Welcome to a new Wildcard Wednesday! This week, we’re celebrating the great Carol Burnett’s 90th birthday! This star of stage, screen, and television has remarkable credits in every medium, and I’m so happy that she’s lived long enough to see almost the entirety of her classic variety show made commercially available to all her adoring fans… However, to celebrate her now, I thought I’d offer a treat related to her first love (and mine) — musical theatre…

In October 1993, Burnett starred as Joanne in the Long Beach Civic Light Opera’s production of Company (1970), alongside Patrick Cassidy as Bobby, and future revival cast member Veanne Cox as Amy. Although Burnett sang Joanne’s famous “Ladies Who Lunch” number on TV several times and later in the revue Putting It Together, this untracked audio — sourced from a video — features her playing Joanne for the entire show. It’s excellent — a clear display of her extraordinary talent. I offer access to that audio here (and the video from which it’s ripped), for subscribers who comment below to alert me of their private, non-commercial interest. Here’s an excerpt of the video — Burnett leading “The Little Things You Do Together.”

Happy 90th Birthday, Carol Burnett! 

Come back next week for a new Wildcard Wednesday! And stay tuned Tuesday for more Ellen!