in the same age group at the same school in Brooklyn?

She had a crush apparently from what I read on the 15-year-old US chess champion and called Bobby Fischer very sexy. '59, at the age of 16, despite her mother’s negative attitude or constant saying don’t go into showbiz, don’t, you know, not really believing in her, which I think is the real message underneath that you don’t even try before giving up. She made the rounds, casting offices. She goes to live on her own at the age of 16. Imagine that today. Doing menial jobs to get some income. But she said, interestingly, that her mother’s attitude was almost, and I’m paraphrasing, almost a spur. And I’m quoting, “That she was determined to prove to my mother that I could be a star.” I think we get the sense of, very clear and concise understanding, relationship with her mother and relationship with her father. And this is from her perspective. I’m not saying it’s from the mother or obviously what might have been, you know, from her father who’d obviously passed away. In the early days she was often told she was too ugly to be a star and get a nose job. One disgusting critic actually compared her profile to that of an anteater. In nightclub shows she is aware, Billie Holiday, Piaf and others. She realised she can become an actress by gaining recognition as a singer first. And that’s a fascinating insight, you know, which others had as well, but she gets it at a young age. She starts to develop this idea of speaking to the audience between songs, even just a phrase or two, bit of wit, and discovered that her Brooklyn humour and Jewish humour actually went down pretty well. She’s 20, and this is what one person, this is what one music critic wrote when she was 20. And I’m quoting. “Her name is Barbra Streisand. She’s 20. She has a three octave promiscuity of range. She has a personal dynamic power. She can sing as loud as Ethel Merman, as persuasively as Ella.

When she sings "Cry Me A River,” you got a river. She’ll be around 50 years from now.“ And this was about her 1963 performances at the Blue Angel. She meets Elliott Gould, we all know, fall in love. Groucho Marx even said at the age of 20, quoting him, "Extremely young age to be such a success on Broadway,” and goes on about how much he really liked her wit. In 1962 she’s on the “Ed Sullivan Show.” Liberace is a fan, invites her to Los Vegas to be part of his opening act. She’s 21. She signs with Columbia, as I mentioned. And she says, I’m quoting her, “The most important thing about that first contract was that clause giving me the right to choose my own material. That was all I cared about. I held out for the songs that really meant something to me.” I don’t want to over romanticise, but I think to be so aware at such a young age and holding out is a very hard thing for any very young aspiring actor and singer to do. Columbia wanted to call her first album in early '63 “Sweet and Saucy Streisand.” Well, she insisted it was called “The Barbra Streisand Album.” It won, as I said, three Grammy awards and went on. She ends up recording over 50 studio albums. She performs in a duet with Judy Garland. Many other achievements. You know, she’s the most successful female singer in the US in the seventies and going on. Only Elvis and the Beatles sold more albums. She’s taking Rodgers and Hammerstein, Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Sondheim.

She take all these and, you know, reformulating, interpreting them in a way for a whole new audience. And Sondheim was persuaded to even change and rework some of his songs because of her ability. You know, and Sondheim is so close to the top of the tree with so many. “A cultural status that only Sinatra has achieved in the last half century,” as one critic wrote. In 2013, she did two concerts in Tel Aviv and so on. The record goes on and on. The achievements and the putting together of all these things together with that stubborn questioning determination to me is fantastic. If we can go on to the next slide, please. So this is from the great film “Yentl” we all know.

