Our Person of the Year: Betty Buckley!

Betty Buckley

All of our nominees for "Person of the Year" are exceptional in their own way, each of them bringing something unique and beautiful to the world of the arts and humanities. However, our winner was clearly the frontrunner—the outstanding and talented Miss Betty Buckley!

Miss Buckley’s multiple-award-winning career on stage and screen has been well-documented. A visit to her Web site will give you a detailed curriculum vitae. Instead, let’s focus on the ethereal nature of Betty Buckley’s influence on our world and culture. As a teacher, she has given dozens of individuals the power that they need to express themselves. What could be a better gift to the world?

Furthermore, her talent has moved and affected thousands upon thousands of people. The integrity of an artist’s work is measured by her ability to bring her audience to a new emotional level. Who could possibly listen to Miss Buckley’s clear voice without becoming overwhelmed by its power and magnificence? More important than all of the awards that she’s won, Betty Buckley’s greatest achievements stay in the hearts of those who have heard her, who have seen her and who have experienced those much-needed moments of brilliance which all of our souls desire.

Our digital age makes the sharing of artistic moments all the easier. If you’d like to bring Betty Buckley into your home this winter, I’d certainly recommend her new album, Bootleg: Boardmixes From the Road which is now available on iTunes. For those of you in the Dallas, Texas area, you’ve got a chance to see Miss Buckley perform in Arsenic and Old Lace at the Dallas Theater Center from February 4 to March 13. I know that I intend to be there.

I leave you with two performances which I think truly sum up Betty Buckley’s artistic triumph. The first is one of her memorable performances of Memory from Andrew Lloyd-Webber’s Cats. Recorded as part of the 2006 Kennedy Center Honors tribute to Lloyd-Webber, Miss Buckley delivers the song which made her, “The Voice of Broadway.” As I previously mentioned, I had the pleasure of seeing Betty Buckley perform last year. For her encore, she returned to the stage to sing Memory. I’ve never heard such applause in a theater before.

The second video clip shows a scene from the former AMC program, Remember WENN, in which Miss Buckley guest-starred. This Christmas song, written for the show, is one of my favorites—scintillatingly performed and stirring.

As a fan of her work, I’m proud to name Betty Buckley Stalking the Belle Époque’s first “Person of the Year.” I offer my sincere thanks for all that she’s contributed to the arts and look forward to what she’ll bring next.

Audible Beauty: Betty Buckley’s Newest Album, “Bootleg: Boardmixes From the Road”

The clarity of her voice, the pure emotion with which she delivers a song, the subtlety of her performances—these qualities characterize the magnificent work of Betty Buckley.  Her newest album, Bootleg: Boardmixes From the Road is a deeply moving and thoroughly enjoyable collection of songs performed to perfection by “The Voice of Broadway.” 

From languid ballads to up-tempo standards, this assortment of numbers is an exquisite buffet of delicious music.  The album includes the richly emotional “Ghost in this House,” the exhilarating “It Might as Well Be Spring” and the uplifting, “Straighten Up and Fly Right” among six other songs.  Miss Buckley’s extraordinary range is captured splendidly on this must-have album.  Bootleg: Boardmixes From the Road is now available as a download from iTunes.  Check it out!  Since we can’t see her in person every day, this is the best way to bring the magic of Betty Buckley into your home.

Person of the Week: The Remarkable Betty Buckley

Betty Buckley

No matter what your career, to communicate at your best is absolutely vital, whether it's to one person, a group or an entire audience. But most people get nervous, forgetful and too fearful to express themselves…

--Betty Buckley

Born in Big Spring, Texas in 1947, Betty Buckley was always an outgoing young woman. In 1966, she was crowned “Miss Fort Worth”—an event which led to her being asked to perform at the Miss America Pageant. Her performance earned her a great deal of attention. Still she returned to Fort Worth where she worked briefly as a newspaper reporter. The lure of the theater was great, and in 1969, Betty Buckley headed to New York where she was cast as Martha Jefferson in the Broadway production of 1776—on her first day in town.

New York Magazine referred to Buckley as “The Voice of Broadway.” She was soon much in demand as a singer and actress. In 1982, her performance in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats solidified Miss Buckley’s permanent place amongst the greatest Broadway performers. Many consider her rendition of “Memory” to be the finest of any performer’s. Prior to Cats, Miss Buckley starred as “Abbey” in Eight is Enough from 1977-1982.

Miss Buckley’s other stage work includes: Promises, Promises; Pippin; The Mystery of Edwin Drood; Carrie – The Musical; Sunset Boulevard; and The Triumph of Love. She also has a wealth of screen credits to her name.

What makes Betty Buckley so amazing—in addition to her talent—is her approachability, easy-going manner and her desire to help others. For the past thirty years, Miss Buckley has taught song interpretation and communication in Forth Worth and New York. If anyone can instruct you on how to sell a song, it’s Betty Buckley.

I had the great fortune of seeing Betty Buckley in an intimate concert at Addison, Texas’ lovely Watertower Theatre last Christmas, and I have to say that she was as charming and lovely as her voice is strong. It was a wonderful evening watching a thoroughly exceptional performer. For her outstanding talent and her kind heart, Betty Buckley is this week’s “Person of the Week.”

This clip of Betty Buckley singing an aria from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical version of Sunset Boulevard demonstrates her charm and amazing talent.