Review: Dove Tales Launches A NIGHT ON BROADWAY at Youth Square in Hong Kong

It is the first time for Dove Tales Theatre, a children's theatre group in Hong Kong that specialises in school tours and musical theatre education, to launch a seasonal programme that showcases classical and contemporary Broadway repertoire, with veteran Broadway actors graciously treading upon the stage of Y-Theatre at Youth Square, a venue that is in the remote area of the city of Hong Kong.

It is not alien for me to attend such concert/cabaret in Hong Kong with Broadway musical numbers as the thread of the night instead of classical music. The MUSICAL MOMENTS series, presented by Bel Canto Singers which is led by veteran Hong Kong opera singer David Quah, is one of the earliest ventures that heavily dedicated to the Broadway-West-End musical canon with spectacular formations. On the other hand, Rick Lau's solo cabarets, which the librettos of his works are constructed meticulously through a series of heartfelt musical songs, deliver intimate dialogues between him and the audience.

Since 2016, Third Culture Theatricals started COMPANY CALL, another cabaret series with the musical canon. The series' music director Rony Fortich, the former music director of Hong Kong Disneyland, is, dare I say, one of the few best music directors in Hong Kong for the musical repertoire. It is he who is the accompaniment of A NIGHT ON BROADWAY.

Musically and vocally, A NIGHT ON BROADWAY showcases strong performances from the Broadway performers. Both Chelsea Williams and George Psomas express their obvious well-trained techniques through their singing. The classical Broadway repertoire in the first half of the concert is standardly well-performed with the precise nuance of how these numbers are supposed to be played along the last half-century.

However, this is also my problem with this part of the performance, that it is too much of a standard that I feel Ms Williams and Mr Psomas just give us something that is lukewarm. No doubt that these numbers are classics, timeless to a point that one just wants to sing along with them. Yet, it is also the timelessness of these numbers that it seems that Ms Williams and Mr Psomas need to confine with their voices and energy. The exploration of the twists and turns of these standard classics is somehow missed to open up the concert with a direction.

Is it a concert, or is it a cabaret? Along the night, I can sense that the night is about Ms Williams and Mr Psomas's introductions of their Broadway careers, but the repertoire they perform (in the first half) hardly sticks to their stories. I can sense that it is more of a cabaret show, as the songs like 'Lucky to be Me' from ON THE TOWN, 'All I Care About' from CHICAGO, and 'Always True to You Darling in My Fashion' from KISS ME KATE all express Ms Williams and Mr Psomas's love and dedication to their careers. Yet, I need to see more from these songs as part of the performers' stories instead of just being classics. I need to know why it is these songs performed by these two exceptional performers.

For example, Mr Psomas sings 'Some Enchanted Evening' and ' MIracle of Miracles' from SOUTH PACIFIC and FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, as these two shows define Mr Psomas's pinnacle moments in his musical career. However, the songs, especially 'Some Enchanted Evening', do not showcase Mr Psomas's best phase of his voice. As a performer, Mr Psomas seems quite reserve to perform these numbers. There is a genuine energy, but it is not released in its full form.

Same as Ms Williams, her 'If I were a Bell' from GUYS AND DOLLS is a great rendition of the Broadway hit, but I cannot really channel her energy as neither Sister Sarah nor Ms Williams herself. At the end, I just feel that she and Mr Psomas just do a serviceable task for the first half. Is it not until Ms Williams's 'Don't Rain on My Parade' from FUNNY GIRL that I finally can get a sense of Ms Williams's character. Her rendition exudes a kind of affection towards the song, trying to lure us to listen to her.

And the night just shifts its tone from standard singing to acting from that point on. It is a nice gesture to introduce Hong Kong musical actors on this stage, and let them perform with the performers from Broadway. Both Corinna Chamberlain and Jordan Cheng give us another side of presentation of the Broadway canon.

Mr Cheng's 'Run Away with Me' from THE UNAUTHORIZED AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF SAMANTHA BROWN kicks off a moment for a musical number to be performed with an acting-based approach. I would say personally, Mr Cheng's performance is one of the highlights of the night, as he gives a variety of colours in the number, giving us a sense that he is connecting with the audience.

Ms Chamberlain's 'Adelaide's Lament' is maybe too much for my taste of a clichéd-'acting'-performance, but it is still enjoyable to see interactions between not only her and Mr Cheng but also with us.

But most importantly, I can see them as unique characters who never settle for less on just singing the numbers without their own input.

I think the appearances of both Ms Chamberlain and Mr Cheng also spark some variations in the performances by Ms Williams and Mr Psomas in the second half of the night. Ms Williams and Mr Cheng's 'Suddenly Seymour' from LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS, though a lack of exchanges between the two singers, somehow lifts up a musical moment of giving Ms Williams another ground to showcase her well-supported belting voice.

Mr Psomas, on the other hand, gives an excellent rendition of 'All of I Ask of You' from THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA with Ms Chamberlain, a very comfortable exchange between the two that embodies intimacy through both the performers' bodies and voices.

The night goes better and better when Ms Williams and Mr Psomas delivers some of the contemporary musical numbers. Ms Williams's 'Do What I Do' from IN-TRANSIT is Ms Williams's moment of the night. Being in the show and having to sing the song as the original performer, 'Do What I Do' finally gives Ms Williams the chance to show her best form as a Broadway performer. Mr Psomas's renditions of 'You'll Be Back' from HAMILTON and 'Stars' from LES MISÉRABLES regain Mr Psomas's spotlight with variety in his voice.

Yet, even though the second half is generally better than the first half, I still think Ms Williams and Mr Psomas are not releasing their full energy. Most of the time, I feel that they are giving beautiful renditions of the numbers, but they are also hiding behind the fourth wall. When one performs 'The Wizard and I', and actually tries to hold back at the end of the song, you know there is something wrong.

My guess is that there is no clear direction of how this concert/cabaret is going to go. Both Ms Williams and Mr Psomas has some kind of energy that juxtaposes the night's conservative repertoire. Also, if these numbers are sewn with a strong thread of narrative of the two performers (or even the total four), the audience can receive a fuller performance of these numbers with the performers' own unique takes.

Not that I am saying the performers are not genuine though. I can say that all four performers are very genuine persons on stage, which is enough for me to enjoy the night, an honest night for Broadway celebration. At the end, when all four of them are singing 'What I Did for Love', it produces a beautiful harmony, and I truly believe that what they did, they did for love.

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A NIGHT ON BROADWAY at Y-Theatre, Youth Square, Hong Kong
Closed on 1st February 2018

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