The Concert, Las Vegas 1993-1994 NYE

Streisand / LIVE 

The Concert (1993–1994)

MGM Grand Hotel

Las Vegas, Nevada


December 31, 1993 & January 1, 1994

Newspaper article about Streisand's Las Vegas shows.

In February 1992, Barbra Streisand was a guest on Larry King’s TV interview show and he asked her why she didn’t sing live in concert. “I’m thinking about doing it, but it is very scary,” she replied. 


Barbra had not sung live for a paying audience since the 1970s. She gave a handful of live performances in the 1980s and early 1990s, but those were fundraisers and the majority of her fans did not have the access or the money to attend those.


So, Barbra’s manager, Marty Erlichman began investigating concert options (“in the absence of Barbra being aware of it,” he told Vanity Fair) even though Streisand was busy developing two movie projects.


Liza Minnelli also inspired Barbra Streisand to consider singing live again. “Donna Karan gave me a wonderful birthday party,” Streisand told the Los Angeles Times, “and Liza Minnelli got up to sing and I am sitting there thinking, ‘How does she do this? How does anyone get up in front of people and sing?’” Streisand questioned her stage fright. “I didn’t like accepting that fright,” she said. “I am frightened by a lot of things, but what I hope is good about me is that I go through the fear. I thought, ‘Why can’t I do this?’ Besides, so many fans wanted me to sing live. People were saying, ‘You owe it to them.’ It was starting to get to me.”


There were several other things that fell into place, making these concerts a reality.  Around Labor Day 1993, Kirk Kerkorian, the owner of the MGM Grand Hotel, asked Streisand if she would like to perform on New Year’s Eve at the new 15,000-seat Grand Garden theater. The hotel was the largest ever built at the time at a cost of over $1 billion, with 5,000 rooms. Kerkorian also offered to give $3.5 million to Barbra’s favorite charity. “That impressed me,” Streisand confessed. “Plus, the show was going to be New Year’s Eve. I hate New Year’s Eve. It’s a very lonely night for me … never a happy time. So, I thought: What a great way to escape New Year’s Eve … doing a show.” 


Erlichman confessed, “We were closer more times to not making a deal than to making it, but in the end, it was a unique blending of the events – a brand-new hotel, Barbra wanting to take a shot at performing live to get rid of her fear and the chance to test the concept of a tour by doing just two nights instead of 50 nights or whatever.”


There was a lot of speculation about how much Kerkorian paid Streisand for the gigs. Most articles reported Streisand received as much as $20 million.  Streisand and her management never confirmed the amount, but it’s possible reporters assumed she’d earn millions from a pay-per-view television special of the shows. (She never did a live pay-per-view special). Vanity Fair said that Streisand’s payment was $14 million, before expenses which included the 64-piece orchestra and 16,500 square feet of carpeting to cover the floors of each arena. “You know what this tour cost me? Twenty million dollars! Sixteen on the road and four in Vegas … We charged so much because it cost so much. And yet some idiot writes in a paper that I'll have made $100 million,” Streisand exclaimed.
Barbara Walters interviews Barbra Streisand in 1993.

On November 2, 1993, MGM Grand announced that Barbra Streisand would perform two shows on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. 


Larry Woolf, the chairman and CEO of MGM Grand Hotel, said in a statement, “We are absolutely thrilled that Barbra Streisand will be opening the new MGM Grand Garden.  There is no entertainer in the world of higher ability and stature to open our new entertainment complex.”  Tickets ranged in price from $100 to $1,000.


The two shows went on sale Sunday, November 7th and sold out within hours. “There were 379,000 calls from around the world recorded in the first four hours after the tickets went on sale at 8 a.m.,” said Tom Bruny, an MGM spokesman.  Marty Erlichman confirmed this when he said “The telephone company wouldn’t allow us to go on sale on a weekday because they were afraid that the number of calls we were going to get would overload the system. So they made us go on a Sunday.  They were right.”


Six weeks before her shows, Barbra Streisand sat down for an interview with Barbara Walters and talked about the shows. “I think it's a challenge. I think the fans, my public, they want to see me perform. It's almost like something they feel I withhold from them. And in a way, maybe I was. Thing is, I was ready to sing. I was ready to face this fear.”

