Rodgers and Hammerstein may generally be considered the
original masters of musical theatre, but Cole Porter comes a very close
second. Best known for the hit musicals Anything Goes, Kiss Me Kate and High Society, he wrote over 800 songs
during his lifetime. A staggering
achievement.
This concert performance of his music may only have
contained 25 of those songs, but it proved nonetheless to be a jubilant
celebration of his music. And whilst the
song list was heavy with numbers from the aforementioned musicals, it overall
covered 14 of his 17 shows (and films). Every
number in this performance was memorable, no matter what show it originated
from - with such a vast output, it’s easy to forget just how many brilliant
songs Porter wrote. Few people may
remember his musical Born To Dance for
instance, but fewer still would be
unfamiliar with its hit song ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’.
He certainly had a distinctive style, whether in his up-tempo
jazz dances, his patter duets, or his love songs. This collection of songs provided just enough
variety to offer a suitable cross-section of his output, even if it was a
little comedy and jazz-hands heavy. It’s
for this reason that Jenna Russell’s performance of the sumptuous ‘Miss Otis Regrets’
from Hi Diddle Diddle was such a highlight
in an otherwise jovial evening – subtle, emotive and captivating.
The show featured performances from four musical theatre
heavyweights (and gushing friends), who between them have a string of Tony and
Olivier nominations and awards: the fun and frivolous Maria Friedman; the dry
and witty Jenna Russell; the crooning Graham Bickley; and cool cat Clive
Rowe. Rowe, especially, was the standout
performer with an effortless, rich vocal tone whether singing the Kiss Me Kate classic ‘Too Darn Hot’ or
the silky ‘I’ve Got You Under My Skin’.
Aside from the odd tutti number, it was just a shame that the foursome
never really branched out of solos and duets.
Concert performances can feel a little stilted with a lack
of staging and movement, but Porter’s music is easy enough to revel in. The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra
played brilliantly under the conducting of Richard Balcombe, though they
sometimes overpowered the singers – especially the underused Royal Academy of
Music Musical Theatre Company Chorus. Still,
with a general lack of musical theatre at this year’s BBC Proms, this concert
provided more than enough to satiate fans of the genre.
4/5
