Dracula - Review

Noel Coward Theatre, London

*****

Written by Bram Stoker

Adaped and directed by Kip Williams

Cynthia Erivo

To understand why Cynthia Erivo is the Vice President of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, just go and see Dracula. For close to two-hours straight through, Erivo doesn’t just dominate this intriguing production, she creates it, assuming all 23 roles of Bram Stoker’s classic yarn.

Kip Willliams’s take on Dracula sees a fusion of gothic horror with 21st-century technology, as physical, practical theatre is (almost seamlessly) joined to painstakingly crafted pre-filmed videos. As a squad of steadicam operators buzz around Erivo’s live work, a big screen merges the real-time with the recorded, taking the concept of live performance to a newly defined dimension.

The play’s design respects the original’s Victorian origins, with Marg Horwell creating images that ingeniously and subtly shift the action from London to Romania. The repressed sexuality of Stoker’s novel is similarly played out, with Erivo bringing a sensuousness to the characters’ carnal desires, both the mortal and the undead.

The teeth, blood and bite marks are elegantly done in this subtle portrayal of horror, but for all the show’s visual wizardry and Craig Wilkinson's stunning videos, it is Erivo’s acting that is spellbinding. While her Professor Van Helsing, Stoker’s vampire-slayer, may be slightly more Gandalf than is necessary, her interpretations of the traditional characters, alongside her effortless transformations is breathtaking.

Not only is Erivo’s physicality meticulously rehearsed, her vocal reach is sensational. As Jonathan Harker, the London lawyer sent to Transylvania with property deeds for Dracula to sign, Erivo is required to narrate the story’s opening. Listen to Erivo's exquisite Received Pronunciation and there are hints of Richard Burton in her perfectly measured tone and cadence.

A bold move by the show’s creative minds sees Erivo draw on her Nigerian heritage to voice the bloodthirsty Count with a deeply African pronunciation - a refreshing change from the cod-Slavic accent so often deployed. And look out too for some of the projected images of Erivo’s vampires that pay homage to, amongst others, Klaus Kinski and Christopher Lee’s legendary portrayals of the classic monster.

Be in no doubt, this is a story re-worked for our times. Cynthia Erivo drives a stake through the heart of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, defining it as her own.

Runs until 30th May

Photo Credit: Daniel Boud

Wicked For Good - My Thoughts

Finally caught up with Wicked For Good last night. Went in sceptically, came out in adoration.

Firstly, the criticisms:

Not *sure* that the original merited being served up as two full-length feature-film chapters - that being said, the film offers a greater scenic treat than the stage so maybe there is a justification.

Similarly - Stephen Schwartz’s new songs (especially No Place Like Home) feel like padding… there’s not much “Wow” in the new numbers compared to the brilliant original.

Also - TBH the CGI left me unmoved - I don’t need to see Elohaba fly on her broomstick, nor do I crave the sight of a menagerie of liberated beasts… but I’m sure that many others will have thoroughly enjoyed the digital wizardry.

THAT BEING SAID….

The acting (and singing) is off the scale. Both Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande deliver the complex nuances of their roles to perfection - and given that cinema is all about the close-up, their facial work is sensational. One of the best on-screen dramas to be found this year.

Equally the supporting work from Jonathan Bailey (Fiyero), Ethan Slater (Boq) , Marissa Bode (Nessarose) and of course Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard is all delivered with pinpoint accuracy.
And fab to spot so many unsung greats from the pool of UK musical theatre talent, popping up all over the place in various minor roles. 

If you haven’t already seen it - catch it on a big screen somewhere before it streams its way into the global consciousness!

The Color Purple - Review

Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, New York

*****

Book by Marsha Norman

Music & lyrics by Brenda Russell, Allee Willis and Stephen Bray

Directed by John Doyle

Cynthia Erivo

It says much for London's modest but acclaimed Menier Chocolate Factory that their production of The Color Purple, first staged three years ago, has been shipped back to Broadway to a rave reception. John Doyle's simple staging that worked so well in the Menier's cockpit, all stripped-back wood and chairs, has been neatly expanded to fit the Bernard B. Jacobs’ cavernous stage and the transition works well. As in London, there is no fancy gimmickry to this rawest tale of human endeavour - the strengths of Doyle's Color Purple rest entirely upon its cast and of course upon its leading lady, the diminutive English powerhouse that is Cynthia Erivo.

The tale is of the grim life of Erivo's Celie, whose illegitimate children are taken from her in an abused adolescence, who is then "married" to the most brutal of men and yet who goes on to find the most unlikely of redeemers in her love for Shug Avery, a travelling singer with few morals but a heart of gold. 

John Doyle has cleverly envisioned the work. Slavery may have been abolished but civil rights remained a dream. When Celie reveals that her father was lynched, the disclosure is so casual it underlines the ingrained racism of the South. For this British reviewer however, it is sobering to revisit the show on Broadway, amidst an audience significantly comprised of African Americans. There were audible gasps at Celie’s throwaway lynching reference and where, in the UK, we only hear of America's racist troubles in the news and media, in much of the USA today racism remains a strong evil. That #BlackLivesMatter remains a powerful hashtag for the modern era speaks volumes for the troubling timelessness of Marsha Norman's book. 

 With an entirely black cast, the story tells of the love and cruelty that lived within the South's Black community. Yet it is the humour and compassion that shines out from within these characters that makes the show sparkle. Rarely has the term "bittersweet" been so apt.

It says much for Erivo, hitherto unknown on Broadway, that she not only tops the billing alongside accomplished headliner Jennifer Hudson, but that she defines star-quality in a rarely seen display of breathtaking energy and emotion. On stage for almost the entire show, Erivo has the audience rooting for her character.