Putting it Together ....

Publicity photo of Mavin Hamlisch

With only two months to prepare the show, behind the scenes Barbra enlisted her friends and musical collaborators to help create this concert.


“I wanted something more personal” than a concert of her greatest hits, Streisand said. “I wanted to pick songs that meant something to me and then put them into some kind of story or theme so that there was a thread running through the show.”


First it was announced that Marvin Hamlisch would musically direct and arrange the music for Streisand’s shows. They had known each other since Funny Girl on Broadway when Hamlisch was the rehearsal pianist. “We’ve both grown a bit since then, but he’s still the same enormously gifted musician, composer, performer and friend,” Streisand said. “Who else could I depend on to serve as my musical director for the tour? And who else could I depend on to make me laugh at almost any time?”


“My role was very exciting,” Marvin Hamlisch said. “Barbra, me, the Bergmans, and her manager Marty Erlichman started out by deciding what we were going to do.”


Marilyn and Alan Bergman were tapped to collaborate with Barbra on the concerts, mostly writing dialogue and helping to create the dramatic thread of the show. “It’s always a pleasure and a privilege to work with Barbra,” they said in a statement. “As writers do, we first hear our work interpreted in the ideal world of our minds. In the hands of a great artist such as Barbra, the words and music come alive in a way which is always thrilling – always what we meant and more.”


Since Hamlisch’s musical version of The Goodbye Girl had closed on Broadway that August, Streisand came East to rehearse the show.  The Daily News said Streisand and the Bergmans were working on the show at both Streisand’s and Hamlisch’s apartments. 


As the show began coming together, Hamlisch felt strongly that Streisand should be accompanied with a 64-piece orchestra. “You wouldn’t put a diamond in a 5-and-10-cent box,” Hamlisch said. “She is without a doubt the greatest female singer there is. And you never know when she’s going to do this again. So, you want to surround that diamond with other diamonds.”


Mark Katz, the creative writer who spiked Democrat’s speeches with humor, was approached by Streisand at a Washington, D.C. political party to write a few one-liners for the show.  And it’s reported that Gary Ross, screenwriter of Big and Dave, had a hand in the Linda Richman skit with Mike Myers.


Gary Smith, who produced the TV versions of Barbra's MGM and Anaheim concerts said, "The look of the stage, the placement of the orchestra, the various song segments, the video inserts were almost entirely Barbra’s concepts and execution ... There were many informal rehearsals at [Barbra's] home, around the piano, but the first formal look was on a sound stage at Sony Studios where the entire concert was rehearsed with the orchestra, with the film projections and TelePrompTers, etc.”
Model of Streisand's 1994 concert set
Streisand’s concert stage setting was “inspired by my visit to Monticello (Thomas Jefferson’s house),” she said. “The stairway and the all-white tearoom – details of Palladio architecture.”

Streisand admitted that during this time in her life, after Bill Clinton was elected president, “I fell in love with America all over again. I became fascinated with American history, art, and architecture.” She loved 18th-century American antiques and admitted that “I looked at the set that was being designed which was very modern, and remembered the tearoom at Monticello, where everything was off-white, with sheer curtains and graceful arched windows and busts of famous men on the wall. I told them that was the environment I wanted to sing in … be in. That, to me, was elegant.”

Next to the windows were four busts of Handel, Shakespeare, Bach, and Beethoven. On stage was a gorgeous swan chaise lounge and a Chippendale-style armchair. The set was constructed by George & Goldberg Design Associates, a custom scenic design, engineering and manufacturing company for the entertainment industry. 
Wide shot of Barbra's Monticello-inspired concert set.

Music, Script, Stage …. Clothing?!

Streisand's original sketch of her MGM Grand gown, next to a photograph of the final gown she wore.
In September 1993, Streisand called fashion designer Arnold Scaasi because she wanted him to design her clothes for the concert. “We started by remaking a black satin crepe full-sleeved long dress that I had designed in the seventies,” Scaasi wrote, “and a pink-and-white crepe-and-embroidered organdy evening pajama from the late sixties. We talked a lot about how she wanted to look for the world tour, but she was so unsure that I couldn't get a handle on it—it seemed we were both confused.”

