After the joys of concert #1 and concert #2, the third and final part of Graduates at Cadogan Hall wraps up this brilliant enterprise in fine style. Ameena Hamid Productions and The Grad Fest’s online showcase for 40 2020 and 2021 theatre graduates has been a delight to watch, a reminder of the breadth of talent out there who will rightfully be chomping at the bit to get careers started once we’re further down this infernal roadmap.
And it has been excellent across the board too. Musical director Sam Young does frankly astonishing work from the piano, sounding engaged and responsive to each and every one of the grads across a wide range of styles. And Andy James’ lighting design creates vivid backdrops throughout which you can see look fantastic in Danny Kaan’s shots below – click on each one to read a mini-review of their performance.
-
Amelia Atherton
-
Ayesha Patel
-
Ben Joyce
-
Beth Mabin
-
Bibi Jay
-
Cassie McCluskey
-
Darcy Finden
-
Gabe Hampton-Saint
-
Kingsley Morton
-
Markus Sodergren
-
Megan Cerys Holland
-
Nardia Ruth
-
Nathan Shaw
Amelia Atherton
Spamalot’s ‘Diva’s Lament’ serves Amelia Atherton extremely well in showing off a wry sense of humour to accompany some fine belting vocals. Her enunciation is particularly fine, ensuring we understand every syllable of Eric Idle’s lyrics.
Trained at Performance Preparation Academy
Ayesha Patel
Jekyll and Hyde’s ‘Someone Like You’ is one of those gorgeous musical theatre power ballads that you can’t quite believe isn’t much better known, especially when it is sung as beautifully as it is here by Ayesha Patel (who legit gave me goosebumps with her ‘aliiiiive’).
Trained at Mountview
Ben Joyce
There’s a suppleness to Ben Joyce’s voice that would make him a pleasure to listen to regardless of the song. Here he’s gone for the charismatic ‘Moving Too Fast’ from The Last Five Years and Joyce proves himself a highly engaging performer throughout.
Trained at Mountview
Beth Mabin
There’s a beautiful stillness to Beth Mabin’s aching rendition of Sondheim ‘I Remember’ from Evening Primrose, an elegance that speaks a profound understanding that when the material is good, it doesn’t need to be sold. A richly emotive performance marks Mabin out as one to watch,
Trained at Royal Academy of Music
Bibi Jay
I defy you to watch Bibi Jay’s performance here and not fall at least a tiny bit in love with her. A great song choice – ‘Don’t Wanna Be Here’ from Adam Gwon’s Ordinary Days – allows her to explore a quirky and adorable characterisation that just beams off the stage. A strong debut indeed.
Trained at London School of Musical Theatre
Cassie McCluskey
Certainly not afraid of going ‘Into the Unknown’, Cassie McCluskey clearly has cojones in tackling the massiveness of this Frozen 2 classic (side note: though why does no-one ever pick ‘Show Yourself’? I think it’s a better song). McCluskey does well to cope with the demanding intervals and take the few opportunities there are to push a little bit of character in there too.
Trained at Mountview
Darcy Finden
Ooh, a fascinating choice here. Darcy Finden goes for ‘Natalya’ from Dave Molloy’s Preludes (soon to return to the Southwark Playhouse) and whilst it’s hardly a crowdpleaser, it is a darkly interesting song which is packed full of colour and emotion in a highly captivating performance from Finden.
Trained at Mountview
Gabe Hampton-Saint
With Kait Kerrigan & Brian Lowdermilk’s ‘Hand in Hand’, Gabe Hampton-Saint dusts off his finest lilac suit and unleashes a rather fine vocal performance full of easy charm that makes me want to cast him in Avenue Q.
Trained at Mountview
Kingsley Morton
RIpping through Blondie, Leann Rimes, Adele and Queen and back in a couple of minutes in a Moulin-esque medley, Kingsley Morton runs the gamut of vocally challenging pop and impresses, particularly with the brightness of the top end of her range.
Trained at ArtsEd
Markus Sodergren
Taking on as intricate a song as ‘Marry Me A Little’ from Company is no small feat but with the boldness of youth, Markus Sodergren works a sweetness into his rendition here that makes Sondheim feel unusually tender.
Trained at ArtsEd
Megan Cerys Holland
Adele’s songs often have the sense of being on the edge of high camp so Megan Cerys Holland’s choice of ‘Turning Tables’ actually kinda work, as she amps up the theatrical storytelling in the song. Through expressive use of her arms and a beautifully rich timbre, there’s a quiet beauty here that resonates.
Trained at Arden School of Theatre
Nardia Ruth
It’s a brave soul who invokes the memory of the Gal Gadot-helmed celebrity cover of ‘Imagine’ almost a year to the day but Nardia Ruth’s impassioned and soulful take quickly erases that with a superb performance full of warmth and power. And what a fricking fantastic accompanist she has in Sam Young on the piano – a musical standout of the entire series.
Trained at Royal Academy of Music
Nathan Shaw
It’s a skill in itself to make you listen anew to familiar material. I can’t lie, I am no real fan of Chess, but the way in which Nathan Shaw builds layers of intensity in ‘Pity the Child’ certainly made me pay attention. I still don’t like the song but I’d be interested in hearing Shaw again!
Trained at Performance Preparation Academy