Hudson captures Avery's bisexual irresistibility perfectly and with a set of pipes to match. And as her scarlet character merges with the blues of her singing, Hudson defines a powerfully passionate purple. 

Whilst Erivo is the diva who’s deservedly crossed the Atlantic, it shouldn’t be forgotten that there was a fine company supporting her at the Menier and to be fair, the same is true here. There's another nod amongst the cast to the powerhouse of London's SE1 theatre-quarter with Kyle Scatliffe, who stunned in the Young Vic's Scottsboro Boys shortly after The Color Purple closed, taking on the role of the hapless Harpo. Danielle Brooks delivers a fearsomely feisty Sofia, whilst Isaiah Johnson’s Mister brings a redemption to his despicable character that is entirely believable. And a mention too for Phoenix Best, Patrice Covington and Rema Webb as the gossipy Church Ladies of Celie’s Georgia community. Amidst the tightest of harmonies and delivered at breakneck speed, they were never less than hilarious. Brava!

There’s talk of a Tony and rightly so. Erivo’s star may have been proudly born in London – but Broadway is sealing its place in the firmament.

Booking until 2nd October

Cynthia Erivo and Oliver Tompsett sing Scott Alan - Deluxe Edition - Review

****

Scott Alan has recently brought out a Deluxe version of the album he released last autumn that featured the paired voices of Cynthia Erivo and Oliver Tompsett. Alan has worked with many of today's musical theatre stars, but with Tompsett and in particular Erivo, there is a muse-like connection between the writer and his performing talent.

So what's new in this Deluxe offering? Aside from the repeated original collection (reviewed here) there are three additional vocal interpretations and charmingly, a full set of "instrumentals only". Of the new stuff, Letting Go Of You is a hallmark Alan ballad, fuelled by experience and voiced by Tompsett who intuitively lends an almost autobiographical voice-over to the number, telling Alan's life through his song.

Erivo adds another solo effort with the profoundly inspirational Don't Give Up - again drawn from the depths of a depressive trough but still, sweetly and amidst the desperation, offering a message of essential hope.

The most revealing addition to the album is the duetting given to Anything Worth Holding Onto, a song long defined by Erivo's interpretation. Here however, with Tompsett delivering those familiar opening lyrics, hearing this scorching number sung by a man place's the song squarely back in Alan's personal domain, opening up another perspective into both the song's singer and its writer. When Erivo accompanies Tompsett she sings in the manner of the song's master (or rather, perhaps, its mistress) stepping back and letting her fellow actor (or in this particular number, maybe even her apprentice) explore the depths of the song's reach.

Perhaps the most charming aspect of the Deluxe version is simply the opportunity to sit back and re-appreciate At All, the song Alan wrote for Erivo in anticipation of her crossing the Atlantic to open in The Color Purple on Broadway. Well the show’s opened now - and the song that so presciently talked about the fame and acclaim that awaited her has been proved correct. As we sit in England and ponder that we might just have lost this Londoner forever, the song takes on a deeper poignancy knowing that Erivo is arrived on Broadway, her star billing more than deserved with the deluge of five-star reviews garnered by the show.

The instrumental tracks are a gift for musical theatre performers, students and fans alike. Alan's songs are popular choices in modern balladry and these recordings open up his work to interpretation, exploration (and quite possibly, dare I say it, well-meaning decimation too) to those who admire his work.

If you love the genre and admire Alan's writing, this Deluxe album will only enhance your collection.


The album is available via the usual channels on Amazon and iTunes.

Cynthia Erivo and Oliver Tompsett sing Scott Alan - Review

****

There’s an eclectic, relaxed charm to this collection of Scott Alan’s songs as performed by Cynthia Erivo and Oliver Tompsett. With Alan having enjoyed a modest UK residency this summer / autumn, there is a natural evolution that has seen this album born out of a collaboration of three people who evidently enjoy and above all complement each other’s talents.

Many people will have seen Alan perform live at London’s various cabaret venues in recent years with both Erivo and Tompsett. Whilst this album doesn’t seek to replicate a gig’s unique intimacy, it offers a glimpse into the warm and informal excellence that defines these particular collaborations. 

With few exceptions it is the whole of this album that makes it distinctive, rather than specific songs. Each track is passionately recorded and carefully mastered but Alan cognoscenti may feel some works have been more finely crafted elsewhere. Erivo’s take on Anything Worth Holding Onto in particular, is “heartbreakingly sublime” on the Greatest Hits Volume 1 album – whereas here it’s simply more peacefully introspective, though still retaining its inherently inspirational message.

Tompsett’s Sail is divine – and whilst all of his work on the album is flawless, this number defines the man's regard for Alan’s work. Singing with Erivo on harmonised numbers that include Warm, You’re Not Alone and Always/Goodnight offers up a surfeit of beautiful balladry. 

Perhaps the album’s biggest treat is a recording of At All, written for Erivo as she takes her first steps as a Broadway leading lady. There's a huge significance to this song for it was in 2013, midway through Erivo’s storming, starring run as Celie in The Color Purple (the production that is now transferring to NY) at London’s modest Menier Chocolate Factory that she first came to Alan’s work. Even after rushed rehearsals Erivo only unlocked Anything Worth Holding Onto as she sat on the O2 stage, in front of thousands, with tears streaming down her face. The friendship that has since evolved between the writer and his muse is a joy to behold – and this number defines the pair’s mutual understanding.

If some suggest the album’s a three way self-indulgence, they’re being cynical. Only this week Alan is on record tweeting: “True artists don’t compete with others, they support.”

This album defines that sentiment, go add it to your collection.