Streisand's friend and amazing fashion designer Donna Karan ended up designing Barbra's concert look. Karan designed several options, which can be seen in the 2004 auction catalog for Streisand’s estate. Karan created off-the-shoulder black, burgundy, and navy-blue gowns, some with turtleneck tops. But for opening night, Streisand decided on a cream silk under-dress, pleated at the bottom, with a black velvet over-dress, open down the front, edged with rhinestones, with a brooch at the bust. Her second act look was an ivory-colored suit with a long-slit skirt. The outfits were stitched by Karan’s seamstresses at her New York shop, and Barbra looked elegant and gorgeous.

Meanwhile, Barbra’s concert had become a two-act show, much like a Broadway musical. The creative team had incorporated cleverly edited videos which were shown on a giant screen in the middle of the stage. Streisand’s first act would revolve around a psychiatrist theme, with Barbra moving around the stage to various couches and speaking/singing about relationships and love, punctuated by songs from her career. Act two would be a straight-up concert: the furniture was cleared from the stage; the backdrop was lifted, revealing the orchestra; and Barbra performed on a white carpet with a stool and tea table.

Creating the Show ....

Barbra Streisand, in rehearsal clothes, works through the MGM concert
It’s interesting to consider some of the songs Streisand rehearsed for these shows, but ultimately decided against. At various points of the creative process, “I've Never Been In Love Before” was considered as part of a mini-Guys and Dolls medley after “I'll Know” in the first act.

“Being At War With Each Other” was situated after “You Don't Bring Me Flowers” in the second act. Barbra would have introduced it saying, “Despite all our differences—in size, shape, color, gender—we're all more alike than we think ... So, why then is it so hard for us to get along with one another? It should be so simple...”

And a medley of “Carefully Taught/Children Will Listen” followed the Disney Medley, but was cut. (Barbra ended up performing it in London instead, for one night. Thirteen years later, Barbra sang a different arrangement of the medley in her North American and European concert tour).

Before the final rehearsals with musicians, Streisand ran the show with Hamlisch and the Bergmans using an electronic synclavier, sort of an early digital synthesizer. This electronic tool allowed them to change the sequencing of the songs as they wanted; and the synclavier’s programming approximated the final orchestra arrangements. This way, Streisand was able to revise the arrangements before the music was printed for the 64-piece orchestra (an expensive step!).

The orchestra, some of Los Angeles' finest musicians, was assembled for the first time the week of December 13, 1993 at Sony Sound Stage 26 in Los Angeles. They rehearsed with Marvin Hamlisch in the mornings, then Streisand arrived in the afternoons and sang through the show as the Bergmans refined the script. If Barbra or Marvin made any changes at that point, there were music copyists present who would notate the adjustments on the sheet music, which would be redistributed to the musicians.
Another photo of Streisand in her rehearsal clothes, rehearsing the MGM Grand concert

On Tuesday, December 21, Streisand and orchestra performed a run-thru of Act One for an invited audience of friends and associates. After that, the orchestra was excused and the production staff packed up the stage, lighting and sound equipment and put it in a truck bound for Las Vegas.


Much like the opening of a Broadway show, the orchestra and Barbra had to adjust to the real performance space at the MGM Grand on December 27th. The music copyists kept up with the changes, and the TelePrompTer operators kept revising their words as the script was pared down.


Gary Smith and his television crew spent December 28th blocking out the camera angles for the taping of the show and during that process Streisand discovered that some of the cameras blocked the audience’s view. This would be unacceptable to the fans who paid such a high price for seats, so the number of cameras was reduced, especially the big camera crane that would have captured some swooping shots of Streisand on stage.


There was a dress rehearsal of Act One on December 29th. Then, on December 30th Mike Myers joined Streisand for a dress rehearsal of Act Two, including his special appearance as Linda Richman.


