Wednesday, 20 April 2016

Funny Girl, Savoy Theatre | Review

I didn't properly comprehend that I was seeing Funny Girl until I was sat in the theatre. Funny Girl is such a pinnacle of Musical Theatre for me, I grew up watching Barbra Streisand perform the iconic role my whole childhood so it felt like a dream finally seeing Mr Arnstein, Fanny and the Ziegfeld girls in real life... well real life on stage but you know what I mean!

Since the revival came about I had heard nothing but good things about the whole show and Sheridan Smith's portrayal of the Brooklyn born Fanny Brice, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little skeptical. All my doubts flew away when Ms Smith stepped on stage though. There was a connection between Fanny and the audience from the get-go which made the transition of Fanny from a hoofer to a comic star and her dramatic love affair with Nick Arnstein that much more touching.

Sheridan put her own unique spin on the whole role, shying away from Streisand's original portrayal and really creating a whole new character. Her comedic timing was spot on and something I really enjoyed was the way Sheridan made songs seem more personal. 'People' for example. Instead of being a huge belt number, Sheridan shied away from that and made it more of a statement about the loneliness her character was feeling and even 'Don't Rain on my Parade' was more personal. I don't know how Ms Smith does it but it just felt magical.

I saw the show whilst it was still in previews so I am hoping to go back once its officially open (which is tonight if you're reading this the day of upload!) If you want to see magic created on stage then please go to this show. From the old vaudeville feel at the start to the vast emotions felt on stage, there's something in this show for everyone and you'd be silly to miss your chance to see such an iconic show on stage! Also a final comment: I cried as soon as I came out of the theatre so if that doesn't tell you how good it was then I don't know what will!?

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Sunday, 3 April 2016

Samantha Barks, St. James Studio | Review

It has been 20 hours since Samantha Barks stepped on the St. James Studio stage and I am still buzzing. I have been a fan of Sam since she was first on 'I'd Do Anything' and since then I have followed her career and been lucky enough to see her perform several times but this was a very different experience to anything else I've watched Samantha in previously.

The reason for the concert was to give us all a taster of Samantha's upcoming album and supporting tour so there was a very excited atmosphere in the intimate St James Studio. Samantha opened the show with a stunning rendition of Disney's 'Go The Distance' and immediately showed off her vocal range. Samantha has such a brilliant personality that you can't help but feel like you're listening to a friend so when we all laughed at Sam's funny comments and anecdotes (including a hilarious one about being made into a meme) it was like a big group of friends laughing together which was really lovely. Especially in the small venue; there was a connection from the get go. The first half of the concert included so many wonderful songs such as a cover of "Blackbird", a jazzy version of "As Long As He Needs Me", "Stay" from Amelie and of course some original songs including "Hard To Find" which I am already obsessed with, I'm even more excited for the album now I've had a taste of what its like!

The whole first half flew by and during the interval we were all just awestruck at Samantha's voice, you could sense the thrill and excitement in the room so when Miss Barks came on stage for act two we were all buzzing for what was to come. Of course Sam didn't disappoint, the second half again included some originals and covers, my personal favourites were a sultry cover of "Summertime" and a beautiful cover of one of my favourite songs: "If I Die Young". The second act again went ridiculously fast but it finished with a bang! Samantha sung a reimagined version of "On My Own" and it was truly breathtaking.

Overall I had the most glorious night, made amazing by the fantastic friends and people I met there and of course by Samantha's flawless technique, stage presence and personality. The only negative of the night was that I wish it had been longer... I mean, Sam could sing for four hours and it still wouldn't be enough! I guess that's what albums are for though, to listen to over and over and over!!

If this preview was anything to go by, the tour and album are going to be astounding so I urge you, not only to pre-order the album but find a tour date you can go to and witness Samantha's brilliance in person, I one billion percent promise you, you won't be disappointed... and if you are then I will never see a musical again (and that's saying something!) Samantha is truly a force to be reckoned with and I am so thrilled and excited for everything Samantha is going to do in the near future. I'm so proud of Sam, and I will continue to support her in whatever she does, and I hope you do too!