♪ God ♪ Our heavenly Father. ♪ Oh, God ♪ And my father, who’s also in heaven. ♪ May the light of this flickering candle ♪ ♪ Illuminate the night the way your spirit ♪ ♪ Illuminates my soul ♪ ♪ Papa, can you hear me ♪ ♪ Papa, can you see me ♪ ♪ Papa, can you find me in the night ♪ ♪ Papa, are you near me ♪ ♪ Papa, can you hear me ♪ ♪ Papa, can you help me not be frightened ♪ ♪ Looking at the skies I seem to see a million eyes ♪ ♪ Which ones are yours ♪ ♪ Where are you now but yesterday has waved goodbye ♪ ♪ And closed its doors ♪ ♪ The night is so much darker ♪ ♪ The wind is so much colder ♪ ♪ The world I see is so much bigger now that I’m alone ♪ ♪ Papa, please forgive me ♪ ♪ Try to understand me ♪ ♪ Papa, don’t you know I had no choice ♪ ♪ Can you hear me praying ♪ ♪ Everything I’m saying ♪ ♪ Even though the night is filled with voices ♪ ♪ I remember everything you taught me ♪ ♪ Every book I’ve ever read ♪ ♪ Can all the words and all the books ♪ ♪ Help me to face what lies ahead ♪ ♪ The trees are so much taller ♪ ♪ And I feel so much smaller ♪ ♪ The moon is twice as lonely ♪ ♪ And the stars are half as bright ♪ ♪ Papa, how I love you ♪ ♪ Papa, how I need you ♪ ♪ Papa, how I miss you ♪ ♪ Kissing me ♪ ♪ Goodnight ♪

• Thanks, Karina. You can hold that there. If that doesn’t move people, I don’t know what would. What an extraordinary achievement and film with just a candle, just kneeling. Yes, she’s pretending to be, you know, as we know in the story of Yentl, she’s denied education and she wants to get into study the religious education, the Torah, the yeshiva. So she takes on the identity of being a boy because for all sorts of reasons. Tradition versus modernity, you know, the woman versus the male in the patriarch inherited and so on. So, but what really gets to me is this extraordinary ability of the character to, she says, inhabit every moment with the emotion, every nuance, just a candle, you know, and it’s in homage and in desperation trying to reach out to the father that of course is the psychological underpinning of the desire for education, for knowledge of her own. That scene is so evocative, and because it’s just, it’s so minimalist. Just the candle and her singing, and that extraordinary ability to nuance every second on screen with her voice. John Houston, the great American director said, “I’m impressed with her choosing 'Yentl.’ It was an extraordinary achievement.” But Hollywood turned against her because they really were. She battled for years to get the money, battled for years to get them to agree. To go on with John Houston.

“I think she could have played Cleopatra better than Liz Taylor, with her enormous power and the subtlety of her singing. She’s one of the great actresses and singers, and she hasn’t been well used by Hollywood.” That’s John Houston speaking in 1985. You know, and I think he does capture it. I don’t want to get into the comparison with Liz Taylor or anybody else, but what he’s on here was that ability to act and sing because she understands the connection between emotion and sound, and she said it, whether it’s a speaking or the singing voice. So brilliantly done. She was turned, for “Yentl,” every Hollywood studio turned her down ‘cause she wanted to direct and star in the movie. Took years. Finally, Orion Pictures gave her $14 million. She was producer, director for it, and of course starring in it, and co-scripted it with Jack Rosenthal. And I think what comes out for me, and they ran over budget by a million and a half. And let’s go back, this is the early eighties. And there was a clause in the contract. It was only $14 million. We can say only today. But she ran over by one and a half million dollars, which she financed from her own money. She was not going to compromise to get as good a quality as she could. And they held her to that contract. They didn’t say, “Well, it’s million, oh.” 'Cause they didn’t fundamentally, I think, believe in the project. Of course she funded that last one and a half million herself. All of this takes courage and guts, even if you do have a lot in the bank. If we can go on to the next slide, please. Okay, this is Barbra in Israel. She went obviously quite a few times, we all know, singing “Hatikvah” in a fairly pretty big public occasion. She also later did it where she’s interviewed, and in the interview she’s on the phone to Golda Meir. And I want to just play this to see her extraordinary rendition of “Hatikvah” in Israel.

