Feature: SWEENEY TODD Star Sarah Rice Returns to Solo Cabaret

Some of us knew her from THE FANTASTICKS, while others knew her from A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC or CANDIDE. It was later that everybody else discovered Sarah Rice, either from seeing or wearing out their vinyl cast albums of Sondheim's SWEENEY TODD, where the soprano originated the part of Benjamin Barker's daughter, Johanna.

Since playing Johanna, Rice has sung many more parts, from major musicals (Christine in PHANTOM OF THE OPERA) to classic musicals (Magnolia in SHOWBOAT) to operetta (including parts in Gilbert and Sullivan's THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE and Romberg's THE MERRY WIDOW) to opera - DAUGHTER OF THE REGIMENT and RIGOLETTO only two of the operas in which she's appeared.

But there's a side of Sarah Rice and her talents that doesn't happen on the big stage. She's equally at home in far more intimate performances, including cabaret. She's performed at Feinstein's/54 Below, singing music of the Downton Abbey period, and she won the MAC Award for Best Female Vocalist in 2011. However, singing isn't all that may happen when Sarah Rice performs.

Many singers accompany themselves on piano or guitar, or perform the occasional musical solo in an act to prove they've got some instrumental talent going on. Piano and guitar, however, are relatively easy. Rice, on the other hand, performs on the only instrument that the musician can't even touch - the Theremin.

Broadway World readers are more likely than many to know the Theremin. Rice describes it as the instrument that "makes the spooky woo-woo sounds in horror movies," but it's also the main instrument in the theme to the popular there-and-here British mystery series, MIDSOMER MURDERS. Fans of NBC's recent HANNIBAL will recall it as one of the two instruments on which Doctor Lecter performs, the other the equally potentially eccentric but more classical harpsichord. And yes, that was indeed a Theremin in THE BIG BANG THEORY.

In Rice's new cabaret show, MUSIC OF THE NIGHT, which opened at Pangea (on 2nd Avenue) on August 17, Rice has fused vocals and Theremin, some songs sung with accompanist Matthew Martin Ward on piano, one in duet with David Vernon, and some both sung and performed on the Theremin, while the show also relies heavily on Theremin solos performed with Rice's particular flair. Pieces range from opera - the "Barcarolle" from Offenbach's TALES OF HOFFMAN - to the above-noted MIDSOMER MURDERS, with stops in between for Sondheim ("Not While I'm Around" from SWEENEY TODD) to Irving Berlin to Simon and Garfunkel, that last the beautiful full arrangement of "Scarborough Fair/Canticle" sung with David Vernon.

For those who have loved Rice's stage performances, the chance to see Rice in cabaret gives a completely different, and quite delightful, portrait of the singer/musician, as well as to appreciate her vocal and musical versatility. It's also much different to be in an intimate setting like Pangea with her, with the opportunity to meet her in person in a relaxed atmosphere, than it is to sit in a larger audience and watch her on stage. That she's comfortable in both settings is a plus for fans of her work, who can increase their opportunities to see her by catching her when she's performing in these smaller venues.

Although MUSIC OF THE NIGHT was performed on August 17 and 18, it will be at Pangea again on September 20. Tickets are $20.00 online, and there is a $20.00 cover charge at Pangea easily met on its respectably-priced menu for those who would enjoy dinner during the show rather than drinks. (The food is casual but delicious, including a stunning warm flourless chocolate cake.)

When Rice isn't on a main stage, New York's cabaret scene is a great place for admirers of her work and her elegant soprano voice to find her. It's also the place to find her performing on her adopted instrument, making some gorgeous music rather than "scary woo-woo sounds."

If you are fortunate enough to make the September 20 performance, especially hang on for her PHANTOM OF THE OPERA set, in which her vocals and Theremin combine for musical fireworks that remind the audience that this is a show she knows well. If you also know the show - and who doesn't, by now - you'll be amazed at how readily the Theremin evokes it when she plays.

For tickets and information about Rice's performance on September 20, contact Stephen Hanks at Cabaret Life Productions at cabaretlifeproductions@gmail.coM. Rice's entire performance repertoire, which is massive, can be found at her web page, sarahrice.com.

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