Clarkson Music Theatre / Mississauga, Canada / May 6 - 8th
The
Clarkson Music Theatre recently concluded its season ending three day run of
Just The Way We Are,
Clarkson Sings the Music of the 60’s and 70’s
presented in Mississauga, Canada and directed by Bob Harding.
The theatre company has operated without
interruption since 1945, and always boasts a bevy of talented actors, actresses
and singers and although this year’s presentation was no exception, it was Don
Montgomery who stole the show on more than one occasion with his comedic
sensibilities. More than a few ladies in the audience appeared flushed as
Montgomery’s leg started to do the Elvis wiggle and waggle on “Suspicious
Minds,” and he was equally Elton John like with his performance of “Crocodile
Rock,” during the second set.
Jamie Brown’s
phrasing was terrific on “People,” and she demonstrated good range, seemingly,
effortless in hitting the notes.
Veteran musical actress and singer Renee
Stein, dressed in a black dress and heels served up a powerful vocal performance
on “Respect,” a song most associated with Aretha Franklin and for which Franklin
won two Grammy Awards in 1968. For her part Renee Stein gave her audience a lot
of attitude on her cover of the song.
Theresa
Morris drew enthusiastic and well deserved applause for her rendition of the
1968 song “D-I-V-O-R-C-E.”
Leslie
Carney, who is a good singer, elegantly sang “At Last,” but the soulfulness was
missing, yet on “What I Did For Love,” she was simply smashing!
Her performance was definitely one of the
highlights of the evening.
Leslie Carney was passionate, her phrasing
impeccable and on the last verse she was joined by the entire ensemble, as magic
lingered in the air long after the last word escaped her lips.
Kudos, also to
Katherine Kormos who was sassy, demonstrated strong vocals and had good stage
presence, connecting with her audience as she sang “Heath Wave.”
We have to confess
to being a bit biased as Christine McMahon has over the past two years endeared
herself to this magazine, yet that being said, she was very good on “The First
Time Ever I Saw Your Face,” and the keyboard accompaniment was elegant. She
stole the show with her cover of Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.”
As far as male
singers are concerned, Matthew Butler was the best, serving up an emotive vocal
performance on the Scott English / Richard Kerr song “Mandy,” which became a hit
in 1972 for Barry Manilow.
The selections for the ensemble were a bit hit and
miss. The Manhattan Transfer medley was not a good move as the ensemble lacked
the swing and the rhythm of the iconic group. They were commendable on “I’ll Be
There,” and outstanding on the encore “Can’t Stop The Beat,” from
Hairspray,
which bodes well for the Clarkson Music Theatre as they will be performing
Hairspray in November.