• Thanks. We can end it there. So what do I get in this? And I’m showing it not only 'cause she’s singing it in Israel, but you get a sense of her extraordinary and feeling for Jewishness and Jewish history. The anguish, the lamentation, the sorrow, the fear, sorry, the sorrow, the tears, and the determination and the fight. Again, the defiance and the vulnerability played out in all these different ways, to me. Maybe I’m over-interpreting it here. I don’t mind because I think she gets so many of these things that it constantly is evoking such a kaleidoscope of emotions in us. You know, obviously the song itself, but this particular rendition by her. She is, in “Time Out,” interestingly, Streisand, one of the journalists wrote, “Her vocal style is like a suspension bridge.” It’s an interesting phrase, and I think it is. It’s constantly shifting and moving between all these nuances that I’m mentioning. And between the high notes, loud, soft, the low notes, you know, we can go on and on about the vocal abilities there. She, and this probably fits with Andre Agassi said about her when he had this affair with her. “Dating Barbra is like wearing hot lava.” It’s a fantastic phrase, I think. Politically, she was, in 1971, put onto President Nixon’s list of political enemies. You know, and he had a list of celebrities who were, as we all know. The theme of her new album “Walls” is the danger of Trump.

She said, and I’m quoting her here, “This is a dangerous time in this nation, a man who is corrupt and assaulting our institutions. It’s really frightening.” Two sentences. She says what she thinks. Direct, clear, and on the national and international stage, you know, is not scared to say it. Philanthropically, as Dylan said, her commitment to social justice. I mentioned already the Hebrew University. The Streisand Foundation has contributed over 16 million to various causes. She’s contributed at least 10 million to the Barbra Streisand Woman Heart Centre at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre. In 2011, she fundraised for the IDF and various charities. 2020, she gave George Floyd’s daughter some shares in Disney. 2022, she was invited by President Zelensky to become an ambassador for a platform focusing on medical aid. Goes on and on. It doesn’t stop. And she was awarded by UCLA the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Award. And I don’t want to play it because it would be I think too short to take out just a minute or two from the speech, but it’s on online if anybody wants. It is a fantastic speech. I don’t want to say, it’s not patronising to say, it’s articulate, it’s clear, and the commitment, you know, there’s such a firmness in it. And also we get a sense of the whole bigger picture of an individual’s creative life. I think, you know, like at the end of “Yentl,” where the character has the dream, a broken dream because of the love story that has gone, and sacrificed family, tradition, the Jewish tradition, everything in “Yentl” in order to have the dream of going to America at the end of “Yentl.” And we see on the boat in this famous scene that we all know, so I’m going to play in a minute, which is linked to a scene from “Funny Girl,” I think, that final shot of the boat, which goes all the way back. And, you know, the sense of achievement. I’m going to do it no matter what.

Fight the good fight, live the good life. Creatively, you know, as Alexander the Great said, “My father gave me life, but my teacher Aristotle taught me how to live the good and happy life.” And what he meant by that, Alexander, was to live the life I want as much as I can. Follow the dream, follow the aspiration. Of course, there are prices to be paid. Of course, there are going to be broken dreams, lost loves, sacrifice, many things. But I’m going to follow that dream from being a little kid. And I think that’s what she embodies, iconically, you know, in the way that people like Elvis, John Lennon, so many other iconic figures that we in a sense recognise as iconic and why, and they become these figures. One thing I want to mention, okay, actually first I want to play that song from “Yentl.” The last one, please, if we can go onto. We’ll skip over the “Funny Girl.” This is “Don’t Rain On My Parade.” Yeah, “Piece of Sky.”

