Astounding Audra!

On the occasion of their 90^th anniversary, the Lansing Symphony Orchestra gave their audience a gift last Saturday night. The gift was singer and actor extraordinaire, Audra McDonald.

It was a festive evening, with the orchestra pretty much selling out the 2500-seat Wharton Center.

Maestro Timothy Muffitt chose two fine works to begin the program: the sparkling “Candide Overture” by Bernstein, and a rollicking new work by Bruce Stark, “Symphonic Dances”. These two pieces did the trick in terms of being energetic, melodic and full of life.  The orchestra had a bit of trouble with the breakneck tempo that Muffitt used with “Candide”, but it all worked out perfectly.

After intermission the diva, Audra, sashayed onto the Wharton Stage – a warm smile, a lovely demeanor and the audience swooned.

Let’s begin by saying that Audra McDonald is a bonified Broadway superstar.  Not only has she won six Tony awards, but she has displayed her acting chops on TV, Hollywood and Broadway. 

And on Saturday night she displayed her many gifts graciously.  It was a night of Broadway and Audra showed why she is the superstar she is.  First  on the play list was a beautiful, but rarely heard, ballad from “Fiorello” called “When Did I Fall in Love?”.

In this one song. McDonald showed us why a Broadway singer is different than any other.  She not only sang the song, she told us a story.  She acted the story. Her dark, lustrous voice was immediately astonishing. I know this song well, but I have never heard it like this before. McDonald dug deep into the lyrics to find more meaning than I ever knew was there. She transfixed the audience, and they never left her trance until one hour later.

She brought a trio with her (the drummer acted like Muffitt’s assistant director) but the orchestra itself did the heavy lifting.  And they did a beautiful job of providing lush chords to her amazing voice. This was best highlighted during the singing of “Climb Every Mountain” from the “Sound of Music”.

The warmth of her personality was evident throughout the show, telling wonderful stories of her family and the songs she sang.  Although many of the songs we’ve heard before (“Summertime”, “Over The Rainbow”, “I Could Have Danced All Night”, etc.) she gave each one her special signature, and sometimes invited the audience to sing with her (which they did with full voice).

McDonald is the whole package – a Julliard trained soprano, a brilliant actress, a bubbly personality and an amazing communicator.  The nuance and musical depth she gave these songs was breathtaking. The Wharton audience had a rare opportunity to hear an artist at the height of her artistic talent.

Throughout the evening I was entranced by her voice itself.  It was so rich and layered with color and emotion. But her love of performing and of the music itself enabled the voice to touch the audience in many ways.

Maybe the most stunning song on the program was a brilliant arrangement of ”You’ve Got To Be Taught” from “South Pacific” matched with “Children Will Listen” from “Into The Woods”. It was an inspired idea to pair these two songs expressing similar ideas and she sang it with a deep commitment to the message. 

It was a spectacular night for the Lansing Symphony. They brought in a diverse audience, many of whom do not hear the LSO frequently.  Hopefully they’ll return to hear more great music.

Bravo, LSO!