Review: DOM HARTLEY-HARRIS: LIVE IN LONDON, Crazy Coqs
Earlier this week, we had the privilege of watching West End superstar Dom Hartley Harris’ first ever solo concert at the gorgeous Crazy Coqs, produced by one of our favourite producer teams, New Frame Productions. Crazy Coqs bring us a high pedigree of musical theatre performers in a cabaret environment, providing a truly unique musical experience.
The concert was plainly named “Live in London” but there is nothing plain about Dom’s voice or talent. He is undoubtedly one of the best voices that musical theatre has to offer and he showed that on Wednesday.
The set list was beautifully varied, ranging from Motown, to swing, to songs from some of Dom’s most memorable musical theatre roles.
Opening with a mind blowing rendition of Nina Simone’s ‘Feeling Good’, we were then treated to songs such as ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ and ‘You’re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You’.
What made the night truly special was the intimate and often humorous looks and insights into Dom’s musical journey throughout his career and the whole audience were totally onboard from the outset.
We also had a special guest appearance from musical theatre favourite Maiya Quansah-Breed, who performed two stunning duets,: Gregory Porter’s ‘Water Under Bridges’ and a unique and vocally golden rendition of ‘I’ll Cover You’ from Rent. Their voices gelled together as sweet as honey and perfectly complemented one another.
Our personal favourite numbers were three songs from roles that Dom would like to play one day, and proved that he would be a sure fire bet for any of them for all you casting directors out there: ‘Stars’ from Les Miserables, ‘Wait For It’ from Hamilton and our song of the night, a rendition of ‘Make Them Hear You’ from Ragtime, which absolutely brought the house down.
On the piano was the musical mastermind Chris Poon; we couldn’t think of a better pairing for a concert like this. Two current stars and two future legends in the making.
Dom’s vocals are flawless and he’s an effortless leading man. We weren’t ready for the concert to be over and could have listened to his silky tones all night. Bravo to everyone involved and we hope this isn’t the last solo concert we see.
A charming, sophisticated and utterly wonderful evening
***** Five stars
Reviewed by: James Edge