Opening night was December 31, and the buzz of the audience in the MGM Grand was tangible. As well-dressed fans made their way through hotel security, Thomas Willer (vice president of marketing over at the Hilton Hotel) remarked, “There hasn’t been an event with this type of demand in years, including the championship fights. What you have here, as far as concerts go, is the unretiring of a superstar. It’s a blockbuster that is good for all of Las Vegas.”

Opening Night

Barbra Streisand responding on stage to a tremendous standing ovation
After a career-spanning musical overture, Streisand walked on stage at the MGM Grand to a tremendous, eight-minute standing ovation from the audience. “It was quite amazing,” Streisand reflected in 1997. “I mean, still a bit frightened … I felt so much love. I wanted to let the love in, and I wanted to give it back.”

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno dubbed fitness and exercise video guru Richard Simmons the show’s New Year’s Eve correspondent for the Streisand concert. “I’ll do live cut-ins for the show,” Simmons explained. “All I own is shorts and tank tops. I called Donna Karan – she’s sending me something nice.” Simmons was a shameless Streisand fan and said that Leno gave him a hard time. “He thinks for a 45-year-old, I’m acting a little eccentric. So to make up for it, he made me the correspondent.”

After a few of Simmons’ funny cut-ins, the Tonight Show broadcast Streisand’s opening number to the people at home who couldn’t be there. Unfortunately, they did not show the entire song.

“During Friday’s opening show in the two-night stand, you could sense a nervousness and hesitation in Streisand’s manner. On Saturday, she was radiant and relaxed, bolstered partly, she explained later, by the far more enthusiastic response from a star-studded crowd …”


… The Los Angeles Times’ review by Robert Hilburn

Mike Myers plays Linda Richman with Barbra Streisand

The audience was quite surprised when Mike Myers appeared as his Saturday Night Live character, Linda Richman, in a skit with Barbra in the second act. Linda, as played by Myers on SNL, was a Long Island housewife with a cable-access talk show in which the topic always tended to be her undying love of Barbra Streisand, who she felt “was like buttah.” In the concert, Richman was invited on stage to join Streisand and they exchanged several Yiddish phrases.


The character of Linda Richman is actually based on Myers' real-life mother-in-law, Linda Ruzan. Ruzan told People magazine, “I said to her, ‘I waited 30 years to meet you, but I’m going to kiss my daughter first.’ And I walked over and hugged and kissed Robin and Mike, just to gain my equilibrium.” Ruzan described Streisand as a “teeny-tiny, skinny white little angel. She kissed and hugged me, and I just thought to myself, ‘Oh, my good God, this is more than I can bear.’”


When Streisand performed in Las Vegas six years later, she incorporated a New Year's Eve countdown with fireworks and singing.  In 1993, however, the show was over before midnight.


At the end of Friday’s show, Barbra joyously yelled, “I did it, I did it, I did it!”


The concert was a triumph for Streisand.  Her What’s Up, Doc? director, Peter Bogdanovich, who saw her in concert in Las Vegas in 1972 also attended the MGM show. “The other one was small, kind of intimate,” he shared. “This was colossal. It signifies what a legendary name Barbra has become over those years.”
Streisand singing ‘People’ at the MGM Grand Hotel.
But she wanted to make some changes before the next night. Streisand and crew held a two-hour rehearsal on Saturday, January 1st, when they adjusted the show even more. 

One number they worked on was “People.” On Friday night it didn’t quite get the reaction from the audience that was expected. It was performed opening night with a plaintive, soft ending with violins (which was dubbed the “Movie” version). 

Larry Olson (for All About Barbra magazine) wrote that the orchestra rehearsed “every conceivable ending for ‘People,’ and that “the written score had alternate endings labelled Broadway, Studio, Movie, and Concert.”

The ending to “People” performed on Saturday night was the one you see on the MGM Grand DVD – the big concert ending.

