“a thoroughly entertaining evening and a wonderfully fitting homage to Whitney Houston”
Presented by Showtime Australia, The Greatest Love of All is billed as a live concert honouring the talent, music and memory of Whitney Houston. The show has already been introduced to audiences worldwide and, this time, it was London’s turn to experience two hours of Whitney hits.
Whether you’re a fan of Whitney Houston, or perhaps not as familiar with her music, Belinda Davids ensures a great evening. From the moment she takes to the stage, she has the audience in the palm of her hand, belting out those high notes and nailing the softer moments in songs. We are encouraged to get up from our seats during some of the numbers, including “I Wanna Dance With Somebody”, which the majority of the packed out London Palladium does without much persuasion. Davids’ energy and enthusiasm never falters in the time she is on stage and she maintains a powerful presence throughout, as well as being personable.
Accompanying the vocals are a six-piece band and the National Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, who are on stage throughout. This generally works well, although the musicians did appear to overpower the vocals at the start of the show. One musician gives an especially notable performance, playing the saxophone, flute and keyboards at various points. The saxophone solos are particularly effective and give an enhanced energy to an already lively show.
There are some nice visual elements to the show. Lighting design fits in with the moods of the songs, with colourful lights for the upbeat numbers and spotlighting for the emotion-fuelled ballads. Visual effects include vibrant designs and sequences (some best described as kaleidoscopic) shown on screens either side of the stage and a main screen at the back. Far from distracting from the vocal performances, this element complements the whole show and is amazingly effective.
Director Johnny Van Grinsven has clearly put a lot of thought into a production that could quite easily have turned into just another tribute show. Alongside a stunning performance from Belinda Davids, there are talented musicians, dancers and fantastic visual design all combining to create a thoroughly entertaining evening and a wonderfully fitting homage to Whitney Houston.
“a perfect representation of songs that changed musical styles so much six decades ago”
In 1960 the world was introduced to The Beatles, a group of four young musicians from Liverpool. Over the course of the next decade, before their eventual break up, they were regarded as some of the most influential musicians and songwriters of the twentieth century. Under the guidance of record producer George Martin (often referred to as the Fifth Beatle) they experimented with a number of musical styles including psychedelia, Indian, classical, as well as unconventional recording techniques. It was Martin who convinced Paul McCartney that the arrangement of Yesterday should feature a string quartet and there started a long run of tracks that were to include orchestral arrangements.
Fast forward almost sixty years and the public appetite for listening to The Beatles catalogue remains almost as strong as ever. All You Need Is Love is a concert honouring the talents of The Beatles and is superbly supported by The National Philharmonic Concert Orchestra. The show includes over thirty songs, many of the number one hits as well as tracks from nine of their thirteen groundbreaking albums.
The four band members appearing in All You Need Is Love have a strong history of performing Beatles music, having each performed in the West End and touring stage show Let It Be. Emanuelle Angeletti (Paul McCartney), Paul Canning (John Lennon), John Brosnan (George Harrison) and Luke Roberts (Ringo Starr) have all studied their characters in fine detail, perfectly imitating the mannerisms, dress, looks and sounds of the Fab Four.
Whilst much thought has gone into the costumes the band are associated with, it is of course the music that stands out. For some two and a half hours we were treated to note perfect renditions of glorious songs that were beautifully enhanced by the orchestra who clearly enjoyed themselves. Martin Herman is an energetic conductor/arranger and whilst it is hard to pick out individuals concert master Nadine Guerke on violin and percussionist Steve Vintner caught both the eye and ear with their performances.
Stand out songs were Yesterday, Imagine, The Long and Winding Road, Penny Lane and audience participation was encouraged for You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away, Yellow Submarine and the closing number Hey Jude.
What didn’t work as well was the video projection. It didn’t add anything to the show and on many occasions it was a distraction. The music and performance really didn’t need any additional support.
It goes without saying that for any fan of The Beatles this is an unmissable show. For the uninitiated, this show gives a perfect representation of songs that changed musical styles so much six decades ago, yet don’t sound out of place in the twenty first century.
