Cabaret Scenes Review - Kelli O'Hara

What happens when Broadway singers transition to cabaret? If they happen to be young, like Kelli O’Hara, and inexperienced in the genre, it’s a difficult task. O’Hara is a three-time Tony nominee with a lovely soprano voice filled with clarity, bell tones, and wonderful high notes. However, it’s just that sound that pervades throughout most of her act. Songs from the Great American Songbook, as she titled her show, “I’m In Love with a Wonderful Guy or “What More Do I Need” came straight off the Broadway stage. A cut song from Sweet Smell of Success, “How I Say Goodbye,” was beautiful to hear.

Songs from Broadway success, “The Light in the Piazza” and “Fable,” with a Harry Connick, Jr. arrangement, added snippets of colorful intonations, along with “Hey There,” as a nice easy jazz swing tune, all giving pause to what could be.

But she was so low key and quiet in her patter that it appeared that she was almost too shy to want to give too much information Memorable moments included a folk-rock tune written by husband Greg Naughton, who came up on stage to harmonize and to give a little pat to her pregnant belly!

The piece de resistance emerged, however, when what we’d been waiting for actually happened…a song entitled “Opera-Country,” written for her by friends (Lipton/Rossmer), allowed her to cut loose as she donned cowboy hat in this magnum opus taking her back to Oklahoma, giving her the opportunity to vocally fly, trill, show off and have a grand ol' time! And the audience reacted appropriately with huge applause and shouts.

As Kelli O’Hara performs more often in the cabaret world, she will gather the experience necessary to make her a great performer in the genre. Do not misconstrue. . .she has a glorious voice and is lovely to look at and should be seen during her run at the Café Carlyle thru April 15^t Her Music Director/Pianist is the exceptional Adam Ben-David with Antoine Silverman on violin, Mark Vanderpool on bass and Howard Joines on drums.

Sandi Durell
Cabaret Scenes
April 1, 2009
www.cabaretscenes.org



	Kelli O'Hara Songs from the Great American Songbook Café Carlyle New York, NY
What happens when Broadway singers transition to cabaret? If they happen to be young, like Kelli O’Hara, and inexperienced in the genre, it’s a difficult task. O’Hara is a three-time Tony nominee with a lovely soprano voice filled with clarity, bell tones, and wonderful high notes. However, it’s just that sound that pervades throughout most of her act. Songs from the Great American Songbook, as she titled her show, “I’m In Love with a Wonderful Guy or “What More Do I Need” came straight off the Broadway stage. A cut song from Sweet Smell of Success, “How I Say Goodbye,” was beautiful to hear. Songs from Broadway success, “The Light in the Piazza” and “Fable,” with a Harry Connick, Jr. arrangement, added snippets of colorful intonations, along with “Hey There,” as a nice easy jazz swing tune, all giving pause to what could be. But she was so low key and quiet in her patter that it appeared that she was almost too shy to want to give too much information Memorable moments included a folk-rock tune written by husband Greg Naughton, who came up on stage to harmonize and to give a little pat to her pregnant belly! The piece de resistance emerged, however, when what we’d been waiting for actually happened…a song entitled “Opera-Country,” written for her by friends (Lipton/Rossmer), allowed her to cut loose as she donned cowboy hat in this magnum opus taking her back to Oklahoma, giving her the opportunity to vocally fly, trill, show off and have a grand ol' time! And the audience reacted appropriately with huge applause and shouts. As Kelli O’Hara performs more often in the cabaret world, she will gather the experience necessary to make her a great performer in the genre. Do not misconstrue. . .she has a glorious voice and is lovely to look at and should be seen during her run at the Café Carlyle thru April 15^t Her Music Director/Pianist is the exceptional Adam Ben-David with Antoine Silverman on violin, Mark Vanderpool on bass and Howard Joines on drums. Sandi Durell Cabaret Scenes April 1, 2009 www.cabaretscenes.org

Kelli O'Hara

Songs from the Great American Songbook

Café Carlyle New York, NY

Café Carlyle
New York, NY