Yesterday (3rd November 2012) I went to a Cabaret gig at St James Theatre, Victoria. Headlining was Hadley Fraser - you may have seen him in a show/ 25th anniversary concert performance somewhere. ;)
It was in the Studio, which is a very intimate space and perfect for the kind of chilled-out evening that this event was. I was seated in the Gallery (very comfy chairs) and looking down on the floor but I had a superb view of the stage. It seemed as if I was looking directly onto Hadley!
The show started about 8:45 pm and Hadley was joined on stage by Rosalie Craig (vocals), Tom Deering (Keyboards and Glockenspiel), Sonya Cullingford (violin), Nick Walsh (Double Bass) and Jim Field-Smith (Drums). The night got off to a bumpy start when Hadley's guitar started misbehaving and he had to swap with another and re-tune it. (Him singing to his guitar: "Please be a lovely guitar..." was hilarious!) Fortunately everything was sorted & a wonderful show began.
He played a great mix (most of his own tunes along with some covers) and I was astonished by the range and talent of this man. Seriously, if I hadn't known about his theatre work & someone had told me that this person was the same one who appeared as Raoul in Phantom 25th anniversary & as Javert in Les Mis I would have had trouble believing them! From his cover of Darrell Scott's 'River Take Me' to Scott Alan's 'Again' via 'Constellation Street' and 'Nureyev of SE19' it made for a very enjoyable evening.
Hadley & Rosalie were joined by a very special guest - one Mr Ramin Karimloo - to sing with them on the Sheytoons' track 'Driftwood'. They looked like they were having so much fun on stage together and the genuine friendship between them shone through for all the audience to see. I also must commend Rosalie Craig who, as well as complementing Hadley's vocals, rendered a sublime version of Tori Amos' 'Baker Baker'. I think 'Herne and the Red Kite' is one of my favourite Sheytoons' songs simply because Rosalie shares lead vocals with Hadley on it.
The rest of the band were amazing too, especially Tom Deering, who helped re-write/ re-arrange Furious Ball with a Ravel/ Debussy influence, and Sonya Cullingford who played the violin beautifully. To an outsider it may have appeared to be an ecletic mix of instruments and styles but it all sounded wonderful. Hadley and the rest were all professionals who got through the evening & provided a great night's entertainment, even though they had to change the set list a bit due to Hadley's misbehaving guitar. The finale was a rousing cover of Toto's Africa (please try and watch a video/ recording of this if you can!).
Afterwards everyone was hanging out in the bar area but I was too shy to approach anyone (yeah, damn shyness) so I just resorted to smiling & saying 'great show'. I do wish I had approached Ramin (& Steve), but there were too many people around him & I didn't wish to intrude. I also smiled at Rosalie when I bumped into her in the toilets! :P However, I wasn't to be completely disappointed on this score...
Later on, when Hadley Fraser was passing by me, he stopped & said, 'Hi Love', gave me a hug and thanked me for coming. He seemed genuinely pleased that I had made the effort and spent some time chatting to me and took a photo with me. I was just so happy that he had recognised me (from Les Mis SD) and acknowledged me and was willing to spend a few minutes with me. (My inner fangirl was doing a mad dance of jubilation.) A most happy ending to an amazing and enjoyable evening.
P.S. I did try and take some photos but I'm not sure how they turned out. I will try and post them as soon as I can upload them to my laptop.