December 31, 1993 & January 1, 1994
Set List


Act I


  • Overture
  • As If We Never Said Goodbye
  • I'm Still Here/Everybody Says Don't/Don't Rain On My Parade (Medley)
  • Can't Help Lovin' That Man
  • I'll Know (with Marlon Brando)
  • People *
  • Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)
  • Will He Like Me?
  • He Touched Me
  • I'm In The Mood For Love/Speak Low/Guilty (Medley)
  • What Is This Thing Called Love?
  • The Man That Got Away
  • On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)



* different ending on 12/31 show


Act II


  • Entr'acte
  • The Way We Were
  • You Don't Bring Me Flowers
  • Since I Fell For You **
  • Special Appearance with Linda Richman (Mike Myers)
  • Once Upon A Dream/When You Wish Upon A Star/ Someday My Prince Will Come (Medley)
  • Not While I'm Around
  • Ordinary Miracles
  • Evergreen
  • Happy Days Are Here Again
  • My Man
  • For All We Know



** performed at the 12/31 show only. 


The Concert MGM Grand Credits

  • Production Conceived and Directed by: Barbra Streisand
  • Executive Producer: Martin Erlichman & Barbra Streisand
  • Written by: Alan & Marilyn Bergman
  • Musical Direction and Arrangements by: Marvin Hamlisch
  • Production Designer: Marc Brickman & David George
  • Lighting Designer: Marc Brickman 
  • Production Supervisor: Harry Sandler
  • Production Manager: George Packer
  • Technical Director: Michael Weiss
  • Sound Designer: Bruce Jackson
  • Sound Mixer: Chris Carlton
  • All Film Clips Edited by: Tom McQuade
  • ‘Happy Days’ Montage Edited by: Kelly Hommon
  • Voice-Over Narration:
  •  First Doctor: Steven Susskind
  •  Second Doctor: Judith Gordon
  •  Third Doctor: Phil Austin
  • A&R: Jay Landers
  • Assistant to Ms. Streisand: Kim Skalecki
  • Personal Assistant to Ms. Streisand: Renata Buser
  • Hairstylist for Ms. Streisand: Soonie Paik
  • Clothes by: BSDK [Barbra Streisand, Donna Karan]
  • Ticket Coordinator: Shelly Lazar
  • Video Company & Jumbotron: BCC Video
  • Scenic Fabrication: George & Goldberg Associates
  • Music Preparation: Joann Kane Music Service
A ticket to the January 1st 1994 concert
Barbra Streisand wearing off-white suit and skirt in the second act of her concert.
Both nights of the MGM shows were taped for release as a television special. “There was a moment in time we were going to broadcast this show live,” Marty Erlichman told the Hollywood Reporter, “and at that time I explored our options in pay-per-view and cable. I never made a decision and we never committed to it either way. Since then, we have decided to tape the show ourselves. We are doing it. We are going to pay for it ourselves and then make the decision afterward.”  

Although thousands of Barbra Streisand fans made a pilgrimage to Las Vegas to see her sing live for the first time, there were many celebrities who attended the Vegas shows. Here’s a list of who was there:

Jason Gould, Elliott Gould, Roz Kind, Diana Kind, Christine and Jon Peters and Caleigh Peters, Neil Patrick Harris, Sharon Gless, Linda Thompson and David Foster, Quincy Jones, LL Cool J, James Coburn, Richard Baskin, Mel Gibson, Pia Zadora, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw, Sydney Pollack, Michael Feinstein, Peter Bogdanovich, Gareth Wigan and Pat Newcomb, Bella Abzug, Aaron Spelling, Jay Leno, Prince, Richard Simmons, Jason Alexander, Gregory Peck, Shirley MacLaine, Warren Beatty, Michael Jackson, George Hamilton, Peter Weller, Chuck Norris, Andre Agassi, Roger Clinton and Virginia Kelley, Coretta Scott King, Tom and Roseanne Arnold, Michael Douglas, Kathie Lee Gifford and Frank Gifford, Richard Gere and Cindy Crawford, Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger, Robert Wagner and Jill St. John.

Streisand filmed and released two versions of the 1994 concerts ... Live at the Arrowhead Pond (also known as the concert which aired on HBO) is part of a 3-DVD set called Barbra Streisand: The Concerts (left/top thumbnail).