Samantha's album available June 10th can be pre-ordered here

Tickets for Samantha's tour can be booked here
Also my lovely friend Hayley posted her thought on the concert which you can read here

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Saturday, 27 February 2016

Tori Kelly, O2 Academy Brixton | Review

So this blog post has really been four years in the making. After years of being a fan but never being able to go to a concert for various reasons, yesterday it finally happened, I got to witness the incredible Tori Kelly in action and I don't think I'll ever get over how amazing it was.

To set the scene, the crowd was already buzzing from Samm Henshaw's amazing opening act when Tori came onto the huge stage of the Brixton Academy, and that buzz stayed from the moment the queen stepped on stage to the moment we left the theatre. Tori's voice filled the whole place and her flawless technique and stage presence made me unable to take my eyes off of her. Everything seemed so natural, from the way Ms Kelly moved around the stage, to the way she used her pauses between songs to relish in the moment.

The set list for this concert was absolute perfection, with Tori belting nearly every song from her album, plus some of her older songs, such as the fan favourite 'Dear No One' and a brilliant cover medley, featuring PYT (with THAT riff of dreams included!) Tori hit every note with ease and her vocal ability and prowess was shown numerous times, with unblemished riffs, sultry low notes and etherial high notes.

I think its always been Tori's realness that has made people fall for her and that was truly the case last night. Tori somehow managed to make a huge venue feel intimate and managed to connect with everyone in the audience as if she were only singing to them. Not only that, but the whole concert felt like a party with friends, everyone there had a common love, admiration and support for Tori so for me at least, it really felt like we were just proud to be watching someone we love on stage. You could really see how happy Tori was on stage and that happiness really translated to the audience.

The thing which baffles me about this curly-haired beauty, is how she can be both angelic with her R&B vibes but also have such swagger that if she started rapping it would be completely normal and no one would bat an eyelash. This is just testament to how talented Tori is, and I hope she gets every success in the future, because that talent, kindness and humble personality, deserves incredible things (just like it deserved the Grammy that was robbed from it...! In my opinion at least!)

If you ever get the chance to see Tori in concert, please take it! I guarantee you'll leave feeling uplifted and in awe. One day it would be amazing if I could work with Tori and maybe sometime I will (it's on my bucket list to sing with her so fingers crossed!) But whether I get to or not, Tori has truly influenced my life and I'm so appreciative that she is there to be somebody for me to look up to and aspire to.

"Don't quit your daydream"

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Monday, 1 February 2016

Lucie Jones, Waterloo East | Review

The Waterloo East theatre was host to an incredible one night only cabaret from Lucie Jones last night and I'm sorry to rub it in your faces but you missed an epic night if you weren't there!

Lucie entered the stage in a sparkling silver dress and immediately belted out the Annie classic, Tomorrow, wowing the crowd from the get go.

After a number of hilarious anecdotes, we got to the X Factor days when Lucie introduced Anton Stephans who belted out a beautiful song and Lucie (along with some audience participation) performed Sweet Child of Mine.

As the night continued, Lucie sung songs that had been prominent throughout her amazing career such as Somebody To Love, Bring Him Home and an acoustic version of Poker Face (complete with unexpected harmonies!!)

Samantha Barks was another guest who joined Lucie on stage to sing an acoustic version of Justin Bieber's Sorry, which I NEED to be released as a single!! Samantha then sung a soulful jazz number, which was, of course, absolutely stunning! Danyl Johnson was the final guest, who, with a belt-tastic duet of Bridge Over Troubled Water made me fall a little bit in love!

A personal favourite of the evening was the hilarious Musical Theatre Boys song which had me in extremely ugly hysterics! Lucie's bubbly personality had the whole audience laughing throughout and by the end of the night it really felt as if we had all bonded during this intimate performance. The closing number With You left everybody speechless and was a fantastic end to a fantastic night.

Lucie is truly a force to be reckoned with, she's not only got the pipes to sing anything and everything, but her magnetic personality and natural personality, along with stunning sparkly dresses, make her a performer you just can't help but love.

If you want to witness the hurricane of amazingness that is Lucie Jones, you can watch her in the upcoming performances of Legally Blonde at the Leicester Curve!

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