Bernadette Peters - "Move On"

Whether you remember her first from “the Jerk” as the quirky cutsie girlfriend, or from Annie as the evil scam artist companion to Tim Curry and Carol Burnette, you will certainly agree, that face, and that voice, are iconic. 

Over the course of a career that has spanned five decades, she has starred in musical theatre, films and television, as well as performing in solo concerts and recordings. She is one of the most critically acclaimed Broadway performers, having received nominations for seven Tony Awards, winning two (plus an honorary award), and nine Drama Desk Awards, winning three. Four of the Broadway cast albums on which she has starred have won Grammy Awards.

Peters first performed on the stage as a child and then a teenage actor in the 1960s, and in film and television in the 1970s. She was praised for this early work and for appearances on The Muppet Show, The Carol Burnett Show and in other television work, and for her roles in films like Silent Movie, The Jerk, Pennies from Heaven and Annie. In the 1980s, she returned to the theatre, where she became one of the best-known Broadway stars over the next three decades. She also has recorded six solo albums and several singles, as well as many cast albums, and performs regularly in her own solo concert act. In the 2010s, Peters continues to act on stage, in films and on television, where she has been nominated for three Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe Awards, winning once.

Regarded by many as the foremost interpreter of the works of Stephen Sondheim, Peters is particularly noted for her roles on the Broadway stage, including in the musicals Mack and Mabel, Sunday in the Park with George, Song and Dance,Into the Woods, Annie Get Your Gun, Gypsy, and most recently the Revival of Hello Dolly.

Today’s song is so much about the constant changing of life. It is about accepting that change rather than resisting it, and learning that the only way out is through. You must let go of the past to receive the gift of the present.

To quote a very dear friend:

“With fists holding so tightly to the past and what you are afraid to let go of, you can not open your hands to receive the gifts that you will be given.”

So today, with conviction and sacrifice, I choose Bernadette Peters’ rendition of Steven Sondheim’s “Move On” as my, the choice may have been mistaken - the choosing was not, lift up your spirits and get going, if you’re standing still you’re really moving backwards, song for a, just keep swimming, drop the tools that no longer serve you, stop worrying if your vision is new - just make sure it’s yours, Wednesday,