Barbra Streisand and Norah Jones also showcase their impeccable vocals on the Sunday's Academy Awards night.
- Feb 25, 2013
AceShowbiz - On Sunday, February 24 at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, the Academy Awards proved once more that no other show can amass so many talented stars as only the Oscars can. For the first time ever as mentioned by host Seth MacFarlane during his opening monologue, the 85th Academy Awards came with a theme, honoring musical movies that saw a resurgence in the past decade or so.
"Chicago" star Catherine Zeta-Jones kicked off the special Oscars tribute with an electrifying performance of "All That Jazz". The 43-year-old actress looked as svelte as ever among a complete ensemble of dancers, looking no different from how she appeared in the musical movie a decade ago, for which she won an Oscar Best Supporting Actress award.
In contrast, Jennifer Hudson, who took the stage after Zeta-Jones, single-handedly performed an all-out rendition of Jennifer Holliday's "And I Am Telling You" from "Dreamgirls". Her version of the song became her breakthrough in the music industry, changing her title from "American Idol" alum to Oscar winner, after she bagged the Best Supporting Actress trophy for her role in that movie back in 2006.
Of course, the tribute would not be complete without the "Les Miserables" cast headed by Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Anne Hathaway. They sang a medley of songs from the Oscar nominated musical movie, up for Best Picture that night.
Other stellar performances came from "Ted" theme song singer Norah Jones who sang the Best Original Song nominee "Everybody Needs a Best Friend". Most poignant was the in memoriam montage who honored the artists who passed away last year, which the legendary Barbra Streisand led with her classic "The Way We Were".
Norah Jones - "Everybody Needs a Best Friend" ("Ted" theme song):
Catherine Zeta-Jones ("All That Jazz"), Jennifer Hudson ("And I Am Telling You") and "Les Miserables" cast:
Barbra Streisand - "The Way We Were" (in memoriam tribute):
