Audra McDonald - Live at the Donmar London
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Canada
Product details
Actor: Audra McDonaldEdition: VHS Tape
Format: Color, Live, NTSC
Running Time: 68 minutes
Release Date: 2000-06-06
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Publisher: Nonesuch
Studio: Nonesuch
VHS Movie Reviews of Audra McDonald - Live at the Donmar London
Movie Review: Audra's amazing to see!
Summary: 5 Stars
While the resolution on the video isn't the greatest quality, you WON'T CARE once you see it because, in any light, Audra is captivating. If you've heard her recordings you know that she is a talented and sensitive musician, but seeing those gifts combined with her ability to fully emulate the character of every song just about takes your breath away. Any other video of a solo singer in concert might put you to sleep, but Audra's acting is so amazing, her characterizations are so authentic, that you can't take your eyes off her. Oh yeah, and she sounds amazing too. ;-) A must-have for Audra fans.Movie Review: An Amazing Performer!
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased this WONDERFUL video and after watching it, kicked myself for not having purchased it sooner. McDonald, a now 4-time Tony winner and Julliard grad, shows in this video why she is so celebrated. She has an incredible vocal technique and is a delight in both her meaty and solid lower notes and her jaw-dropping high notes. She is the perfect performer because she not only sings her songs but also acts then, rather inhabits them, letting them seep deep in every part of her to deliever to the audience. You believe that McDonald has a deep connection with these lyrics in her performances. She is able to tackle every style of song in this video. Her performance of Jason Robert Brown's "Stars and the Moon" made me fall in love with it all over again. She delievers "Beat my Dog" with every air of believabilty and sass. I actually began to love "A Sleepin Bee" which, although a great song, has never been one of my personal favorites. Her performance of Sondheim's " So Many People" was wonderful as was "The Man that Got Away", a song that can be difficult to perform considering the performer who made it famous ( Judy Garland for those who don't know)."Some Days" was added to my list of favorite songs due to her powerhouse performance.Overall, this video is a MUST HAVE!! I EAGERLY RECOMMEND IT!!!
Movie Review: Treasure in a box
Summary: 5 Stars
Is there anything Audra McDonald cannot do in the world of musical theater? Four Broadway roles, three Tony awards, two magnificently different solo recordings, and now this video of her in solo concert format would seem to indicate not.Audra has long been a champion of the "new school" of theatrical composers, and she begins this concert with one of the more accessible compositions of one of them: Michael John LaChiusa's "I See What I Wanna See". Sweet and charming, Audra introduces modern classics like Jason Robert Brown's "Stars and Moon" with the same reverence as the more familiar "I Had Myself a True Love" "Bill" and "The Man that Got Away." Not a thematic note is missed, as Audra goes from the silly blues of "Beat My Dog" to the simple gorgeousness of Flaherty and Ahrens's "Come Down From The Tree" (which was cut from Once on this Island and may be better known than any song actually *in* that score). Even more "artsy" material, such as Ricky Ian Gordon's compositions, work well in this setting, as her backing band (a quartet? I couldn't quite count the number of pieces) creates a lush musical trapestry behind her.
Although some of the newer material may or not stand up to the classics, depending on your viewpoint, this concert is one which will provide you with more than enough material to enjoy continuously and repeatedly. I have two nitpicks, neither of which is a major distraction: The video doesn't include anything by Adam Guettel (since Audra referred to him in her intro, I presume that she performed a song by him which was trimmed from the final product), and Audra hasn't yet tackled Stephen Sondheim as a solo performer (although she does perform the early Sondheim work "So Many People" as a lovely medley with Wonderful Town's "A Little Bit In Love", and recently did the concert of "Sweeney Todd", it would be great to hear her voice wrap around the work of Broadway's greatest living composer).
This video is superbly produced, with seamless camerawork and fantastic sound. A essential part of any modern musical theater lover's collection.
Movie Review: OUTSTANDING
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw parts of this show on the local PBS station during a recent pledge drive. (The video includes songs not shown on PBS.) I also saw Ms. McDonald perform this show here in DC in May. The video captures splendidly all of Ms. McDonald's myriad charms -- her stunning voice, her musical and interpretive intelligence, her elegant grace and her understated charisma. While Ms. McDonald's show encompassed many songs that she has performed on her solo CDs and on others, it does include a number of songs that she has never recorded (or at least released). The only "flaw" the video has is that it doesn't include (and perhaps she didn't perform it then) her show-stopping performance of the "aria" she introduced on Broadway in "Ragtime" -- "Your Daddy's Son" -- which was even more powerful in an intimate setting with only piano accompaniment. (Maybe she did perform it in London and it will be on the DVD, if such a thing is ever released.)In sum, I have two words to say for this video -- "Buy it!"
Movie Review: Audra in concert
Summary: 5 Stars
Audra McDonald, the recipient of three Tony awards, is one of the leading lights of the American musical theater. This concert, taped last summer in London, is her first full length video release. It shows McDonald doing what she does best: singing standards and songs by contemporary theatre composers. Her interpretations are unfailingly smart and her musicianship is impeccable. Ted Sperling provides the excellent musical direction, as well as sensitive accompaniment. One of McDonald's strengths as a singer is in her ability to act each song, as if it were a one-act play. She becomes a different character for each number. The songs range from the down and dirty ("See What I Wanna See," "Beat My Dog") to semi-gospel ("Some Days") to the simply beautiful ("Bill"). Her performances reach you in so many ways: she pleases the ear and the eye, the brain and the heart. To see her sing in person is heaven. This tape is the next best thing.
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