Cabaret Scenes Theatre Review

How far can "The Three Tenors" theme go? After Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras' 1990 spectacular debut concert in Rome's Baths at Caracalla, the original trio worked the idea assiduously, entertaining mass audiences with flashy opera favorites. The Three Tenors sang at major sports events, recorded DVDs and CDs, sang Christmas songs, and inspired an Al Hirschfeld sketch. Derivatives groups were inevitable — DIVOs, The Three Sopranos, Three Tenors and a Soprano, Irish Tenors, Canadian Tenors, Tenor Australis, Three Chinese Tenors and Broadway Tenors.

Have tenors gone as far as they can go? Obviously not: Three Mo' Tenors is making a stop at the Little Shubert Theatre continuing their own world tour throughout the United States, Canada, Scotland, and Armenia. Their variation takes three African-American tenors, gives them several centuries of music and a chance to show their versatility at the Little Shubert Theatre, barely off Broadway. Their job in Three Mo' Tenors is to take their audience through ten musical genres, including opera, theatre, pop, blues and gospel. Marion J. Caffey conceived, directed and choreographed the show, and while it cannot include everyone's favorite song in each style, the segments are slickly segued and the show moves with vaudevillian pizzazz.

Due to the demanding vocal requirements, two different casts alternate performances. Some of the songs are rendered by the three tenors together, such as the opener, Verdi's La Donna e Mobile. For other songs, soloists are featured.Cast 1 on my night consists of Kenneth Alston, Jr., Ramone Diggs, and Phumzile Sojola. Alston describes himself as a countertenor in contrast to the two lyric tenors. As a countertenor, Alston can zoom to higher ranges and occasionally reaches sweetly celestial soprano heights. He uses his head voice, and sometimes falsetto; in the opera section, he shows his ability with Handel's Ombra Mai fu. The warmest, most mellow tones of this trio belong to Ramone Diggs, who sings "Le Reve" (Massenet). Energetic and theatrical is South African Phumzile Sojola, who delivers Verdi's "Questa o Quella."

After the brief opera segment, the tenors switch moods into theatre territory. Two highlights include Diggs and Sojola's standout duet from Les Miserables, the poignant, Bring Him Home, with occasional updated references like "Bring her home". The trio's combined vocal virtuosity tackled the drama of "Make Them Hear You" (Ragtime), also updating that message. The singers end Act 1 with a roof-raising, crowd-pleasing medley of The Lion King's "Circle of Life" and South African love song, "Dai Wam," led with heartfelt enthusiasm by Phumzile Sojola.

Act II features various medleys from Queen, Ray Charles, soul and new soul, sometimes amusing, like invoking the Pips' "Midnight Train to Georgia," sans Gladys Knight, adding signature moves by the pop groups. A spiritual medley features compelling performances, each singer taking notes into flamboyant spheres. Alston proves himself a substantial R&B shouter while Diggs reaches deepest into the emotional side of a song, using his satiny tones with earnestness.

Joseph Joubert is credited with the music supervision, arrangements, and orchestrations. Accompanying the singers is musical director Keith Burton on piano, with a quartet behind the scrim to kick up the energy. The vocal power is occasionally overblown by the use of head mikes in the small theatre. Michael Carnahan's set is effectively simple with a small staircase and platforms for working the stage with Caffey's deft choreography and the ambiance of Richard Winkler's mood lighting.

Originated in 2000, Three Mo' Tenors is a show directed more toward pop audiences than classical. This trio of tenors is more comfortable with the sounds of soul just as the talented Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras were more compelling with arias than with "Singin' in the Rain." There is no denying that the performances of Three Mo' Tenors are delivered with good humor and a sense of fun, encouraging audience participation, even interruptions. If this is your thing, feel free to clap, dance, and sing along to your heart's delight. The show leaves the Little Shubert Theatre on January 27, 2008.