♪ Tell me where ♪ ♪ Where is it written what it is I’m meant to be ♪ ♪ That I can’t dare ♪ ♪ It all began ♪ ♪ The day I found ♪ ♪ That from my window I could only see ♪ ♪ A piece of sky ♪ ♪ I stepped outside ♪ ♪ And looked around ♪ ♪ I never dreamed it was so wide ♪ ♪ Or even half as high ♪ ♪ The time had come ♪ ♪ Papa, can you hear me ♪ ♪ To try my wings ♪ ♪ Papa, are you near me ♪ ♪ And even thought it seemed at any moment ♪ ♪ I could fall ♪ ♪ I felt the most ♪ ♪ Papa, can you see me ♪ ♪ Amazing things ♪ ♪ Can you understand me ♪ ♪ The things you can’t imagine ♪ ♪ If you’ve never flown at all ♪ ♪ Though it’s safer to stay on the ground ♪ ♪ Sometimes where danger lies ♪ ♪ There the sweetest of pleasures are found ♪ ♪ No matter where I go ♪ ♪ There’ll be memories that tug at my sleeve ♪ ♪ But there will also be ♪ ♪ More to question, yet more to believe ♪ ♪ Oh, tell me where ♪ ♪ Where is the someone who will turn to look at me ♪ ♪ And want to share ♪ ♪ My every sweet-imagined possibility ♪ ♪ The more I live ♪ ♪ The more I learn ♪ ♪ The more I learn, the more I realise ♪ ♪ The less I know ♪ ♪ Each step I take ♪ ♪ Papa, I’ve a voice now ♪ ♪ Each page I turn ♪ ♪ Papa, I’ve a choice now ♪ ♪ Each mile I travel only means ♪ ♪ The more I have to go ♪ ♪ What’s wrong with wanting more ♪ ♪ If you can fly, then soar ♪ ♪ With all there is ♪ ♪ Why settle for ♪ ♪ Just a piece of sky ♪ ♪ Papa, I can hear you ♪ ♪ Papa, I can see you ♪ ♪ Papa, I can feel you ♪ ♪ Papa, watch me ♪ ♪ Fly ♪

• Can hold it there. Thanks, Karina. You can just hold that image. So, Papa, can you see my fly? And that end scene, who could ever forget it? You know, how she holds that voice for so long, that note for so long as the camera zooms back out to the big picture. Can you see me fly? That hope, that dream, everything, tradition, modernity, the past, questioning, challenging, her for hunger for education, determination to live her own individual dream, succeed or fail. Isaac Bashevis Singer, obviously we all know it was based on his story, and in his story, and he was very against this ending. And Isaac Bashevis Singer wrote or said that at the end, you know, Yentl has a life, and I’m paraphrasing here, goes into alienation, in his story, of course, alienation and aloneness. Yentl remains unable to find redemption from the rejection of so-called normal or the tradition. You know, and his is closer to the archetypal legend of the wondering Jew. Fairly well known. In her version it’s about dream, it’s about self-definition and defiance, which is seen as a virtue. It’s not seen with the massive price to pay and the sacrifice, which will lead to enormous lonely suffering and pain. And she finds a sense of self-worth and independence and hope in this end.

For Singer, it’s the opposite, of course. You know, and it’s going to be, you know, and I would think he would probably see it as hopelessly unrealistic, hopelessly, naively romantic. Which is more accurate to reality? What he sought for his ending? What she sees as the changed ending? And I think it’s such an important moment in film history and an important moment in and trying to understand which is more accurate to reality. Is there such a question valid? Is there a simple answer? And I don’t think so. I think both are valid. I think Singer’s interpretation, obviously it’s his story, but his interpretation’s totally valid. It can be the wondering Jew doomed to be alone, to walk the earth forever, not belonging, seeking to belong, seeking to not be alienated, but being fundamentally alienated regardless. Her dream, it’s at the end, interpretation. And of course, it’s fiction. It’s film, it’s art. No. You know, all the price, the sacrifice are worth it for that dream. Whether the dream is a broken dream or not, whether it’s lived, achieved or not, to try it. And I’m left with this thought, you know, in the sense of her life as an artist, as a singer, with that extraordinary voice, and the sense of knowledge and questioning and understanding. You know, that in itself is worth something to leave an audience with. And a little, gentle reminder. It’s an ancient, old idea going way back, but it’s worth a little reminder, I think, for myself as much for anybody. And I love the richness of art that you can have both Singer’s interpretation and his end of the story and hers. Okay, I think hold it there and we can go onto the questions.

