The Concert New York 1994 Tour

Streisand / LIVE 

The Concert — New York (1994)

1994 Concert Tour

Madison Square Garden
New York, New York

June 20, 23, 26, 28, 30, 1994
July 10, 12, 1994
Streisand on stage at Madison Square Garden, 1994
When the New York Times reviewed Barbra Streisand’s opening night at Madison Square Garden, their headline summed up how New Yorkers felt: “Local Girl Makes Good, Sings.”

She performed seven shows at the Garden, and New York was buzzing with Streisand excitement that summer. The New York Post ran a “Barbra Watch” column in which they detailed her comings and goings in the Big Apple. And on his CBS late night show, David Letterman made getting tickets to Streisand’s concerts an ongoing comic bit. “You know, I hate to complain about the post office,” he said on his June 17th show, “but it’s three days now before Barbra Streisand’s big opening night at Madison Square Garden, and I have still not received my complimentary tickets.” His band leader, Paul Shaffer, chimed in: “Must have gotten lost, must have gotten lost.”

Barbra’s shows at the Garden were historic – and they were recorded by Columbia Records as a 2-CD set that was released in September that year. New York is where Barbra finally “set” the show, too – singing the same set list until she ended the tour in Anaheim on July 24th.

Composer Jule Styne (Funny Girl, Gypsy) was in the audience opening night and told a reporter after the show: “This is beyond excitement. It's realization-plus. I have no doubt she's the greatest singer ever in my lifetime.”

Because the fans were vocal about a lack of ticket availability, Streisand’s team announced on Friday, June 24th that Streisand would perform one more show—July 10th— “for the fans” (tickets went on sale June 26th). “She's crazy about performing in New York,” publicist Ken Sunshine said, “and she wanted to do more for the fans who had been shut out.” 

When the July 10th tickets sold out almost immediately, another show—July 12th—was added.
Barbra Streisand greets the audience in a cream gown at the beginning of her concert series in New York at Madison Square Garden Monday, June 20, 1994.
NY Times headline:

“For New Yorkers, Ms. Streisand is the definitive local girl made good, and the concert offered a chance for fans to simultaneously applaud her and share her success. In the end, she was not just in superb voice, but also gracious while basking in her own fame.”

.... New York Times review by Jon Pareles, June 22, 1994

Streisand mixed up her concert-wear during the New York shows. On opening night, she wore a beautiful cream-colored version of the Las Vegas gown. She wore the same off-white, beaded suit in the second act often. Although, during the second act of the June 26th show, Barbra wore an all-white linen pants suit with an unconstructed jacket. 

She was also spotted wearing Karan’s black, double-skirted dress (seen in her Anaheim video).  

Karan told a funny story about the creation of that outfit. She sent Barbra a sample and Barbra said she loved it. “When I open the top layer, there's a shorter layer underneath.”

“Barbra,” Karan said, “that's two skirts. I wanted you to choose one.”

So they stitched together the skirts, and Karan sold a similar look in her clothing line the next season. 
Streisand wearing the short-long Donna Karen dress.
Three photos of Barbra Streisand's outfits that she wore during her New York shows.
Video Below: On June 28th, Barbra paid a surprise visit to The Late Show with David Letterman. Since Letterman had been nagging about her concert tickets, Streisand strolled out on stage (unannounced!) and handed Letterman a pair of tickets. “I just wanted to tell you to stop kvetching already!” The audience went crazy and Letterman ungratefully gave the tickets away to a woman in the front row.
New York 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
  • Evergreen
  • The Man That Got Away
  • On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)
Act II
  • Entr'acte
  • The Way We Were
  • You Don't Bring Me Flowers
  • Lazy Afternoon
  • Linda Richman skit (with Mike Myers) *
  • Not While I'm Around
  • Ordinary Miracles
  • Yentl Medley
  • Happy Days Are Here Again
  • My Man
  • For All We Know
  • Somewhere

* July 12th only
The Concert Tour Credits

  • Production Conceived and Directed by: Barbra Streisand
  • Executive Producer: Martin Erlichman
  • Written by: Alan & Marilyn Bergman
  • Musical Direction and Arrangements by: Marvin Hamlisch
  • Production Designer: Marc Brickman & David George
  • Lighting Designer: Peter Morse
  • Tour Director & Production Supervisor: Patrick Stansfield
  • 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
Many celebrities attended Barbra's New York shows: Tommy Tune, Jack Nicholson, Anthony Quinn, Donna Karan, Peter Jennings, Barbara Walters, the Bergmans, Carole King, Donald Trump and Marla Maples, Mayor David Dinkins, Jule Styne, Liza Minnelli, Meryl Streep, Sydney Pollack, Harry Belafonte, Diane Sawyer and Mike Nichols, Jesse Jackson, Amy Irving, Lenny Kravitz, Gene Shalit, David Copperfield and Claudia Schiffer, Cy Coleman, Burton Lane, Arthur Laurents, Art Garfunkel, Fran Drescher, and Halle Berry.
It takes a village ... Streisand, crew, and team.
Barbra Streisand holding a microphone on stage.