Live at the MGM Grand is a DVD release that was created mostly of footage from the January 1, 1994 concert in Las Vegas (right/bottom thumbnail).
Below is a collection of photos from the MGM Grand shows. Use the pink arrows to navigate through the slideshow.
SOURCES USED FOR THIS PAGE (And Other 1994 Concert pages)

  • “Alan and Marilyn Bergman to Collaborate with Barbra Streisand for New Year’s Concerts in Las Vegas.” Press release by Levine Schneider Public Relations. December 10, 1993.
  • All About Barbra issue no. 37
  • “Babs Tix Reduce Her Fans to Buttah” by Valerie Kellogg. New York Newsday, March 28, 1994.
  • “Backstage With Barbra. Adoration and Acclaim Surprise Superstar” by Robert Hilburn. Los Angeles Times, May 23, 1994.
  • “Barbra Makes a Name for Sony Signatures” by Terri Horak. Billboard, July 9, 1994.
  • “Barbra’s Grand stand gives rise to tour talk” by Army Archerd. Daily Variety, January 3, 1994.
  • “Bruce Jackson, Sonic Guru” by Andrián Pertout. Mixdown Monthly, Issue #71, March 1, 2000. Retrieved December 28, 2019. https://www.pertout.com/Jackson.htm
  • Charlie Rose interview with Marvin Hamlisch. Aired on PBS March 4, 1996. Retrieved online on December 25, 2019. https://charlierose.com/videos/19469
  • “Even Streisand needed this teacher” by Mitch Albom. Detroit Free Press, May 22, 1994.
  • “Her alma matters” by Linda Blackford. Daily News, June 23, 1994.
  • Just Like Buttah newsletter, Issue 3, Winter 1994.
  • Just Like Buttah newsletter, Issue 4, September 1994.
  • “MGM Grand will ring in New Year with Streisand” by Robert Macy, AP. November 4, 1993.
  • My Passion for Design by Barbra Streisand. 2010, Viking Penguin.
  • “Rehearsal Process, The” by Larry Olson. All About Barbra magazine, #37, 1994.
  • “Showtime! Barbra Streisand’s star-studded comeback” by Martin Gould. Star, January 18, 1994.
  • “Simmons ‘on-scene correspondent’ for Streisand concert. Sun News Services, December 12, 1993.
  • Streisand, a Biography by Anne Edwards. 1997, Little, Brown and Company.
  • “Streisand axes PPV plans for MGM concerts” by Barry Layne. The Hollywood Reporter, November 15, 1993.
  • “Streisand concert tickets are snapped up” by AP. November 9, 1993.
  • “Streisand, Ever the Director. She acts. She sings. She helps design her tour clothes.” By Maureen Sajbel. Los Angeles Times, May 19, 1994.
  • “Streisand Gears Up With Her People” by Linda Stasi. New York Daily News, November 21, 1993.
  • “Streisand in Las Vegas: Mostly, Like Buttah” by Robert Hilburn. Los Angeles Times, January 3, 1994.
  • “Streisand Opens American Tour With Optimism” by Stephen Holden. New York Times, May 12, 1994.
  • “Streisand plays to smiling president, Hillary.” Associated Press, May 13, 1994.
  • “Streisand’s Fans Delight in Opening Night in Anaheim” by Anna Cekola and Rick Vanderknyff. Los Angeles Times, June 3, 1994.
  • “Streisand: Relaxed, Playful and a Lot Richer” by Barry Walters. San Francisco Examiner, June 8, 1994.
  • “Streisand: The voice is pure, the concert sterile” by Vicki Jo Radovsky. The Daily Breeze, June 5, 1994.
  • “Streisand to begin tour next month in London” by Robert Hilburn. Los Angeles Times, March 13, 1994.
  • “Streisand tour unites old pals” by Gary Graf. Knight-Ridder/Tribune, May 22, 1994.
  • “The Way She Is” by Richard Zoglin. Time Magazine, May 16, 1994.
  • “Turning Las Vegas Into Babs-ylon” by Robert Hilburn. The Los Angeles Times, December 30, 1993.
  • Vanity Fair, November 1994. “Barbra Streisand: The Way She Is” by Michael Shnayerson.
End / The Concert MGM Grand Hotel 1993-94
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