Available to download from 9th October

Photography: Darren Bell

Songs For A New World - Review

St James Theatre, London

****

Music and lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Directed by Adam Lenson

Cynthia Erivo

There is a great deal of debate over how to define a piece like Jason Robert Brown's iconic debut work; 'Songs for a New World'. Some see it as a concept album, a young composer experimenting with snippets from a variety of unfinished or dismissed projects, others see it as a thematic song cycle, a collection of ideas about modernity. But in today’s world where song cycles can all too often be a lazy get-out for a composer looking to stage in his songs in a production that desperately needs a good book, it is refreshing to revisit this finely crafted work in a 20th anniversary staging of the show that truly defined Brown as a master in understanding the human condition. 

The vocal work on display at the St James Theatre is excellent, not least in the performance of Jenna Russell as Woman 2. Russell gives a masterclass in her solo numbers, showing a virtuoso understanding of pacing and pay off. She manoeuvres the comedy of songs such as 'Just One Step' and 'Surabaya Santa' with subtlety and hilarious effect, whilst her 'Stars and Moon' was affable, beautiful and deeply sad all at once. Damian Humbley also impresses and gives some much needed depth to his numbers. He plays the perfect combination of frustration and self-loathing in 'She Cries' and finds the identifiable humanity in the 'The World Was Dancing' that keeps the songs from descending into the unpalatable.

Cynthia Erivo's stunning upper register soars in Woman 1's material, flowing with ease and clarity through the challenging vocal leaps of songs such as 'Christmas Lullaby'. Dean John-Wilson also impresses vocally, tackling the nefariously difficult Man 1 with confidence. His tone and soft notes were delightful, whilst he also showcased his ability to let rip in the show-stopping 'Flying Home'.

Whilst the singing is par excellence, there is a drift in Adam Lenson's direction. All four actors are ever-present on stage, but their presence rarely feels like it adds to the action. Lenson seems content to let his actors leave their hands in their pockets and shrug their way through songs. It does the piece a disservice as there is a definite disconnect between some of the passion and intensity of Brown's score and the accompanying dramatic display on stage.

This production is defined however by Brown's score itself. Even 20 years on, the music has the punch and eclectic elasticity to feel incredibly current. The styles range from swooping love ballad to rhythm and blues and the excitement of Brown's melodic harmonies never ceases to garner a spine-tingling response. It helps that alongside the actors, that Brown's melodies are delivered by a fantastic set of musicians. Daniel A. Weiss' band drives with intensity and suspense, deftly handling the changing styles and emotions of Brown's multifarious score.

Songs For A New World is as exciting to listen to now as it ever was and with this cast it deserves to be seen.

Runs until 8th August

Guest reviewer: Will Clarkson

Photo credit: Darren Bell 

Jason Robert Brown - Live In Concert - Review

Royal Festival Hall, London

****

Jason Robert Brown

Returning to a London concert for one night only, New York composer Jason Robert Brown plus West End guests, performed to an adoring Royal Festival Hall. Opening the gig with the overture from Honeymoon in Vegas, his latest to show to open (and after 3 months, close) on Broadway, there was an air of refreshing even if disarmingly honesty self-deprecation as Brown told his audience that the show was "the latest in a long series of shows you're not going to see over here!”

Musical director Torquil Munro had assembled an impressive orchestra for the evening, though given the venue’s vast expanse, a little more attention needed to have been paid to the sound-mix that occasionally went awry.  In what was to prove an event of two quite distinct halves, the evening’s first section was, for the most part, little more than a simply entertaining line-up. It was post-interval however that Brown’s selection of both singer and song became jewel-encrusted. 

Memorable from act one was wunderkind Eleanor Worthington-Cox’s What It Means To Be A Friend from Brown's paean to teenage angst, 13, whilst Bertie Carvel offered a touching reprise of his Leo Frank from the Donmar Warehouse's 2007 production of Parade of 2007. The highlight of the half however was Laura Pitt-Pulford (who merited a second half re-appearance) re-visiting her Lucille Frank, also from Parade only this time the Southwark Playhouse’s 2011 production. Pitt-Pulford's You Don't Know This Man offered a performance of beautifully measured power alongside quite possibly the best example of acting-through-song of the night.

Act two kicked off with a medley from The Bridges of Madison County, another of Brown's briefly lived Broadway shows - and whilst Caroline Sheen was exquisite as Italian immigrant Francesca, singing opposite both Matt Henry and Sean Palmer, too often the numbers suggested a Gaelic rather than Latin pulse, or maybe that was down to the hall's acoustics too. It took a one-off composition from Brown, Melinda, drawn from a fusion of the music of 1970's New York for the second half to truly ignite. Beautifully channelling a Billy Joel inspired sound, Melinda offered a rare moment to witness Brown's dazzling keyboard skills.

Amy Booth-Steel got the evening’s  The Last Five Years chapter underway with a beautifully nuanced I'm Still Hurting, though it was to be Cynthia Erivo's I Can Do Better Than That that saw this “national treasure in waiting” of musical theatre Festival Hall’s roof clean off!. It was tough on Oliver Tompsett who had to follow Erivo with a thoroughly decent (but by now, completely overshadowed) Moving Too Fast. In a number that was to see her powerfully duet with Brown, Willemijn Verkaik was on fine form with And I Will Follow. 

Whilst Brown's melodies are consistently ingenious, his lyrics vary. The caustic irony he imbued in The Last Five Years and in Parade was a mark of genius that matches Sondheim’s best for its pinpoint, minimalist dissection of the human condition, yet the evening's snatches of The Bridges Of Madison County seemed to lack the perceptive wit of his earlier years.  

Amara Okereke led a Drew McOnie choreographed Brand New You routine from 13, complete with a nearly drilled adolescent NYMT ensemble reprising their West End premiere from some years back, before Brown took the microphone again to encore with a passionate Someone To Fall Back On.

