Review: Scott Alan Live at the indigO2

Scott Alan Live
indigO2
Reviewed on Sunday 4th August 2013

Scott Alan is a man who needs no introduction. At the age of thirty-five, the American composer is already a theatrical legend, his music is always so personal and relatable. While Scott's concerts are always the hottest ticket in town, this was my first time seeing one live. Also I had never been to the indigO2 which is a lovely venue, tucked away within the O2 Arena. Scott always invites the finest West End and Broadway talent to feature on his albums and perform at his concerts and last night was certainly no exception. In fact, it was the strongest line-up I have ever had the pleasure of seeing.

The show began with a group performance of one of my favourite Scott Alan songs, 'I'm A Star'. One by one the performers took to the stage to have their moment in the spotlight. I couldn't believe my eyes, it was so surreal to see so many incredible performers sharing the same stage. Dutch star Willemijn Verkaik was the final performer to enter and as she marched to the front of the stage she clearly meant business! 

Often in reviews I write about who gives a 'stand out performance'. However, I can honestly report that practically every single rendition of every single song performed last night would be a stand out performance under normal circumstances in a 'normal' concert. The standard was unbelievably high, it was truly an honour to attend the most talked about theatrical event of the year. For the past few weeks I have not been able to scroll through my Twitter feed or attend a press night without someone mentioning the concert.

Cynthia Erivo

The first act was a celebration of Scott's career so far, stars took to the stage to perform some of his most popular and well known songs. Every single performance was out of this world. However, my personal favourites were seeing Richard Fleeshman back on a London stage, he looks at home when performing with his guitar. Willemijn Verkaik's performance of 'Watch Me Soar' was spellbinding (and I can't wait to see her take over as Elphaba in Wicked later this year).

Ricardo Afonso is the definition of vocal perfection while there seems to be no note Nathan James cannot hit. John Owen Jones gave a stunning rendition of 'Kiss The Air', it was great to see him perform something completely different. Chloe Hart also blew me away with her impressive vocal talents and I love that she has no idea just how good she is. Cynthia Erivo's rendition of 'Anything Worth Holding On To' was utterly mesmerising and when Shoshana Bean took to the stage I had to pinch myself to ensure I wasn't dreaming. I am yet to find a word which can accurately describe her talent. During the show it was announced that Shoshana is performing a solo concert at the Hippodrome on Wednesday evening, so if you missed last nights gig make sure you catch her on Wednesday! 

The second act began with Scott making a very exciting announcement. He revealed that the female members of the cast were going to perform the entire score of his new musical entitled 'Home'. This was the first time that the score had ever been performed to an audience in its entirety, and many of the songs were previously unheard.

Shoshana Bean

Once again, every song was very special making it almost impossible to pick out stand out performances. Julie Atherton and Cynthia Erivo both gave hilarious renditions of their comedy numbers. The beauty of Scott's writing is that he never just writes a stereotypical 'comedy' number. He still writes with depth and always allows the performer to show off their range. Katie Paine, Annalene Beechey, Ashleigh Gray, Siobhan Dillon and Jodie Jacobs all sent shivers down my spine during their performances.

I hope we don't have to wait too long before Home The Musical is staged in London. The music really drew me in and the score gave me the impression that Home is a musical which could really take an audience on quite an emotional journey.

Finally the evening ended with one last group number, after which Scott sat at the piano, thanked everyone involved and then spoke very honestly about his childhood before performing one final heartbreaking number. The whole evening was so surreal, I wish I could press rewind and watch it all over again. There was just too much to take in. Everyone involved did a fantastic job, I can't wait for the next one!

Reviewed by Andrew Tomlins (Editor)
andrew@westendframe.com

Scott Alan's website: www.scottalan.net

Click here to view photos from the event.

Photo Credit: Darren Bell

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