Q&A and Comments:

Stuart, is magnificent. Yeah, and when we watch it a couple of times, Stuart, you know, you see what she’s doing to make it so magnificent. And I do think there’s anguish, lamentation, there’s defiance. The way she sings Jerusalem. Just that one word is so defiant and determined compared to the lamentations in other parts of the song.

Q: Bernard. “How would you compare her with Ella or with Judy Garland?”

A: Bernard, I think, you know, Ella Fitzgerald has, I think they are unique in their own way. I really do. I think Ella Fitzgerald, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Barbra, you know, I think they have their own uniqueness, and I’m very hesitant to compare. You know, it’s a bit like, well, I don’t want to get into, but you know, these are such wonderful voices and I don’t want to sit on the fence here or take an easy way out, but I don’t want to get into a binary, you know, this. I think that they contribute to the enormous treasure chest of art and the ability for singers to vary, to range and to find all different interpretations of the connection between emotion and sound. For her, through what the character’s going through every second.

Q: Rita, yeah. “Would you consider Sinatra among the pantheon of greats?”

A: Yes. Elvis, Dylan, the Beatles and her. Yeah, absolutely. I left him out. And there are so many, and there are others, as well. You know, Louis Armstrong, and the list goes on. Sinatra, definitely. You know, Dylan, nevermind, okay. You also spoke about Sinatra’s voice.

Susan. “I had the privilege of being with her in Israel for President Peres’s 90th birthday.” This is amazing. There’s an extraordinary resource in LockDown. Oh, Susan, this is fantastic. When you asked her to sing. Oh, okay.

Avinu Malkeinu. Oh, what a moment. That is fantastic. Yes, I managed to find that also on YouTube. There’s so many that we can find, you know, that we can share. Thanks for sharing that, Susan.

Karen. “The thing that most characterises her in her singing is empathy. Voice, magnificent, but her ability to put herself in other people’s shoes makes her a great actor and person.” Yep, and that’s what she means by I try to follow it through imagining what the character’s going through. Stanislavski’s phrase in acting theory, if we want a bit of the jargon, was what is called the magic if. If I was this character going through these circumstances, how would I imagine to feel? It’s an acting theory approach. And in other words, as you say, Karen, put yourself in somebody else’s shoes and imagine that and find the emotion.

Dennis. “I still recall getting a letter from my brother who was visiting the US in 1960. Raved about this kid on a Broadway show.” Okay. Oh, fantastic.

Bernice. Yeah, I was going to play that as well, but I was, there was also “Funny Girl.” There’s the scene. Yeah, there’s so much. One has to do in the end choose, but I agree with you.

Hannah. “Such beautiful hands.” Well, it’s the ability to endow every part of her gestures. Not only the nuance of the voice and the pitch and the singing, but every part of gesture, to endow it with meaning of what the character’s going through.

Paula. “Nehemiah Persoff, who played Barbra’s father in 'Yentl’ was interviewed in 2021 when he was 102. He spoke eloquently about working with her and being directed by her. How she elicited, describing how she elicited from him the performance that she was seeking. ‘She was on fire,’ he said.” This is fantastic. Thank you very much. It’s really interesting.

Annie. “I’ve never heard her ‘Cry Me A River,’ and incredible and that pure, gentle.” Yes, to that final defiance. Exactly. And let’s never forget, I think she was 20 or 21. Anyway, you know, very, so young. This determined interpretation that she has. Laura, thank you.

Rita. Rita again. “You may be interested to know in a lesser film, ‘Nuts.’” Yes, I know. And there are clips from “Nuts” that many would have and “Meet the Fockers” with De Niro, you know, and others. There’s so many, and I haven’t even spoken about her comic ability in comedy. You know, obviously “Funny Girl,” and you know, so many other, you know, that cheekiness, that cheeky and yet is never a sense of malice when she’s acting. You know, she’s cheeky and teasing and fun and wit in “Funny Girl” and “Meet the Fockers,” but she never crosses the line between very cheeky character and malicious, and that’s really intelligent in performing.

