I’d be lying if I said I haven’t been salivating at seeing the new musical War Paint, which is based on the PBS documentary The Powder and the Glory celebrating makeup moguls and life-long rivals Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubenstein, as soon as the Goodman announced it as part of their trademark eclectic season.

Not only did it reunite the team that made the brilliant Grey Gardens musical, it’s a new musical about powerful women, starring powerful women – a sadly rare thing in an age overrun with stage-to-screen adaptations and jukebox musicals catered to the tourist crowd.

And what a power duo we have: Celebrated stage icons Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole have decades of musical experience matched with iconic starring roles under the belt. Most intoxicatingly, each actress has a style and technique completely idiosyncratic from another. LuPone is the compact belter who wears her emotions on her (beautifully adorned by costumer Catherine Zuber) sleeve, and Ebersole is the eternally poised soprano with a dry, cracking wit. Each alone would be worth the ticket price, but together, it’s surprising the Goodman’s stage is still intact (the show was been extended through August 21). Read the full review on The Huffington Post