At some of the New York concerts, Barbra recited a New York-tailored version of her David Letterman-esque Top Ten list, which she used at some of the California concerts.


Barbra prefaced this comic bit by saying, “Since the Top 10 list is the intellectual property of CBS, I’ve decided to do my own top 8 List!”


BARBRA’S TOP 10 LIST OF WHY WE SAVED NEW YORK FOR LAST


8. At the start of the tour in April, I took a number at Zabar’s, I came back when it was called! *


7. In May, I got in a taxi at 30th and Fifth, the driver just found the place! 


6. I love humidity! 


5. We couldn’t park to unload the trucks, because of alternate side, no standing, no sitting, street-cleaning, no stopping, no reclining, bus-stop, school zone, restricted, kosher, every 3rd Tuesday, fat chance parking regulations! 


4. I decided to wait until the Mets were in 1st place! And then I decided to come anyway! 


3. I thought NY needed more excitement than just the Knicks, the Rangers, the Yankees, the Gay Games! 


2. Summer sale at Bloomingdale’s 


1. It’s my HOME!


* Zabar’s was a famous Jewish delicatessen on the Upper West Side
Below:  at the July 12th Show .... This was Barbra's last show in New York. A video of her closing song, “Somewhere,” was simulcast on the giant television screen in Times Square. This moment is preserved on the 2-disc CD – you can hear Barbra say, “Hello Times Square!” Streisand's tour publicist Ken Sunshine explained, “She felt so good coming home, she wanted to make this one last gesture for the people.”
Streisand waves to her New York fans from the stage.

Notes on the New York shows:


  • Like she did in D.C., Streisand wrote a personal check for $25,000 to her alma mater, Erasmus Hall High School.  Sony matched the gift, making a total of a $50,000 donation for musical instruments and equipment. “Music education in the public schools is very much at risk of being eliminated if we are not vigilant,” Streisand said.
  • Mike Myers joined Streisand onstage at the July 12th show. They reprised the Linda Richman skit originally performed in Las Vegas. “Look at you, you are home, girlfriend!” Linda said as she came onstage.
  • Streisand performed with crimped hair June 23, 1994
  • Streisand dined with U.S. U.N. ambassador Madeline Albright on Monday, June 27th.
  • June 30th Show:  A fly found its way onto the stage during Barbra’s opening number, and when she finished the song, she told the audience that it had landed in her water, “Poor little thing, he’s drowning.” The audience shouted out their love, and Barbra told them, “Tonight was supposed to be my last show in New York, but because the audiences here have been so wonderful, I decided to do two more shows.”  Barbra continued the “fly bit” after “Don’t Rain On My Parade,” when she exclaimed, “God, there are a lot of flies here today!”
  • After wrapping up her seven New York concerts, Barbra returned to Anaheim, California, where she performed the last of the 1994 concerts.  Her final concert there was taped as television special for HBO.

The Concert (1994 Tour)

Below are links to Barbra's 1994 concerts.  Click the city/cities you'd like to read more about .....


London – Wembley Arena

April 20, 1994 

April 25, 1994

April 27, 1994

April 29, 1994


Landover, MD – US Air Arena

May 10, 1994

May 12, 1994


Auburn Hills, MI – The Palace of Auburn Hills

May 15, 1994

May 17, 1994

May 19, 1994


Anaheim, CA – Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim

June 2, 1994 

June 4, 1994


San Jose, CA – San Jose Arena

June 7, 1994 

June 9, 1994


  New York, NY – Madison Square Garden

June 20, 1994

June 23, 1994

June 26, 1994

June 28, 1994

June 30, 1994

July 10, 1994

July 12, 1994


Anaheim, CA – Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim

July 18, 1994

July 20, 1994

July 22, 1994

July 24, 1994

NY Times ad for Streisand's June 1994 concerts.
July 10, 1994 concert ticket stub for Barbra Streisand
SOURCES USED FOR THESE 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.
  • Finishing the Hat: Collected Lyrics (1954-1981) with Attendant Comments, Principles, Heresies, Grudges, Whines and Anecdotes by Stephen Sondheim. Alfred A. Knopf, 2010.
  • “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 / 1994 New York MSG Concerts
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