An evening of Midnight Soul

Jun 04, 2015

Teresa De Gennaro and Diana Scalzi.

Midnight Soul brings together an interesting mix of soul, disco and modern songs originally performed by African-American divas from Aretha Franklin and Martha Reeves to Beyonce and Erykah Badu.

Show creators and performers Diana Scalzi and Teresa De Gennaro look fabulous and sing well, linking the songs together with occasional dialogue.

Both singers take their turn in the spotlight with individual leads, but the power of this performance is generated when Scalzi and De Gennaro join together and sing harmony. Their voices blend nicely and their on-stage interplay reveals great enjoyment in working together. This is evident in classics such as “Ain’t no Mountain High Enough” and “R.E.S.P.E.C.T”, which tops-and-tails a little medley mid-show.

There’s a nice synchronised dance routine on “Ain’t Nobody Loves Me Better”, and Scalzi puts aside her trademark stilettos for tap shoes on “My Baby Just Cares for Me”, much to the delight of the capacity audience at La Boheme.

The linking script, which could use some work, touches on soul music’s role in the civil rights movement, but doesn’t really develop the idea. There’s also a personal recollection by De Gennaro of her time in Los Angeles, singing at a late-night club session. Some quirky little distractions – such as late-arriving musicians and Scalzi’s mid-show phone call from “the boyfriend” – give audience members cause to pause, until you decide that this is part of the show.

A better-drilled, more lively backing band (guitar, drums, keyboard and sax) would be welcome, with the drummer providing any real spark. And the sound system upstairs at La Boheme needs upgrading for shows like this – at the very least with a fold-back system to allow the singers to properly hear themselves and iron out some occasional pitching issues.

Think of this as a work-in-progress that delivers an entertaining evening of fun and great songs, performed by two highly promising cabaret performers.

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There are further performances of Midnight Soul tonight (Thursday) and Sunday, 7pm, at La Boheme in Grote Street. The Cabaret Fringe continues until June 28.