Seeming genuinely taken aback at the blazing warmth of his reception, Brown commented to the crowd who stood as one to salute him, that he "doesn’t see that every day!” Much like fellow American Scott Alan who himself only recently played London, one senses that both New Yorkers feel more appreciated on this side of the pond than back home.

Jason Robert Brown should return here soon, to a more intimate venue and for a (better rehearsed) residency of modest length. His talent as writer, pianist and heavenly-voiced singer too is unquestioned and what is more, London loves him.

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying - Review

Royal Festival Hall, London

****

Music and lyrics by Frank Loesser

Book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock and Willie Gilbert

Directed by Jonathan Butterell

Clarke Peters (l) and Jonathan Groff in rehearsal

There must be something in the Thames as it flows around the bend of Waterloo Bridge that enchants the work of Frank Loesser. Back in the 1980s the National Theatre gave the capital a groundbreaking Guys and Dolls and yesterday, for one night only, Jonathan Butterell directed a sensational production of Loesser’s How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying (almost) next door at the Royal Festival Hall.

It’s been fifty years since How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying last popped up in the West End and Butterell was blessed with a star-studded cast to perform this concert staging. In a story that is occasionally heavy on a complex narrative, the show set in the offices of the World Wide Wicket company takes us on a whirlwind tour of ladder-climbing both literal and metaphorical, as we watch “the rise” of window cleaner J. Pierrepont Finch and his studious devotion to a self-help book on business success. In today’s parlance the show would represent a mash-up of The Office with The Apprentice and all set to show-tunes of a deliciously cheesy improbability. 

Crossing the Atlantic to play Finch, Jonathan Groff is probably best known here for his time on the US TV series Glee. Make no mistake though, Groff has serious stage credentials, with spurs earned both on and off-Broadway and stellar vocals that make Finch the true hero of the piece. It should also be noted that given the very  limited rehearsal time available, his performance oozed a charming confidence that forgave his occasional glances at the script.

Cynthia Erivo and Hannah Waddingham made for Finch’s vibrantly intriguing colleagues. As love interest Rosemary, Erivo brought a warmth and sincerity to her vocals that truly allowed us to understand her desires beyond the office walls whilst Waddingham’s Hedy La Rue brought another aspect of sexual desire to the tale in a role as perfect to listen to as to gaze upon. 

Making a rare and welcome return to a London stage, Clarke Peters’company President J.B Biggley provided a strong backbone to the office set up. Elsewhere Clive Rowe as Trimble was as ever delightful in his fleeting appearances, with Rowe’s soaring vocals lending a massive contribution, not least to the glorious ensemble numbers Company Way and Brotherhood Of Man. In another neat touch, London's Loesser cognoscenti will have noted that both Peters and Rowe include the National’s Guys and Dolls in their biographies

A nod too to Amy Ellen Richardson as Smitty and Anna-Jane Casey’s Miss Jones, who both brought quirk and charm to the office table on top of their stunning stage presence. 

Loesser’s luscious and vibrant score, boasting many forgotten and understated classics, was expertly executed under Mike Dixon conducting the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra. It is a treat to hear a classic score so excitingly pitched and performed at that by a full size orchestra too.

The company’s excellence left one longing for a fully staged return of this charming old show and with such a remarkable array of talent and so finely polished too, Butterell certainly showed how to succeed in musical theatre!


Picture credit: Poppy Carter Portraits at www.poppycarterportraits.com

Harriet Walter : In Conversation about Linda in Death Of A Salesman

Harriet Walter

For my review of the current West End production of Death Of A Salesman, click here 

Rarely has a show moved to the West End at the lightning speed with which the RSC have transferred Death Of A Salesman. Opening in Stratford upon Avon only last month, to rave reviews across the board, Greg Doran's interpretation of the Arthur Miller classic features Antony Sher as Willy Loman, the titular doomed salesman.

It is Harriet Walter however, one of our finest performers and arguably the RSC's leading lady of her generation, who plays opposite Sher as Linda, Loman's long suffering spouse.

Having reviewed the Stratford production, I can confirm that both actors deliver virtuoso performances - with Walter in particular giving a finely tuned display of loving loyalty, made all the more excruciating as she witnesses her family disintegrate before her eyes. Few playwrights have offered such a devastating analysis of the complexities of marriage and maternity as Arthur Miller does with Linda.

The RSC company were completing their rehearsals last week, prior to opening at London's Noel Coward Theatre, when I caught up over lunch with Harriet to learn more about her remarkable interpretation of Linda.  

Scott Alan & Cynthia Erivo: Home Again - Review

St James Studio, London

*****

Coming in the midst of the London Festival of Cabaret, Scott Alan leaves a very distinctive handprint on the genre. Typically contemplative, his songs touch emotions that are common to us all - love and loss, rejection and reflection. It is however in Alan's sharing of his life with his audience, (where his pre-song spiel can often last longer than the song itself) that he re-engineers cabaret. Where earlier in the week this pied-piper of songwriting had assembled a phone-book sized guest list of artists to sing his work, tonight was one of a three-night residency simply featuring Cynthia Erivo alongside the songwriter. 

I have written before of Erivo's handling of some of Alan's most sensitive work and as Broadway beckons, it is plain to see that she is not only one of Alan’s most cherished friends, she is also fast becoming a muse to his creativity.

With one of the strongest yet most perfectly controlled voices of her generation, Erivo brings a polished fragility to Alan’s soulful verse, her take on And There It Is displaying an almost ethereal impishness as her lightly smiling face belied a lyric of complex emotions.

When the pair occasionally duetted, their sensitive counterpoint added a depth. Always, which ended the first half was exquisitely rendered and later it was to be Alan who (surprisingly) delivered the opening lines of Anything Worth Holding Onto before Erivo joined him in a song of remarkable profundity that she has long laid claimed to. 

