BWW Reviews: Louise Dearman's IT'S TIME

Louise Dearman is one busy lady and an incredibly in-demand performer. Only last week, she finished her run as Elphaba in the West End production of Wicked and has a series of concerts around the country lined up in the coming weeks before Christmas. Not only this, she is also embarking on her debut UK tour, 'It's Time', between February and April next year.

There is an increasing interest in Dearman as this year she became the first person worldwide to have played both lead roles in Wicked; a wonderful accolade to have. She has a CV to envy and has also previously had success with albums 'You and I' and 'Here Comes The Sun'.

Dearman's new studio recording is also titled 'It's Time' and features a personal plethora of classic musical theatre songs. Although a selection of covers, Dearman delivers them with pizzazz and gumption. She has an instantly recognisable style and has a real aptitude for storytelling through song. The recording is packed full of ballads and this is where she excels the most - knowing your strengths and understanding what the audience wants to hear is what Dearman and her production team are brilliant at.

A phenomenal rendition of 'Home' from The Wiz starts off the proceedings and sets the standard ridiculously high. My personal favourite version of this number is by Kristin Chenoweth but Dearman has such a sincerity about her which makes it even more heartfelt. It features stunning vocals and probably the best production on a solo recording I've heard in recent years. It is so easy to listen to 30 seconds of a track and move on to the next when reviewing but Dearman is so captivating I listened to it twice through start to finish.

It is very difficult to pick highlights from the CD as it's such a beautiful selection of songs but particular stand outs are 'What I Did For Love' from A Chorus Line and 'A New Life' from Jekyll & Hyde. It must be said that 'Falling Slowly' from Once gets off to a bit of a shaky start with Shayne Ward but as soon as Dearman joins in and it changes to a higher register, it really finds it's stride and is quite frankly sublime.

It's Time is released on December 2nd and anyone would be lucky to pull this recording out of their stocking!

For more information, visit www.louisedearman.com

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