At Liza Minnelli Book Event, the Story Onstage Didn’t Match the One in the Book

At a Los Angeles event celebrating the release of her memoir Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!, Liza Minnelli was introduced, repeatedly and reverently, as a living legend. Which she is. But what unfolded onstage was something far more complicated.

The evening began with a level of theatricality that felt almost defiant. It was set inside the Million Dollar Theater, an historic downtown venue where Minnelli’s mother, Judy Garland, once performed in a vaudeville review as part of The Gumm Sisters.

The 2,000-seat theater was at capacity; each $90 ticket included a copy of the memoir.

A full production number — male and female dancers moving through Fosse-esque choreography — gave way to a sequined majorette performing flaming baton tricks in front of a curtain. When it finally parted, Minnelli was revealed seated in a director’s chair, like an icon being unveiled. It was a striking image. It was also, almost immediately,…