The act one closer was preceded by a confessional to the microphone of the painful loss Alan still feels for Kyle, an ex-boyfriend now deceased. As Alan sobbed at the microphone, there was a sense of witnessing a man on a high wire, as this gifted composer continues to challenge his demons, though any hint of audience prurience or of performer-sensationalism should be swept aside. Alan continually battles his depression and chooses to do so, at times in public and at a piano. His message to those who criticise his on-stage confessionals was blunt. Knowing that his words have inspired other depressives to choose life, he values that contribution over a critic’s carping. It is impossible to fault the man’s integrity, nor to be inspired by his message.

It wasn’t entirely Alan and Erivo. Oliver Tompsett returned to the St James’ stage with a gorgeously nuanced Kiss The Air, Alan’s paean to his mother left bereft after his father’s abrupt marriage walk-out. Tompsett was also to earn an ovation when he was thrust (by Erivo) into joining her in Never Neverland, a song that was not only out of his range but one that he was also completely unfamiliar with. Tompsett rose to the challenge – and where Alan can often be a Lord of Misrule, subjecting his singers to impromptu set-list changes and additions, it was a treat to see him for once hoist with his own petard, Erivo delightfully calling the shots.

Their sold-out run ends tonight – and if Alan needs anything to hold onto at all it is knowing that whilst Erivo is in New York with The Color Purple, the two of them could pack out 54 Below every Sunday night for a year. Get ready to book your tickets, you read it here first!

Scott Alan :Everything Worth Holding Onto - Review

St James Theatre, London

*****

There was a deliciously different diversity that Scott Alan brought to his one-off gig at the St James Theatre. Entertaining a packed house for an eye-watering (almost) four hours, his guest list ranged from West End stars and TV Reality Show finalists through to audience wannabes.

The New York based singer/songwriter has strong friendships with many of musical theatre’s leading ladies and recent years has seen Cynthia Erivo evolve into a performer who truly gets under the skin of Alan’s writing. With a 3 night Alan & Erivo residency (sold out) about to start at the venue’s smaller Studio room, her inclusion on the bill was an unexpected treat. Erivo set the tone for the evening with her signature Rolls-Royce vocal performance – immense power couched in a silky, elegant style.

An Alan gig is never less than a ballad-fest and Oliver Tompsett, guesting with Darlin’ (Without You), sealed the atmosphere of soulful reflection. It was however to be Madalena Alberto’s take on Blessing, with its verses documenting the pain of Alan coming out to his mother, that brought many to tears. 

In another moment of exquisite soprano serenity, The Phantom Of The Opera's Christine and her cover, Harriet Jones and Emmi Christensson respectively, gave an enchanting interpretation of Always On Your Side. They proved a breathtakingly beautiful pairing, with later on in the evening and also from Phantom, Oliver Savile impressing too.

Anna-Jane Casey offered an accomplished excellence to And There It Is, in yet another performance that spoiled the audience with the riches of talent that Alan is able to invite and it was a precious moment that then saw Sophie Evans, previously one of Lloyd Webber’s Dorothys and a finalist from the BBC’s Over The Rainbow, give a fresh nuance to Look, A Rainbow.  

Newcomer David Albury performed one of the writer’s most popular numbers Never Neverland with an invigorating up-tempo beat – though in a delightful twist Alan was later to invite any audience member who wanted to sing the number, to join him on stage. Reminiscent of kids called up to a pantomime stage, this impromptu people’s chorus made for a moment that was free of all pretension, with some stunning yet to be discovered voices in the routine!

Elsewhere and away from established star names, Alan had unearthed via YouTube Nicola Henderson and Dublin’s Niall O’Halloran, two performers who shone in their brief moment of West End limelight. The Irishman’s Kiss The Air proving particularly powerful.

And there was just so much more to the gig – It speaks volumes for the professional devotion of Eva Noblezada, currently performing Miss Saigon’s Kim 8 times a week, that she could find the honed energy to sing Alan’s Home with a perfectly poised passion. Lucie Jones was shown somewhat less respect in a cheekily foof-fuelled intro from Alan, but her sensational Watch Me Soar more than answered her host’s irreverence.

Teamed with Craig Colton, Zoe Birkett’s The Journey was immense. Carley Stenson wowed with her usual aplomb and in a revelatory performance Danny-Boy Hatchard, aka EastEnders’ Lee Carter took Alan’s Now, a song written amidst the still bleeding wounds of a ripped-apart relationship and stunned the room again.

Alan famously wears his heart on his sleeve, speaking to the audience of his battle with depression and doing much to trample on the stigma associated with mental health. Above all his overarching message and one that many are likely to have found inspirational, is that life is worth holding on to. (Though the frequent references to his evening’s diet comprising white wine and Xanax could have been toned down.) 

Supported on the night by a six-piece band that was all strings and percussion, Musical Director and drummer Ryan Martin delivered a perfectly rehearsed and weighted accompaniment.

As the gig came to a close Erivo returned. Broadway-bound this year as she takes her sensational Celie in The Color Purple to star in New York, when news broke of her casting Alan wrote her a song. At All captured Erivo’s excitement at the achievement of having landed the show’s transfer, yet crossed that emotion with her pain at having to leave her loved ones behind in the UK. Honest lyrics that reduced the singer to tears.

It was left to Sam Bailey to wrap a fine and moving evening with Alan’s cri de coeur, Anything Worth Holding Onto.

