Epstein Theatre, Liverpool – 20 October 2019
Reviewed by Amy Nash
5*****
Emma Dears and Olivia Brereton joined Roy Locke in Matinee Musical Classics and Music of The Night on the 20th October: a delightful double bill of tributes to iconic musical theatre. The three widely acclaimed local performers delivered two very different but equally enchanting shows, packing a wide variety of musical classics into only a few hours.
For the matinee performance, Musical Classics, great emphasis was placed on Roy Locke’s career as a crossover performer – someone who performs both opera and contemporary roles professionally. The show itself is a crossover show, in essence, marrying well-known tunes like “That’s Amore” and Nat King Cole’s “Unforgettable” with a love letter to opera performances from the likes of Joseph Locke (no relation, apparently) and Puccini’s aria “Nessun Dorma”.
Roy Locke doesn’t just showcase his incredible voice, but his charming personality and quick wit, as both shows are peppered with comedic breaks between the musical performances. What particularly stood out was the context he provided for some of the music choices: he moved the discussion effortlessly from jokes about his German heritage over to an explanation of the origins of The Ballad of Mack the Knife, covering not just where it was from (Brecht’s Die Dreigroschenoper) but why it was written in the first place.
Insight like this was the real appeal of Music of the Night’s pre-show talk “Secrets of a Phantom”. Roy Locke not only shared photos and stories about what working on Phantom of the Opera was like, including exciting tales of the actress playing Christine taking her life into her hands with the falling chandelier in the days before workplace safety was prevalent, but kept the talk personal and authentic by injecting it with more personal anecdotes about meeting his wife, Emma.
It’s that very Emma who he credits as the writer of both shows, and the composition is fantastic. The music they chose is often distinctly personal and explained as such to the audience, making it all the more meaningful. This includes medleys from musicals with significant meaning to Roy Locke, such as West Side Story in Music of the Night with a seamless mix of “Something’s Coming”, “Tonight”, “Maria” and “Somewhere” paying tribute to his career as a crossover performer and his parents’ first date seeing the film version. There are also subtler touches which showcase their excellent song selection; in reference to Tom Chester, the Musical Director and on-stage pianist, they throw out a joyful “play it again, Tom” before a performance from Casablanca. In the Musical Classics matinee, all of Emma Dears’ pre-interval performances are from different musicals but share a common theme. “My Man” from Funny Girl, “As Long as He Needs Me” from Oliver! and “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from Jesus Christ Superstar are presented as separate pieces, performed in between songs from Roy Locke, but their longing, loving messages make them cohesive. Post-interval Emma Dears sparkled as Liza Minnelli performing “Cabaret”, “Liza” and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” in tribute to Judy & Liza, the musical biopic she wrote as it approaches its 10th anniversary.
Despite their outward similarities, the two performances had drastically different atmospheres. The Musical Classics matinee featured far more audience participation, regularly bringing the lights up on the audience while we sang along to classics like “Oh What a Beautiful Morning” from Oklahoma, “Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kitbag” and “Rule Britannia”. There was even a section where Roy Locke attempted to very, very quickly teach the audience some Italian opera which was hugely entertaining. While Emma Dears and Rock Locke performed together beautifully, they did so rarely, their performances often kept separate from one another.
By contrast, Music of the Night featured the audience far less – we were invited to sing along with a few classics, but the focus was primarily on the performers, who sang far more duets. Olivia Brereton and Roy Locke’s onstage chemistry was magical to watch unfold as they relived their classic roles. They truly showcased their acting chops here: rather than sticking to what you’d expect, the concert version where the focus is only on their astonishing singing talent, performances like “The Music of the Night” featured props like the famous Phantom mask and plenty of movement. Olivia Brereton shines as Eponine, with one of the most heart-wrenching performances of “On My Own” I’ve ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Witnessing Roy Locke transform from the traumatised Marius in “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables” to the desperate Jean Valjean in “Bring Him Home”, especially in contrast to his bone-chilling prior performance of “My Friends” from Sweeney Todd was a real spectacle.
Both performances were exceptional, with the audiences giving a standing ovation and demanding an encore, and they showcased every one of Roy Locke and his two guests’ talents.
They were a wonderful taste of West End magic, marrying the classic with the new, the operatic with the contemporary – a crossover display perfectly in tune with Roy Locke’s crossover career.
