Unbezahlbar - Stage Club, Hamburg 18/11/2013
Roberta Valentini & Joana Fee Würz
with special guest Christian Alexander Müller
After already the odd performance e.g. in Chemnitz (actually not sure whether it has been on elsewhere) two of Germany's younger leading musical ladies brought their own cabaret style show to the Stage Club in Hamburg this week, with Joanna Fee Würz currently starring in Rocky (she is swing and an understudy for the female lead role of Adrian - and IMHO a most stunning Adrian, so much better than the rubbish actual Dutch lead) in this city.
The venue is below the Neue Flora theatre (soon to be the home of POTO again) and has more a lounge feeling than a concert venue feeling despite more and more (intimate) concerts taking place here these days.
There are tables with comfy chairs around, you are being served drinks during the show and so on though depending on event the place can look different but nevertheless a suitable place.
Got there early as hadn't bought a ticket before as due to work I was not sure I'd managed to go but could at end, so also got a good seat (just had to deal with some rather impertinent people again, seriously reserving two seats with coats of four at a table but then pretending they had meant they needed all four and the rubbish they talked about before the show and during the interval just still makes me cringe.. Oh well, I didn't let that spoil the evening for me).
The two were supported by the pianist Tom Bitterlich, a guitarist and a cellist plus special guest Christian Alexander Müller who once starred in POTO as the youngest phantom ever.
The show features a balanced mix between musical songs, often of shows they starred in before, and pop songs close to their heart or having a special meaning for their friendship.
Opening the show with the duet "Take Me or Leave Me" from the by me disliked Rent but nevertheless performed energetically they win over the audience being so charming and unsophisticated immediately that even when they forget the lyrics as happened a few times totally cracking up even at one point being in stitches or having to check the song order on some sheets it just simply made them even more likeable.
Especially Joana Fee Würz is such a true performer for me being such a sunshine, always bubbly. always passionate, always grabbing. that is such a delightful treat to watch and listen to her.
Her covering all kind of emotions in the songs she sings as "Popular" from Wicked being funny and sparkling to "Meadowlark" from The Baker's Wife being emotional and ardent she shows off what a real talent she is and with me not only not like Rent but also Wicked (as both Roberta Valentini and Joana Fee Würz were in that show, even together at the same time in Oberhausen as Elphaba (Roberta) and Glina (Joana), even sharing a flat together at that time, that show had to be featured obviously) they made the numbers entertaining while the (IMO overrated) show itself continues to annoy me.
Besides "Popular" they also did "What Is This Feeling" swapping the roles with Roberta singing the part of Glinda and Joana the part of Elphaba so that Roberta could show off her wonderful comic timing.
I must say I have the occasional issue with her vocals these days sounding in some songs a bit strained and forced but her acting skills are among some of the best in the German musical business for me and that totally makes up (and beyond) for the rest whenever I see her on stage, mainly at the theatre in Bielefeld these days.
And with the show being such major part of both careers it may also be of no surprise that the show finished after nearly two hours with "For Good" as a (planned) encore performed so mawkishly that for a tiny second I wished I had seen the two together in Wicked (but really for just a tiny second, I saw the show several times during its first year in London as some performers in it I adore and I just cannot stand it, sorry).
A most welcome choice of musical songs were some Jason Robert Brown songs, largely from "The Last Five Years" for which Christian Alexander Müller joined the two, well Joana, and performed "The Schmuel Song" on his own.
I wished he had done a different song, it is a good song within the musical, just on his own it comes across a bit like a filler but still it was wonderful to see him as I adore his engaging voice and has a captivating stage presence.
It was actually strangely funny that at least in act 1 the musical songs were largely of musicals I really do not like as not only Rent and Wicked songs but also from Miss Saigon ("I Still Believe") and Ghost ("With You") - two other musicals which make me sigh so a song from the wonderful "Closer Than Ever" was most welcome. Still, even if I do not like the musicals the performances were enchanting and strong.
My personal musical highlight was the official final song "I Will Never Leave You" from the wonderful "Side Show" I adored so much when it was on at the TfN in Hildesheim.
I loved the number back then, Navina Heyne always caused me being an emotional wreck by the end of it, and here even a tiny bit more as the emotions shining through the two ladies feel just so true, so honest, so sincere that you really wish for them that they will never leave each other and can enjoy and rely on each other's friendship for a long time.
As already said besides the musical songs there were also several pop and the odd chanson songs as a ballad slow version of Lady Gaga's "Pokerface", which was well sung but an unneeded choice for me, it does not add much to the theme of the show, but others as "I Say A Little Prayer", originally written for Dionne Warwick in the 60s but covered by Diana King and featured in the Julia Roberts' movie "My Best Friend's Wedding", and Metallica's "Nothing Else Matters" were powerful and showed how well the two obviously do not just harmonise personally but also vocally.
Beautiful was also a version of "The Flower Duet" from Léo Delibes' Lakmé them introducing the song by talking about their time at musical school and having singing lessons. with this opera singer with the song, while being from a opera not sounding too technically artificial which is normally my issue with operas when especially by female opera singers emotions are lost when focusing way too much on getting the song sung right.
Overall a wonderful uplifting and priceless (sorry, I know cheap reference to title of show) evening from two performers which I hope will be around for a long time.
all pictures by me