Cynthia Erivo - Hear My Soul - Review

Kings Place, London

****

There are few Leading Ladies that have accomplished so much, so young, as Cynthia Erivo. Having starred in a sell out run of The Color Purple and provided the vocal excellence to the most inappropriately named show of 2014, I Can't Sing! (she really Can Sing!) and led a recent national tour of Sister Act, it was only going to be a matter of time before she headlined her own gig. The lofty yet surprisingly intimate Kings Place, tucked behind the back of Kings Cross was packed to hear this most youthful of divas perform Hear My Soul, a collection of songs that she had either written or been inspired by.

There was an attention to detail surrounding the concert that is the hallmark of Erivo's approach to her craft, from her carefully worded programme notes, to the five piece band she'd assembled under Tom Deering's skilled direction. Apart from her encore (of which, more later) Erivo avoided the songs from her big career shows to date, opening the show with Signal, one of several of her own compositions that were to feature amongst her set list. Smoothly segueing into a charming cover of All of Me, the honey-voiced chanteuse sang the John Legend hit with her boyfriend Dean John Wilson in a duet that was as touchingly delivered as it was perfectly pitched.

Labrinth's Jealous saw Erivo purr like the engine of a Rolls. Her rarely heard (and incredible) lower range giving the song the velvety texture it deserved. Another self-written number, Fly Before You Fall which also serves as the title track to the movie Beyond The Lights, proved to be the most beautifully crafted of her compositions and gave the most poignant depth to the evening’s first half, though the highspot of the pre-interval set was unquestionably the spine tingling fidelity that Erivo beautifully laid upon Dreamgirls' One Night Only.

Having opened the evening in a gorgeously tailored trouser outfit, Erivo returned for act two in a subtle yet sensationally fitted red gown. Commencing the second with Whitney Houston's I Wanna Dance With Somebody gave the evening's only blip, with Erivo surprisingly rooted to her microphone stand, as her line-up briefly resembled a wedding-reception covers band. The song demands movement (the secret's in the title) and a big Whitney dance number needed big dance and Erivo needed (and to be fair deserved) some better direction from her producer.

No matter, for next up and staying with Whitney's family, was a sensational take on Aretha Franklin's Ain't No Way. The crowd went wild for the diminutive songstress and as Erivo moved up through the gears, her home straight was a succession of classic songs smashed right out of the park. Arlen and Harburg's Over The Rainbow, a song that can easily be mauled in clumsy hands, was given the most perfectly fragile confection of excellence, whilst Somewhere from West Side Story offered Erivo a rare moment of self-indulgence, telling her audience that this was to be the first time she had ever sung the song live and then, only because she loved it and would quite possibly never be cast to perform it.

Somewhere was, of course, flawless before Erivo returned to Dreamgirls for a knockout And I Am Telling You. Overcome by the power of the song and the audience reaction that she was inspiring, the singer had to pause before delivering the song's monumental final bars. Erivo suggests the power and majesty of a youthful Diana Ross. It really is quite simple - Dreamgirls has to come to the West End and when it does, Cynthia Erivo's Effie needs to top the bill.

The cheering, standing ovation led into an encore that could only have been a sensational delivery of I'm Here from The Color Purple, a show that barely two years ago had imprinted Erivo's name onto the capital's theatre-going psyche (and if there was any justice, so should have deserved its own cast recording too!)

As she re-lived that most passionate and beautiful of songs, spines tingled again. Igniting musical theatre Cynthia Erivo is one of her generation's greats and truly is the brightest of rising stars.

You can see Cynthia Erivo performing, live with Scott Alan, at London's St James Studio from 4th - 6th May 2015

Scott Alan Greatest Hits Volume One - Review

****

In the run-up to Thanksgiving and Christmas, Scott Alan has released Volume One of his Greatest Hits. Whether you are a newcomer to the work of this talented New Yorker or a devoted fan, there is something for everyone in this 19 track pot-pourri, including a heartfelt couples of pages of liner notes from none other than our very own uber-critic Mark Shenton, a close friend of the composer.

Such is Alan’s respect amongst the performing community, that as with his live gigs, the cream of both Broadway and the West End are credited on the album. He includes a coven of former trans-Atlantic  Elphaba’s  (I counted five but am happy to be corrected) – and indeed it was Kerry Ellis singing Never Neverland (Fly Away) at London’s Pheasantry a couple of years ago that introduced me to Alan’s work. This time round it is Stephanie J. Block who gorgeously frames this paean to childhood, whilst Ellis’ Behind These Walls proves again why she is one of the UK’s leading musical theatre leading ladies.

Several tracks are a nod to Alan’s stage musical Home, that a London audience was treated to a full chamber performance of last year. Shoshana Bean’s take on the title number Home is as gorgeous a performance as you will ever hear from this woman, whilst Liz Callaway’s Goodnight perfectly captures the tragic poignancy of the show’s endgame. Other treats amongst the tracks are Willemijn Verkaik’s magnificent Watch Me Soar, whilst Brit boys Hadley Fraser, Oliver Tompsett and Stuart Matthew Price also make listening to the album a joy.

Within this set of Greatest Hits is perhaps one of the greatest recordings of recent years with Alan being never bettered than when he writes from experience. Inspirational in his publicly declared battles with depression, his Anything Worth Holding To, sung here by Cynthia Erivo, probably the UK’s brightest emerging musical theatre star and in a version arranged by Ryan Martin, is just heartbreakingly sublime.

To be fair, there is much upbeat fun recorded too. Eden Espinosa’s I’m a Star is a witty look at today’s oft-seen desperation for fame, with Espinosa giving just the right amount of punch to Alan’s pithy perceptions. 

The album makes for either an ideal gift or a personal treat and with Alan having re-arranged and orchestrated many of his numbers anew and with all pre-existing recordings being re-engineered for the occasion, this collection is much more than a cynical bundling of work to stack the aisles and the download servers ahead of the festive season. Go buy Scott Alan's Greatest Hits. The album may make you laugh and cry. It will certainly make you smile and think.

