LOVE, LuPONE STYLE

A master performer balances
tenderness and trademark wit

Patti LuPone

On Groundhog Day, February 2, Patti LuPone fans emerged from wherever they were holed up during that cold winter week and made their way to Carnegie Hall for a concert of love-related songs called Matters of the Heart.

Patti LuPone

The generous program, conceived and directed by Scott Wittman, was musically majestic, with arrangements by primo pianist Joseph Thalken and the presence of a string quartet (Will Curry, Molly Goldman, Suzy Perelman, and Jessica Wang). The program took the theatrical chanteuse through wistful moods of misty memories and reality checks, covering pop songs such as The Beach Boys’ ardent hit “God Only Knows,” and wisely making room for comic pieces, too, like “Shattered Illusions.” The most prolonged applause came after Flaherty & Ahrens’ “Back to Before” from the score of the current Broadway revival of Ragtime and Stephen Sondheim’s “Not a Day Goes By” and “Being Alive.”

The lady has a commanding presence, even if at some points she seems to be more “in the moment” and connected than in others. Her personality, timbre, and tone are memorably distinctive. Precision in diction varies, regrettably, but it doesn’t matter much, as most in attendance likely know many of the songs by heart.

Patti LuPone

Often on the move, prowling and pacing the stage like a lioness, LuPone’s reflections on love were mostly affectionate, anchored by the sweet “Love Makes the World Go ‘Round” from the musical Carnival!. She told of how she fell for her husband when they were both working on LBJ: The Early Years (1987). As much as she embraced lovey-dovey sentimentality, she couldn’t resist torpedoing it with delightfully sharp quips, such as comparing the search for a romantic partner to “pigs hunting for truffle.”

After her bows, she came onstage with a camera, taking flash pictures of the audience while blithely singing “The Way You Look Tonight,” a funny reference to the time she stopped a performance of Gypsy to yell at a rude theatergoer who was taking photos during the show.

Patti LuPone

Whether delivering a heartfelt ballad or a barbed punchline, Patti LuPone proved once again that few performers command a stage with such authority. The heart of Matters of the Heart was not simply romance, but the unmistakable personality of the woman singing about it.

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photos by Chris Lee

Patti LuPone: Matters of the Heart
Carnegie Hall, 881 Seventh Ave.
120 minutes, plus intermission
performed Feb 2, 2026
for future shows, visit Carnegie Hall
TOUR CONTINUES; for dates and cities visit La LuPone

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