The follow-up to 2014's Partners, Barbra Streisand's 2016 studio effort, Encore: Movie Partners Sing Broadway, finds the acclaimed vocalist duetting with high-profile guest singers on a set of well-curated Broadway compositions. The difference this time out is that rather than simply singing the songs, wherever possible Streisand also includes the dialogue that frames the songs in their respective musical productions. The result is an album that straddles the line between a traditional pop album and musical theater recording. Helping to achieve this theatrical balance are Streisand's guests, all of whom can sing, but who, like Alec Baldwin, are primarily known as actors. On that score, Baldwin acquits himself nicely with his usual wry charm on the lightly swinging "The Best Thing That Ever Has Happened to Me" from Road Show. Not surprisingly, the more Broadway-experienced guests here, like Hugh Jackman on "Any Moment" from Smile and Patrick Wilson on "Loving You" from Passion, work both ends of the spectrum from acting to singing with seamless verve. Similarly effective are her duets with Family Guy creator turned classic crooner Seth MacFarlane on "Pure Imagination," and Melissa McCarthy on the buoyantly playful "Anything You Can Do," from Annie Get Your Gun. Particularly impressive is Star Trek's Chris Pine, whose nuanced baritone melds perfectly with Streisand on the yearning medley "I'll Be Seeing You/I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face," from Right This Way and My Fair Lady. It's also fun to hear Streisand play off more than one performer, as she does here with Anne Hathaway and Star Wars' Daisy Ridley on "At the Ballet," from A Chorus Line. Kudos also go to Streisand for choosing the late Anthony Newley for the digitally created duet on "Who Can I Turn To (When Nobody Needs Me)" from The Roar of the Greasepaint - The Smell of the Crowd. Much like her Elvis duet on Partners, her turn with the acclaimed British performer is a highly unexpected one and makes for a gloriously dramatic homage to Broadway in the '60s. ~ Matt Collar
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