Whiskey-a-Rainbow, October 31, 2012

Week 7

Stuart Munro

Dear friends, seven weeks have gone by and we are almost at the end of our journey. There’s only one week left after this and we will all know who our Dorothy is! According to Mr. Lloyd Webber, it’s the eleventh hour, Canada, and it’s up to us! On this stormy night, I can’t tell you how happy I am to be safe and dry in my apartment with a nice glass of Forty Creek to warm me up.

The always dapper and dashing Daryn Jones introduced our top four as they sang Journey’s “Don’t stop believing” (sigh). Stephanie had some pitch problems off the top, whereas AJ seemed calm and comfortable with the song. Danielle showed some real rocker feistiness, while Colleen again sounded under-supported and untrained. Altogether, the four voices don’t blend well, but thankfully we only really care about how they sound individually. And who choreographed this thing? Terrible . . .

All three judges talked about how hard this penultimate episode was with four wonderful girls left. Andrew Lloyd Webber should be back with us next week, but after this week, the decision is 100% up to the voters.

She sounded good (not great, but good)

ALW has, of course, been watching every episode (he is producing the thing after all) and is giving us a bit of a glimpse into his opinions of each girl. He called Stephanie a “Dark Horse” but very special, and he didn’t understand how she ended up in the bottom two last week. This week she sang “Cabaret” (which worked wonders for Elicia MacKenzie when she was competing to play Maria in The Sound of Music). She sounded good (not great, but good) and performed the Fosse inspired choreography well. But the whole thing was disconnected and smacked of going through the motions. It lacked the grittiness and despair that the song requires. Arlene said she’d come further than any other girl in the competition and that she gave a great performance. Louise agreed, but wanted her to keep her commitment through every line. She may’ve improved the most, but I still don’t think she’s playing on the same level as some of the other girls.

About Colleen, ALW said that he adored her but worried that she didn’t have the stamina for eight shows a week. Her interpretation of “Somewhere” from West Side Story had some pitch problems off the top, and she only really seemed to connect with the song right at the very end. Louise thought it was vocally beautiful, but didn’t believe the performance. Tom loved her voice, but felt it lacked passion, perhaps because of her youth. Arlene said her qualities might better be suited for film, despite her elegance and grace, and said she could be a huge star one day.

When it comes to AJ, ALW feels she’s fabulous, but he’s not positive she’s right for Dorothy, calling her brassy (not a bad thing, but maybe not a Dorothy thing). He nonetheless thinks she’s very talented. (Also, her brother, who was in the audience tonight? Totally handsome.) Her version of “All that jazz” from Chicago was fiery and sexy, and she moved almost as well as the trained dancers around her. Every move, every note, and every choice was clearly thought out, and yet seemed perfectly natural. She may not be exactly the Dorothy we all have in mind, but she’s one of the best all around performers I’ve seen in a long time. To quote Thom, “Wow.” Thom and Arlene both feel she pushed it a bit hard vocally (which is fair) and that she needs to let us come to her a bit.

Thom simply called her “the real thing.”

ALW thinks Danielle is fantastic and talented, but worries she lacks the vulnerability to be Dorothy. To that effect she’s hoping to bring a softer side to the competition this week. After meeting her family briefly (she also has a handsome brother), Danielle sang “I dreamed a dream” from Les Misérables for us. It may not have been her strongest performance vocally, but the emotion and honest pain in her eyes was more than enough to sell it for me. Arlene said she was “a Niagara of praise” for her, but that she pushed just a little too hard at the end. Louise loved how different her approach was to the song and that she could easily watch Danielle on stage. Thom simply called her “the real thing.”

The girls took a field trip to the Ed Mirvish Theatre this week (which was a bit surreal for me since I worked there on and off for a number of years) and met the rest of the cast of the show they’re hoping to star in. Then, just for fun, they each had to sing “Over the rainbow” for their fellow future cast members as well as David Mirvish himself. Stephanie was delightfully sincere, but clearly nervous. AJ managed to back off a bit and give something a bit more Dorothy-like, while Colleen was again criticized for not opening up enough. Danielle pushed it a bit hard at first, but ended softly and sweetly.

The episode ended with a performance of “Seasons of love” (again, sigh) that had some ridiculous choreography attached to it. The girls all got a chance to shine, but AJ and, to a lesser extent, Danielle were the only ones who really managed to convince me they have the consistency and professionalism to play this role eight times a week.

Canada and I didn’t totally agree, but what else is new? Colleen and AJ found themselves in the bottom two this week, both for the first time. Arlene gave specific advice to each girl before they launched into “No matter what” from Webber’s Whistle Down the Wind. If AJ didn’t really present the “youth” that Arlene was looking for, it didn’t matter. Her performance was leaps and bounds better, both vocally and intention-wise, than Colleen’s. Louise believed every aspect of AJ’s performance and praised Colleen’s vocals (what is she hearing that I’m not?), and Arlene said both girls were bursting with talent and that she appreciated AJ’s control. In the end Colleen went home. Colleen sounded the best she’s ever sounded while singing “Over the rainbow,” and if she’d managed to have that same purity and sweetness throughout the whole competition I might be sadder that she was leaving. Nonetheless, I think it was the right decision.

Next week, and we’ll all know who our star is!