Available from Amazon and iTunes

My Lifelong Love – An Evening with Georgia Stitt and Friends - Review

Garrick Theatre, London

*****

Georgia Stitt

Take one gifted composer, six sensational solo artists and five fine musicians. Place them on a practically empty stage and let the music do the rest. This was exactly what happened at the Garrick this week when America songwriter Georgia Stitt, for one night only, made her West End debut. 

In a cleverly arranged evening, act one comprised eleven solo numbers, with the second half a selection of songs for multiple voices. Impressive amongst the men were Jamie Muscato whose The Light Of The World was both powerful and moving. Norman Bowman joined Muscato to perform She, possibly one of the most stunning contemporary male duets written, with Bowman’s rendition of Sonnet XXIX making an excellent close to Act 1. A credit to both him and Stitt for taking some of Shakespeare’s most beautiful prose and so delicately fitting the words to music. Stitt’s confession that, having grown up in Memphis her style has been significantly influenced by the Blues, was more than evident in Simon Bailey’s incredibly cool performance of At This Turn In The Road Again, a song (along with many others) in which AJ Brinkman’s work on bass was a treat to listen to. 

Notwithstanding the testosterone-fuelled talent on stage, it was the vocal acrobatics from Stitt’s three (leading) ladies that carried the evening’s killer punch. Their talents were never bettered than when Eva Noblezada, Caroline Sheen and Cynthia Erivo combined in an electric three-part harmony for Before I Lose My Mind. Sheen is a masterclass in herself in her, notably in her powerful The Baby Song, ingeniously fooling the audience with a comedic opening, only to end in tragedy. Erivo’s velvet voice quickly evolved into the trademark musical theatre power house, especially in Stitt’s hauntingly complex number The Wanting Of You. Finally, London newcomer and Miss Saigon star Noblezada displayed innocence and vulnerability combined with her faultless vocals in Almost Everything I Need. 

Such a strong company needed no more set than the stark frame of The Garrick’s current production The Scottsboro Boys and it’s only a shame that gigs and material as good as this aren’t heard live more frequently. Let’s hope that Georgia Stitt won’t keep us waiting too long for her UK return.

Dessa Rose - Review

Trafalgar Studios, London

****

Book and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens
Music by Stephen Flaherty.
Based upon the book by Sherley Anne Williams 
Directed by Andrew Keates

Cassidy Janson and Cynthia Erivo

The last twenty twenty years or so have seen the troubled racist history of America’s Deep South prove fertile ground for musical theatre with Jason Robert Brown’s Parade and Kander and Ebb’s Scottsboro Boys, both based around actual events, recently playing to London audiences. Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty’s Dessa Rose tackles the USA’s grim domestic history with a fictional tale of hope and inspiration set amongst the harshest of times in the Antebellum South when black enslavement was the norm. The story follows two young women, Dessa Rose a rebellious slave and Ruth a white farmer’s wife. Abandoned by her husband, Ruth, extraordinarily for her time, forms a compassionate bond with a group of escaped slaves, who establish a community on her farmland, under her benign acceptance.

In the oppressive confines of the Trafalgar’s Studio 2 andrew Keates has fashioned an impressive representation of these desperately cruel years. Chains hang from the roof, whilst the simplest of props suggest the Hot Box, or cramped miniscule solitary chamber to which slaves would be confined by their owners as punishment for misdemeanours. Clever movement and an inspired use of percussion, suggest both time and culture.

Keates is helped immeasurably by having some of London’s finest performing talent to work with. Cynthia Erivo whose Celie in 2013’s The Color Purple was one of the year’s theatrical highlights, plays Dessa Rose. Erivo’s presence on stage is at all times compelling and often electrifying. She acts with her voice, her body and intriguingly, with her eyes. At once the righteously vengeful slave, the grieving lover and a young mother, one wants to cheer and weep for her Dessa. Erivo closes the first act with Twelve Children a song about her character's siblings who had all met tragic fates and a number that is one of Ahrens and Flaherty’s most poignant. Erivo only understands “exceptional” as a work ethic and she remains one of the most exciting faces to have emerged in recent years.

Cassidy Janson’s Ruth is another display of excellence. Her laconic Southern Belle is a complex character, mastering rejection, desire and maternal care in a carefully crafted work. Elsewhere, Sharon Benson’s White Milk and Red Blood is a moment of spine-tingling tenderness, whilst Edward Baruwa’s Nathan, a slave ultimately to become Ruth’s lover, achieves a perfect mix of wry comedy with melodrama. Mopping up a number of roles, John Addison particularly convinces as a Sheriff and a slave trader, often recalling the gritty ugliness of the time that Quentin Tarantino captured in his movie Django Unchained. Fela Lufadeju also compels with gorgeous voice and movement as Dessa’s doomed lover Kaine.

Whilst many of the songs have pace and a distinct Southern influence on their melodies, as can be the case with Ahrens and Flaherty mediocrity occasionally creeps into their composition and their lyrics can seem blunt when compared to Brown or to Kander and Ebb. It is of course a tall order to tackle any such horrific scenario through the medium of song and dance and credit to Ahrens and Flaherty for such a powerful and imaginative work but nonetheless, their writers’ scalpel needs whetting.

Dessa Rose’s story is moving and under Dean Austin’s baton the music is free flowing. The acting is outstanding and Andrew Keates has again assembled one of the finest companies around. A compelling production, not to be missed.