Elizabeth Ahlfors
Cabaret Scenes
October 24, 2007
www.cabaretscenes.com



	Three Mo' Tenors Little Shubert Theatre New York, NY
How far can "The Three Tenors" theme go? After Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras' 1990 spectacular debut concert in Rome's Baths at Caracalla, the original trio worked the idea assiduously, entertaining mass audiences with flashy opera favorites. The Three Tenors sang at major sports events, recorded DVDs and CDs, sang Christmas songs, and inspired an Al Hirschfeld sketch. Derivatives groups were inevitable — DIVOs, The Three Sopranos, Three Tenors and a Soprano, Irish Tenors, Canadian Tenors, Tenor Australis, Three Chinese Tenors and Broadway Tenors. Have tenors gone as far as they can go? Obviously not: Three Mo' Tenors is making a stop at the Little Shubert Theatre continuing their own world tour throughout the United States, Canada, Scotland, and Armenia. Their variation takes three African-American tenors, gives them several centuries of music and a chance to show their versatility at the Little Shubert Theatre, barely off Broadway. Their job in Three Mo' Tenors is to take their audience through ten musical genres, including opera, theatre, pop, blues and gospel. Marion J. Caffey conceived, directed and choreographed the show, and while it cannot include everyone's favorite song in each style, the segments are slickly segued and the show moves with vaudevillian pizzazz. Due to the demanding vocal requirements, two different casts alternate performances. Some of the songs are rendered by the three tenors together, such as the opener, Verdi's La Donna e Mobile. For other songs, soloists are featured.Cast 1 on my night consists of Kenneth Alston, Jr., Ramone Diggs, and Phumzile Sojola. Alston describes himself as a countertenor in contrast to the two lyric tenors. As a countertenor, Alston can zoom to higher ranges and occasionally reaches sweetly celestial soprano heights. He uses his head voice, and sometimes falsetto; in the opera section, he shows his ability with Handel's Ombra Mai fu. The warmest, most mellow tones of this trio belong to Ramone Diggs, who sings "Le Reve" (Massenet). Energetic and theatrical is South African Phumzile Sojola, who delivers Verdi's "Questa o Quella." After the brief opera segment, the tenors switch moods into theatre territory. Two highlights include Diggs and Sojola's standout duet from Les Miserables, the poignant, Bring Him Home, with occasional updated references like "Bring her home". The trio's combined vocal virtuosity tackled the drama of "Make Them Hear You" (Ragtime), also updating that message. The singers end Act 1 with a roof-raising, crowd-pleasing medley of The Lion King's "Circle of Life" and South African love song, "Dai Wam," led with heartfelt enthusiasm by Phumzile Sojola. Act II features various medleys from Queen, Ray Charles, soul and new soul, sometimes amusing, like invoking the Pips' "Midnight Train to Georgia," sans Gladys Knight, adding signature moves by the pop groups. A spiritual medley features compelling performances, each singer taking notes into flamboyant spheres. Alston proves himself a substantial R&B shouter while Diggs reaches deepest into the emotional side of a song, using his satiny tones with earnestness. Joseph Joubert is credited with the music supervision, arrangements, and orchestrations. Accompanying the singers is musical director Keith Burton on piano, with a quartet behind the scrim to kick up the energy. The vocal power is occasionally overblown by the use of head mikes in the small theatre. Michael Carnahan's set is effectively simple with a small staircase and platforms for working the stage with Caffey's deft choreography and the ambiance of Richard Winkler's mood lighting. Originated in 2000, Three Mo' Tenors is a show directed more toward pop audiences than classical. This trio of tenors is more comfortable with the sounds of soul just as the talented Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras were more compelling with arias than with "Singin' in the Rain." There is no denying that the performances of Three Mo' Tenors are delivered with good humor and a sense of fun, encouraging audience participation, even interruptions. If this is your thing, feel free to clap, dance, and sing along to your heart's delight. The show leaves the Little Shubert Theatre on January 27, 2008. Elizabeth Ahlfors Cabaret Scenes October 24, 2007 www.cabaretscenes.com

Three Mo' Tenors

Little Shubert Theatre New York, NY

Little Shubert Theatre
New York, NY