Gloria Steinem was guest-hosting on The Today Show and interviewed Barbra Streisand at her Malibu ranch on September 7, 1986 — the day after she sang live (One Voice).
For longtime Streisand fans, this was an important interview. Many of us dreamed we could have attended her concert, but it was so far away and so exclusive. The Today Show aired several clips from the concert, and it was the first chance — barely a week after it happened — to see the footage!
Steinem's interview with Streisand aired on The Today Show over three days later that month.
The interview included Steinem and Streisand walking through the little amphitheater in her back yard where, the night before, she had sung for celebrities and politicians. “Now it'll become my little Shakespeare theater,” Streisand kidded. But then she proved her point by stepping forward on the stage and reciting “Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou, Romeo?” from Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet.
As interviewed by Steinem, Barbra Streisand expressed that the reason she performed the One Voice concert was because “I felt it was my responsibility as a concerned citizen to speak up, to raise my voice in protest of what I think is going on in the world.”
The two women talked about many topics, including what Streisand would do on vacation. “My vacation is actually to do things that most people ... want to get away from,” she said. “To me, cooking in the kitchen and cleaning up and going shopping is like a treat.”
Barbra spoke about working with others, too. “For many years . . . I expected people to do their job well. I mean, I was trying to do my job well, so l expected you to do your job well. And you don't get pats for that.”
When Steinem asked about being a powerful woman, Streisand responded, “I don't think being powerful is to be ruthless or to be unkind, or to yell and scream. I don’t think that's powerful at all,” she stated. “I really enjoy the power of being gentle. ... I enjoyed tremendously dlrecting Yentl. That is a powerful position ... I found that a very humbling experience. I didn't have to raise my voice, because everybody was finally listening. I would talk very, very low.
“And by having power in that sense, I became very patient, very maternal. It's like as if I was this mother, and they were my children, and I had to protect them. And I had to be at their service to get the very best from everyone.”
