"Intro: 1-2-3 Released! (Live)" lyrics - LAURA BENANTI

[Spoken:]
I used to chase my friends around the playground and try to get them to listen to that song. (Audience laughs.) I would. And they would let me get to, "the evening came, he took the stage," and then they were like, "bye!" (Audience laughs.) I was like, "wait, come back! You have to hear the ending!... I'll sing it to myself." And I did. It turned out fine. (Audience laughs.) Guys, this is our last song. (Audience reacts.) I know, this has gone by so quickly. You've been such a lovely audience. Thank you so much for shlapping out in the middle of January. (Audience laughs.) I really appreciate it. So, this last song is from a show called Nine. (Audience cheers.) Thank you! And I had the great honor of being in this show with Antonio Banderas. (Audience applauds.) Not too shabby. I used to kiss him. He was real sweaty. (Audience laughs.) I let him do it anyway. I'm not crazy. Am I? (Audience laughs.) And Jane Krakowski and Mary Stuart Masterson and Chita Rivera. (Audience applauds.) Yeah. Now, growing up loving musical theater, Chita Rivera was like my Mick Jagger, she was my Madonna, or Debbie Gibson, or whatever. She was the person that I would like, try to emulate in the mirror. And she was so unbelievable to me. She really took me under her wing. She would leave her dressing room door open and all of us girls would just come in and eat her candy and sit at her feet and listen to stories about Jerry. Jerome Robbins. Right? But she, she taught me how to bow. I had this really terrible, horrible bow. I would come out in the curtain call and I would be like... (Audience laughs.) And run away. And she was like, "you look insane." (Audience laughs.) "What's going on?" And I told her I was embarrassed, 'cause at that point we're ourselves. And she was like, "you idiot, it's not about you. You're not saying, 'yes, I'm so wonderful,' you're saying, 'thank you for being here.'" And I was like, "oh, I get it." So, she decided that I needed to be in this position for a full three seconds. So, she would stand in the wings, during the curtain call, and she would shout, "one one-thousandth, two one-thousandth, three one-thousandth, released!" (Audience laughs.) She would. She taught me how to bow. So, this next song is called "Unusual Way." (Audience applauds.) And she would stand in the wings every single night with her hand over her heart during that song. And even though I was paying attention to Antonio Banderas, I was paying more attention to her. So, I always dedicate this song to Chita Rivera.