Judy. “My late friend Walter Schneiderman told me he did her makeup up for ‘Yentl.’ He did ‘Elephant Man,’” yeah. Great, Judy. Fantastic to know. Miriam, thank you.

Q: Karen. “What should be said about her musical phrasing technique?”

A: Absolutely. “In ‘The Way We Were,’ she constantly anticipates the beat.” Yes. “Letting the orchestra catch up.” Yes. “With her voice. Keeps the song from dragging. It’s a lesson in pop singing.” Couldn’t agree with you more, Karen. Thanks for that.

Carol. “She spanned the generations, one of the few musical artists.” Yeah. “From ‘Funny Girl’ onward.” Absolutely. Helo. “If my family had not moved from Flatbush neighbourhood in Midwood, I would’ve been in the same class as her and Neil Diamond and Bobby Fischer, who had once said it insufferable. Instead I went to Midwood High School, Woody Allen’s old alma mater.” This is amazing, Helo.

“As someone who always supported social justice, she gave via her foundation to support the publication, anti-nuclear.” Yes. “Of a new outlook. Israeli peace monthly.” Yep, fantastic. “At the time the topic was taboo.” Yep. I mean she donated to environmental issues, voter registration, as you said here, to anti-nuclear and paying for nuclear disarmament.

Corrine. “It’s pretty typical to idolise the missing parent.” Yep. “And direct one’s anger towards the parent who is alive.” Yep. “Idealisation of a father she never knew is totally understandable.” Agree completely, Corrine. And it’s so clear certainly in “Yentl” and I’m sure perhaps part of it in her life, as well. You know, demonise, idealise, which we all do, of course, especially when one parent has died very young and the other’s not, and you know, and so on.

Wilma. “She sings it, okay, on her recording of ‘Higher Ground.’” Magnificent. Yes, I agree. Myra, thank you.

Rita, “Quintessential icon.” Yes.

Q: Peter. “Was ‘Yentl’ a commercial success?”

A: Yes, very much so.

Carol Ann. “I knew an non-Jewish family in Cape Town who called their daughter Yentl.” That’s great. That’s the opposite to her joke of saying the word Christmas over and over again when she’s not allowed to in the yeshiva. Ivan, thank you.

Rochelle. Yeah, “Hatikvah” was fantastic. I agree. Joe, thank you. Yeah, you’re very kind. Susan, you’re very kind. Thank you. Rita. Yeah, thank you.

Stuart, “A Star Is Born.” Yeah, I know. We could add in more there. “She was,” Ellen, “she was so Jewish, she had married for years to an non-Jew.” Yep. And affairs. Yeah, she dated Clint Eastwood. She dates, who also I admire enormously, and Andre Agassi, Clint Eastwood. You know, the list goes on. Richard Gere. I mean, this is ability to live such a life.

Q: Myra. “Does anyone know when an autobiography will be released?”

A: From what I’ve researched recently, they say the end of the year, but you know, who knows? Ann. Thank you.

Howard. How are you? Okay, that’s my cousin Howard in Washington. Hope you’re well. Okay, and contact me. I haven’t heard from you for a long time. Okay, Hannah.

Q: Okay, Sonya. “Did she have vocal training?”

A: No. “Her breath control is remarkable.” Yes, I agree completely. I mean, from what I understand, I don’t think she had serious vocal training or serious, you know, and certainly with diaphragm, breath control, all the rest of it. And she went for actor training, but that’s very different to what you’re talking about, which is for singing. You know, specifically singing, vocal training for singers.

Howard, again, my cousin. “I heard that she’d get anxious before performances and use a med to calm down.” That’s fantastic, Howard. Thank you. And I don’t know. Howard, could you find out what med she got to help calm down? Okay. Great to hear from you, by the way, cousin. Irene, beautiful. Thank you very much for your. Everyone is very nice. Thank you, Diane. That’s very kind of you, but I wouldn’t push it that far, Diane.

