For all the intensity Patti LuPone is known to bring to her stage performances, she exudes an equal amount of joy as well. This was evident in the expanded two-act concert version of her cabaret show Far Away Places at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts this past Friday.

Patti LuPone says she's always considered herself to be a "gypsy" and one who has "wanderlust," so an evening about songs that are set in numerous countries is a perfect fit for her to tell us about her journeys and experiences. She originally premiered the show in the summer of 2012 during the inaugural weeks of the new cabaret spot 54 Below in New York. In this two-act concert version, several songs have been added, expanding it to just under two hours. With a heavy focus on Kurt Weill, the material for the original cabaret piece was eclectic yet still provided a good mix of serious songs, humorous character pieces, and a few show tunes as well. The additional material provides even more chances for her to showcase her voice as well as more evenly balance the heavier Weill songs with more modern ones from Billy Joel, Tom Waits and Leonard Cohen.

"Gypsy in My Soul" was the perfect song to start off the evening as the lyrics expertly set up the theme of wanderlust. Patti's voice soared throughout, with a final note that showed how excellent and clear the acoustics are at the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. "Far Away Places" by Alex Kramer and Joan Whitney, is a joyous yet quiet song that has similar lyrics to "Gypsy in My Soul," but it also moved Patti's journey along with the simple lyrics of far away places that beckon. Patti's understated but direct delivery of the song is a testament to her ability to get the meaning of even a simple, sweet and understated song across. A swinging version of Willie Nelson's "Night Life" provided a springboard for the singer to speak about the fact that "the night life ain't no good life, but it's my life."

A loose yet direct version of Kurt Weill's "Bilbao Song," which Patti sang after speaking about the way New York used to be when Times Square was a little more dirty than it is today, perfectly echoed memories of the past. Weill's "Berlin in Light," an addition for the expanded version of this show, received a rousing treatment, including a period perfect arrangement by musical director Joseph Thalken that perfectly evoked a time and place now long forgotten. Weill's "September Song," which Patti delivered as an encore, received a superlative treatment as did his "Pirate Jenny." "Jenny" was presented in a series of water themed songs that began with a segment of Weill's "Ah, the Sea Is Blue" as well as Johnny Green and Edward Heyman's beautiful and romantic "I Cover the Waterfront" and Sondheim's "By the Sea" from Sweeney Todd. Patti brought a rich, emotional intensity to this group of songs, finding the perfect tone to make them all fit together nicely with her delivery of "Pirate Jenny," the jewel of the sea set suite.

Patti also balanced out the serious material with plenty of humorous patter and several comical numbers. Johnny Mercer's "I Wanna Be Around," which Patti dubbed "the Sicilian national anthem" after mentioning that she has Sicilian blood, provided a nice touch of sarcastic humor, and Bill Burnett and Marguerite Sarlin's "I Regret Everything," which Patti has sung in some of her other shows, was a perfect comic moment after the more serious sea themed set.

Delivered as a pairing in the original one act version of the show, Patti's two "market" songs included the more intense "Black Market" by Frederick Hollander followed by the humorous "Come to the Supermarket in Old Peking" by Cole Porter. While splitting them up and moving "Black Market" to the second act added a nice balance to the show, I much preferred the counterpart these two songs provided when originally paired together.

Other added songs included a rousing performance of Jacques Brel's "Amsterdam" that opened the second act, and expertly-delivered renditions of two Billy Joel songs, "New York State of Mind" and "Vienna." Patti also gave a knock out performance of Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster's "Me and Bobby McGee," letting her inner Janis Joplin out. The short comical number "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)" by Jimmy Kennedy and Nat Simon was followed by a stirring pairing of Tom Waits' "Foreign Affair" and a slowed down "Just a Gigolo" that focused on the lyrics. David Yazbek's "Madrid" from the musical Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, which Patti appeared in, was the one song that didn't quite go over very well, due to it being the only time in the concert that Patti didn't quite enunciate the lyrics, and they got lost underneath the driving arrangement. Fortunately, this was really the only song that didn't land.

The superb yet simply delivered version of Leonard Cohen's "Bird on a Wire" ended the concert, though Patti did deliver three encores. One was her Women on the Verge ... second act solo, "Invisible." Taken out of the context of that not so well received show it actually worked better, letting the listener focus more on the story of the character singing the song and less on the crazy goings on around it. An unmiked "The Song Is Ended (But the Melody Lingers On)" perfectly capped off the show.

The accompanying quintet was led by musical director Joseph Thalken, who also orchestrated much of the material, played piano and supplied backing vocals. The rest of the band included Larry Saltzman on banjo and guitar, Andy Stein on violin and saxophone, Paul Pizzuti on percussion and drums, and Tony Geralis on keyboards and accordion. All five men also performed with LuPone at 54 Below and can be heard on the live recording of that concert that has been commercially released.

Far Away Places was conceived and directed by Scott Wittman, and Patti LuPone is touring this two-act version of the show across the U.S. this spring as well as presenting several other solo concerts of two of her other shows and performing several concerts with her Evita co-star Mandy Patinkin. Information on all future concert dates can be found at www.pattilupone.net.

Patti LuPone's Far Away Places played the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts on Friday March 21st. Information for upcoming concerts at the SCPA can be found at www.scottsdaleperformingarts.org.

--Gil Benbrook

Also see the Current Theatre Season Calendar for Phoenix