Lillias White reviewed

 Reviewed by Emmett Spencer

Lillias White - From Brooklyn to Broadway

18^th June

Festival Theatre Stage

Singing up a storm and strutting her stuff, a multi-award winning singer and actress Lillias White showed the audience what cabaret is all about on the Festival Theatre stage. She not only smashes down the fourth wall, but also goes a step further and communicates to the entire room as though she invited everyone to a party at her place while she dishes up enticing stories. Bursting with energy and rhythm, White follows her life through songs that tell those tales.

She has a flair for comedy and jokes around with the crowd, trying her hand at Australian accent and vernacular. Her rich, clear and multi-layered voice glides over and between notes, as she makes the songs her own by pouring emotion and experience into them. Together with smooth dance moves and a slick three-piece band, it's a winning combination.

“Fairy Tales” and “When You Think of Me” delve into the dark abyss of love gone wrong as she tells the audience of her failed marriages. Then it’s back to Brooklyn where she spent her childhood with Harry Belafonte’s comical “Mama Look a Booboo”, a song she gets the audience to sing along.

The latter part of the show focuses on White’s accomplished career with the medley of songs from musicals such as “Barnum”, “Dreamgirls”, “Once on This Island” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”, which are all greeted with thunderous applauses and cheers.

It takes more than competent musicians to keep up with a performer of her calibre, and the band - Andrew Massey (drums), Lyndon Gray (bass) - led by Matthew Carey (piano) do a phenomenal job and are in complete sync with White. Their riveting improvisation is a delightful bonus.

White takes the show to new heights when she sings the enthralling rendition of “The Oldest Profession” from Cy Coleman’s musical “The Life”. White recreates her alter ego Sonja, a veteran prostitute who’s seen better days. The transformation is spine-tingling as are the acting and the vocal abilities she displays – it’s not hard to see why she won the Tony, Drama Desk, and Outer Critics Circle Awards for the role that was created especially for her.

The last number is a torch song “The Way He Makes Me Feel” by Michel Legrand/Alan and Marilyn Bergman. She dedicates it to “all the lovers in the house”, ending the show on a hopeful and positive note. Lillias White is a woman of numerous talents, but where she truly mesmerises and sparkles is the stage.