Sheldon. “I met her briefly in Ottawa.”

Yeah, that’s right. She dated Trudeau. Yep. Trudeau Sr. Let me just here. Sorry, I just jumped for a second. Sheldon, I met her. Oh yes, right. Thank you very kindly, Allison, comments. Thank you, Selma. Leon, thank you. Very kind. Jen, thank you. All very kind, thank you.

Errol. “I heard she had a great agent.” It was a guy, Erlichman, as well, very early on. And Bregman, yeah. Was who discovered Pacino. Very much so.

Q: Gilda. “Did she make peace with her mother?”

A: Not sure. And to be frank, I purposely wanted to leave it out because I don’t know, you know, these words. Peace, closure. I think one adapts and accepts things perhaps as one goes through life. But, you know, I don’t know the answer to your question. Okay. All the questions are from girls. Barbra. Okay, thank you for your comments. Rona. Jean. Okay, thank you, Errol.

Q: “Is there a story somewhere about Lainie Kazan, Barbra’s understudy in ‘Funny Girl?’”

A: Okay, I’m not sure about that. I have to check. Caroline, thank you.

Q: Jen. “Did she have any mentors?”

A: That’s a great question. I’m not sure. It’d be really interesting to find out real mentors in a way. It’d be interesting to find out, actually.

Helen. “We’re separated by a decade. I did attend Erasmus Hall High School, had the same teachers.” What an extraordinary thing life is, eh? “Teachers remembered her as an A student and complete non-conformist.” Brilliant. Thanks, Helen. That’s really nice.

Q: Sandy. “Were you aware of her support for Daniel Ellsberg?”

A: I wasn’t. Thanks for letting me know, Sandy. Interesting.

Myrna. Yeah, she dated Trudeau Sr. She got around. Toby. Yeah, she dated. Yeah. that’s it. The photo of her wearing a leopard outfit here.

Lillian. Yeah, you can get a copy from LockDown, for email LockDown. All our sessions are recorded and anybody can get copies. Lillian. Joe, thank you. Thanks.

Bob. “Beta blockers before performance decrease pulse and anxiety.” Ah, thanks, Bob. That’s helpful. Was that the one she took, Bob? That’s what, yeah, I suppose I’m asking you and my cousin. Laney, thank you. Very kind. Rita. Biography. “Viking is thrilled to announce.” Ah, autobiography. “That her memoir, ‘My Name Is Barbra,’ published on 7th of November this year.” Okay, great. Well, thank you very much, Rita. Milena. Yeah, I’m just outside Liverpool here. Oh, that’d be great. Thank you. If you can get my email address from LockDown, please email. Ron. Sorry. I was all jumping, jumping here. He’s jumping.

Yeah, Ron. “I have a rose bush with Barbra Streisand roses.” That’s great.

Q: Josie. “What about her co-actors?”

A: Yeah, Redford, Omar Sharif. I mean, you know the list goes on.

Errol. Thank you. If you can email. Rather than, you know, make this all public, if you could email, and anybody, please email through LockDown and then I’ll always email back.

Hannah. Yeah, her books are published. Yeah, other books were published. Lillian, thank you kindly. Rhonda, thanks.

“Went to see Barbra in Toronto years back. She has a cantorial voice when singing ‘Hatikvah.’” Yeah, she gets into it. That’s what I say, again, and I know I’m repeating myself here, but she’s able to project or inhabit into a character. You know, she’s imagining herself so Jewish in that moment of singing “Hatikvah,” and that’s a cantorial voice that you’re referring to I think as well. George and Olga. Care to email copies, okay. Francis and her son Jason, good voice. Yes, really good. Julian. Thank you. Is very kind.

“Did not know history. The scene when she sings her to her father.” Yeah, absolutely. And what I’ve tried to tease out here exactly what you mean when, as you say Julian. How is she working to put soul in performance.

Okay, that’s it. Thank you very much everybody, and thank you, Karina, very much, and hope everybody has a great rest of the weekend, and take care.