Runs until 30th August 2014

Scott Alan

Hippodrome, London

*****

Scott Alan accompanies Cynthia Erivo

Straight off the plane from New York, Scott Alan pitched up at London's Hippodrome for a week's late night residency. The composer truly has a remarkable draw as like the Pied Piper he attracts talent from across the capital's music theatre scene to perform with him. Alan last played London in August 2013, packing out the Indigo O2 arena in a memorable evening that set a very high bar. At the Hippodrome, accompanied again by a crop of the West End's young and finest, Alan smashed expectations with a collection of performances that defined excellence.

There was much patter from the man at the piano. Unburdening himself to his audience and very much at home, preferring London as his favourite city to perform him, much of his banter was a disarmingly honest account of his struggles with his sexuality and of being rejected at home and bullied at high school. The family ties are healed now, but Alan's words tell of painful domestic dysfunctionality as well as his continuing and inspirational battle with depression. The self-deprecating humour flowed and where his guests could be affectionately mocked, Alan showed no mercy. But the underlying spirit of the event was a glorious triumph of the human spirit, interspersed with some wonderful songs and sung by some of the best voices in town.

Alan opened the proceedings with Nothing Remains from his latest album. Whilst his guests were to deliver vocal excellence, what Alan brings to the mic is an, at times, uncomfortably raw honesty and his ballad set a reflective tone. Next up though was Danielle Steers hot-footing it from The Bodyguard. Her energy and powerful mezzo delivery was a revelation and as she perfectly held the strongest notes for what seemed an eternity, Steers defined the hallmark of the evening's quality.

Sprinkled throughout the gig were talent-show winners, whose YouTube submissions had been judged by Alan with a lucky few invited to perform through the week. All showed enthusiastic promise, with Kara Bayer in particular having a fidelity that came dangerously close to matching the professional talent sandwiching the amateurs. 

Rob Houchen, fresh from his Marius obligations around the corner in Les Mis gave a beautifully invigorating take on Kiss The Air. Danielle Hope took to the stage with a delightful recollection of how the song Always is a personal inspiration to her, her intro summing up the essence of the night: well crafted numbers that mean so much to so many. Her singing was of course sublime.

Dean John Wilson electrified the crowd singing Home in a performance of soaring bravura, whilst partner Cynthia Erivo gave the sweetest interpretation of And There It Is in a number that defined the intimacy of both the song and the occasion.

A nod to the final two numbers that Alan himself sung. Blessing threw into relief the searing pain he felt at his mother's initial reaction to his coming out. Again, Alan’s disarming honesty at the microphone giving the song a powerful poignancy. The evening’s penultimate number Anything Worth Holding On To proving an emotional Everest for Alan to conquer,

Erivo was to return with an unexpected encore. Alan spontaneously decided he wanted the gig to end on a high and asked the singer to reprise her O2 triumph, High, a brilliant satire sung by and about a weed-stoned teenager, with no notice. Erivo graciously agreed and her hilarious performance proved a masterclass in acting through song, made all the more remarkable given that she hadn’t rehearsed the number for at least 8 months!

With a selection of stellar names guesting through the week, intimate performance does not get better than this. For fans, both of Alan and the modern cabaret genre, this residency is unmissable.

Scott Alan performs until 16th May as part of the London Festival of Cabaret

Anything Worth Holding On To - Scott Alan - CD Review

****

Music and lyrics by Scott Alan

Produced by Paul Vazquez and Scott Alan

Many artists seek to bare their souls in their work and it can often be a journey of self-discovery or confession that leads to the recording of an album or the creation of a work of art. But whilst many creative individuals sincerely try to open their hearts, few bring the level of measured brilliance to their work that Scott Alan displays in his album released this week, Anything Worth Holding On To. Alan’s liner notes talk of the songs coming from difficult periods of his life and in having been so open and on the record about his battles with depression, the glimpse into his emotions that the album gives is both profound and moving.

There is an intimacy to the start of most tracks that lay down either the sound of breaking waves or gentle rainfall. Opening with the plaintive Nothing Remains, Alan gives us the sound of seagulls and footsteps along a shore easing into a song that suggests a bleak sense of loneliness and despair, yet also expresses a hope for a future fulfilling love. As with (nearly) all the tracks, Alan sings his words alone, though on this number Oliver Tompsett and David Hunter providing an ethereal backing harmony.

Take Me Away is a beautiful track expressing the hope of a man weighed down in depression to again soar in the sky and climb a mountain peak. Jessie Vargas arrangement of Chris Delis’ exquisite guitar work encapsulates what this album is all about, the importance of looking up and holding on to a visionary dream.

The title track is a stunning song. Alan scored Anything Worth Holding On To, a song that he is particularly proud of, from the darkest pain of depression. I first heard it sung by a sobbing Cynthia Erivo live in London last year and was intrigued as to how Alan himself would deliver the number. Handing over the piano responsibilities (for this track only) to Logan Culwell, Alan re-immerses himself in his song’s intensity and his take on the song delivers up a shocking honesty about his experience that shines out from the recording. It is humbling to listen to this track.

Shoshana Bean joins Alan as the album’s only featured artist, on I’m In Pain, a song that speaks of the desperation of his suffering. Bean’s contribution to the recording gives it a strangely everyman feel, making the singer’s pain recognisable to so many. This number also has no rainfall intro, rather it ominously fades to the muffled sound of thunder.

Bonus tracks include an instrumental take on Anything Worth Holding On To and a live recording of Nothing More, taken during a London gig in 2009. 

Alan's words are sometimes painful to hear, though throughout the album is imbued with well crafted harmonies. Returning to the liner notes, Alan writes that he hopes his words and music will motivate the listener to “pick yourself up when life is keeping you down”. His is a motive that is noble and altruistic. Scott Alan has known the darkest of times and in Anything Worth Holding On To he bravely seeks to shine a beacon in that darkness, not just for himself but others too. This is an inspirational album and a beautiful collection of songs.

Available from May 6 on Amazon and iTunes