A Report from Betty Buckley's Workshops

Betty Buckley has always been big news for North Texans, but the Tony-winning diva has been all over the national news in recent weeks, what with her Twitter war with Randy Jackson about American Idol and singers being "too Broadway"; and the revival of the musical Carrie in New York, which she recently witnessed. You'll recall that Buckley was in the original Brian de Palma movie version of Carrie, and in the notorious Broadway flop.

So it's perfect timing to spotlight her acclaimed Song Interpretation Master Classes, which she started doing in Fort Worth several years ago, and is now conducting in New York, Chicago and Boston. Catherine Mallette of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram recently spent time in one of those classes and has an excellent feature about it, which you can read at this link on DFW.com, a TheaterJones media partner.

Here's an excerpt:

Sure, Buckley fusses at her students for slurring and for not standing correctly, but what she's really doing is teaching principles she has learned and embraced through the years.

She is teaching focus, something that sounds kind of New Age-y and vague but that she insists is extremely definable, practical and translatable far beyond the realm of music.

She asks students to play, to imagine, to stop thinking about "me, me, me."

And what happens, somehow, is no less than magic.

Buckley's next workshop starts Feb. 22, and there is promise of a recital of its students this spring at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth (date to be announced). The last local recital of Buckley's students was called "Story Songs" in 2011, which we reviewed.