Patti LuPone Says Nicole Scherzinger ‘Broke My Heart’ with ‘Unbelievable’ Performance in Broadway’s Sunset Blvd

Broadway newcomer Nicole Scherzinger has earned the praise of one of the stage’s greatest stars of all time: Patti LuPone.

The legendary actress saw Scherzinger’s run in director Jamie Lloyd’s acclaimed revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Blvd. And in a voice message to NY1’s Frank DiLella shared to his social media account on Thursday, Dec. 12, LuPone gave Scherzinger rave reviews.

“I thought Nicole was unbelievable. She broke my heart,” the Agatha All Along actress said. “She is a force.”

Scherzinger plays faded silent movie star Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard. The show, adapted for the stage by book writers and lyricists Don Black and Christopher Hampton, follows Desmond as she hires young screenwriter Joe Gillis (actor Tom Francis) to help her stage a comeback to the silver screen after Hollywood deems her too old for the industry.

“Nicole and Tom were stunning,” LuPone also said. “I thought the cast was fantastic.”

LuPone’s kind words are especially important considering she originated the role of Norma in the musical adaptation of Billy Wilder’s Oscar-winning 1950 film of the same name back in July 1993, when it premiered at London’s Adelphi Theatre. But when the production moved to Broadway in November 1994, LuPone was replaced by Glenn Close, who had been playing the role in a Los Angeles tryout.

The move was one of the biggest controversies in musical theater history and spurred a decades-long feud between LuPone and Lloyd Webber.

As LuPone wrote in her 2010 memoir, she was furious when she heard the news, reading it in Liz Smith’s gossip column while backstage in London. “I took batting practice in my dressing room with a floor lamp,” LuPone recalled. “I swung at everything in sight — mirrors, wig stands, makeup, wardrobe, furniture, everything. Then I heaved the lamp out the second-floor window.”

Eventually, LuPone sued Lloyd Webber, receiving a reported $1 million settlement and using the money to build at her home what she dubbed “The Andrew Lloyd Webber Memorial Pool.”

With all that in mind, one might imagine that LuPone would have some strong feelings about seeing the show. But she insisted to DiLella that when she saw the musical on Wednesday, Dec. 11, her “trepidation” had to do with her “strong feelings about the show — not with what happened to me in the show, but the show.”

But Lloyd’s bold and inventive revival — which features video projections of live footage captured by steadicams on stage — enchanted LuPone.

“I love this production,” she said. “The lighting. The use of the filming was something that I questioned because I don’t know where I am — am I at a movie or am I at the theater? This worked brilliantly.”

“The whole thing, the whole thing,” LuPone said. “I was energized when I left the theater. I loved it.”

Sunset Blvd. also stars David Thaxton as ‘Max von Mayerling’ and Grace Hodgett Young as ‘Betty Schaefer.’

The full company includes Hannah Yun Chamberlain as ‘Young Norma,’ Olivia Lacie Andrews as ‘Nancy,’ Brandon Mel Borkowsky as ‘John,’ Shavey Brown as ‘DeMille/Stan/Finance Man,’ Cydney Clark as ‘Joanna/Guard,’ Raúl Contreras as ‘Finance Man/Frank,’ Tyler Davis as ‘Sheldrake,’ E.J. Hamilton as ‘Lisa,’ Sydney Jones as ‘Dorothy,’ Emma Lloyd as ‘Mary/Heather,’ Pierre Marais as ‘Sammy,’ Shayna McPherson as ‘Camera Operator,’ Jimin Moon as ‘Morino/Hog Eye,’ Justice Moore as ‘Jean,’ Drew Redington as ‘Myron/Jones/Camera Operator’ and Diego Andres Rodriguez as ‘Artie.’

Mandy Gonzalez plays Desmond at certain performances, while Caroline Bowman is the standby for the role.

Swings for the production are Giuseppe Bausilio (dance captain), Kristina Garvida Doucette (assistant dance captain), Brandon LaVar, Maggie Likcani, Abby Matsusaka and Rixey Terry.

Tickets for Sunset Boulevard are now on sale.