Natasha Richardson

Here is another chillingly outstanding performance from Natasha Richardson. I never got to see her in this role, but I remember listening the cast recording until I knew every lyric, every cymbal crash, and every snarl that Alan Cumming has now made his personal trademark. Every time I heard the songs, the raw emotion in her performance came through with a crystalline kind of clarity and sharpness that defined her as an actress. It's always sad to lose a member of the strange and wonderful entertainment community, but as it was with Heath Ledger, I think Natasha Richardson's death has hit everyone especially hard not only because it was so unexpected, but because these actors gave performances that felt so uncannily open, intimate, and vulnerable. Just so sad. Watch the video.