One Voice (1986) (TV)

Director:

Dwight Hemion

Writers:

Alan Bergman (written by) &
Marilyn Bergman (written by) ...
(more)

Release Date:

27 December 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Plot Keywords:

Song | Two Word Title | TV Special | Singer | Live Performance

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Barbra Streisand	...	Herself - Performer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jim Cox	...	Himself - Band Member
Michael Fisher	...	Himself - Band Member (as Mike Fisher)
Barry Gibb	...	Himself - Guest Performer
Randy Kerber	...	Himself - Musical Director
Richard Marx	...	Himself - Background Vocal
John Pierce	...	Himself - Band Member
Dan Sawyer	...	Himself - Guitar
Nyle Steiner	...	Himself - Synthesizer
Chad Wackerman	...	Himself - Drums
Randy Waldman	...	Himself - Synthesizer
Robin Williams	...	Himself - Guest Performer
Burt Bacharach	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Carole Bayer Sager	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Chevy Chase	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Barry Diller	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Sheena Easton	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Sally Field	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Jane Fonda	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Jason Gould	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Goldie Hawn	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Hugh M. Hefner	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Whitney Houston	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Barbara Jordan	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Norman Lear	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Carrie Leigh	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Penny Marshall	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Walter Matthau	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Bette Midler	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Martina Navratilova	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Jack Nicholson	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Sydney Pollack	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Richard Pryor	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Elizabeth Taylor	...	Herself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Bruce Willis	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)
Henry Winkler	...	Himself - Audience Member (uncredited)

Directed by
Dwight Hemion

Writing credits
Alan Bergman		(written by) &
Marilyn Bergman		(written by) and
Barbra Streisand		(written by)

Produced by
Marilyn Bergman	....	producer
Martin Erlichman	....	executive producer
Dwight Hemion	....	producer
Gary Smith	....	producer
Barbra Streisand	....	executive producer

Film Editing by
Mark West		(co-editor)

Production Design by
Rene Lagler

Makeup Department
Soonie Piak	....	hair stylist

Sound Department
Bart Chiate	....	sound engineer
Ed Greene	....	sound engineer
Laura Livingston	....	assistant sound engineer

Camera and Electrical Department
John Rook	....	lighting designer

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Renata Buser	....	wardrobe

Music Department
Richard Baskin	....	music producer
Randy Kerber	....	musical director

Other crew
Chris Steenolsen	....	location manager

Distributors

• Home Box Office (HBO) (1986) (USA) (TV)
• CBS/Fox Home Video (1987) (USA) (VHS)
• Rhino Home Video (2006) (USA) (DVD)

Runtime:

68 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Trivia:

Walter Matthau, Barbra Streisand's costar from Hello, Dolly! (1969) is clearly seen in the audience of this concert on the grounds of her Malibu Ranch, where invitation-only guests paid $5,000 per couple to help establish the Streisand Foundation, which supports numerous charitable organizations. During the filming of Hello, Dolly! (1969), Matthau and Streisand clashed bitterly, and he refused to be around her except when required to do so by the script. Matthau is famously quoted as having told Barbra Streisand that she "had no more talent than a butterfly's fart". Apparently, since Walter Matthau is seen at this event, he did not hold grudges.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Zomergasten: Episode #15.1" (2002)

Soundtrack:

The Way We Were

September 6, 1986 - a very special evening

After battling severe stage fright for the majority of the seventies and eighties, Barbra Streisand finally returned to the concert stage on September 6, 1986 for the "one night only" ONE VOICE concert. The show was heavily publicized in the media, tickets were sold at the astronomically high price of $5000 per couple, and columnists and critics everywhere were anxiously waiting to see if Streisand could overcome her immense performance-phobia and still deliver the goods. Fortunately, all of the hype was more than justified. When Streisand finally took the stage that night and opened the show with a tour de force performance of "Somewhere," every member of the audience was left in awe of the stunning power of this woman's ageless voice.

Though Streisand was visibly and audibly nervous during her first few numbers, nothing could keep her undiminished vocal prowess from shining brightly through. If anything, her occasional jitteriness only made her seem more human. She was supported not by the typical orchestra, but by a small handful of musicians on electronic instruments. This actually provides the majority of the show with a warmer and more intimate feel. With the small band and the limited orchestration, it is Streisand's golden voice that is left at the forefront of the concert - and I wouldn't have it any other way. In addition to a slate of her own signature numbers, Streisand also performs some new material, such as the lovely "A New World" (from the 1954 version of A Star Is Born) and the traditional "America the Beautiful," which was the perfect close to the moving evening.

A few more of the evening's many highlights include Barbra's haunting rendition "Send In The Clowns," a relaxed duet with guest Barry Gibb on "What Kind Of Fool," and a surprisingly lively performance of "The Way We Were," with a newer, more contemporary arrangement. Most impressive of all Barbra's impassioned rendition of "Papa, Can You Hear Me?" that night is one of her most moving performances ever. Barbra also slips into a rare cover of "Over The Rainbow," and does the song more justice than anyone since Judy Garland (whom Barbra dedicates the performance to). Instead of screaming the song out at the top of her lungs like Patti Labelle and Sam Harris, Barbra gives "Over The Rainbow" a beautifully understated performance and makes the number her own.

The profits from ONE VOICE benefited the Democratic Party, who were at the time trying to make sure a disaster like Chernobyl never happened again. Barbra's often-criticized stage dialogue on the issue may be a little heavy-handed at times, but you can tell she strongly believes every word of it. In particular, her speech proceeding "People," though unoriginal, is very moving nonetheless. It is also a bit disappointing that the special's runtime is less than an hour, although the parody number "Send Home the Clowns" and Robin Williams' opening monologue seem to be the only major omissions from the evening's set list (and I can certainly live without both).

Other than the short runtime and the sometimes overbearing spoken statements, ONE VOICE is a great presentation of a special concert that will delight fans and even many cynics. In the end, ONE VOICE was a massive success. The concert was filmed and received record-breaking ratings when televised on HBO, while the audio recording of the show peaked at #9 on the Hot 200 and was quickly certified Platinum. Most importantly, ONE VOICE raised over $1.5 million which led Barbra to establish the "Streisand Foundation," which supports numerous charitable organizations.