The Voice of the Rainbow

The musical started off with wonderful overture played by the orchestra: conducted by Rob Berman. The lights dimmed down as the orchestra flowed in with its lovely music. The sweet sounds of the string instruments with the beautiful harmonies of the wind instruments were delightful. Every the musical lines were played very legato to evoke the sense of happiness, romance, and glee. Its as if the music enchanted us all. It really helped set the mood for the audience while entertaining our ears us at the same time.

The magnificent music continues with the chorus, or in this case the sharecroppers. But this time it is a more playful yet powerful sound. They sang This Time of the Year to intimidate the evil senator’s henchmen. The emotions evoked from the song not only translated to me through words but also by the music. This song had a more patriotic sound to it especially with the help of the brass instruments. The strong parts made them sound more threatening while the bouncy and jazzy parts made it lively. The sounds produced by the chorus were superb and moving. It really got the message through to the two henchmen and the audience.

On top of the great sharecroppers this musical had, they also had amazing soloists. The two protagonists, Kate Baldwin and Cheyenne Jackson, who played Sharon McLonergan and Woody Mahoney respectively, were a dynamic duo. Ms. Baldwin’s voice was extravagant; it rivaled most of the Broadway sopranos that I have ever listened to. On top of that, she sang in an Irish accent. Her first solo, How Are Things in Glocca Morra?, was extremely touching. She swept through all the notes with ease and really brought out the dynamics in the song. Her piano parts were probably my favorite because it really complimented her sweet romantic voice.

As Sharon’s counterpart, no doubt Cheyenne Jackson would have a voice to match. His voice was as charming as his character. Together with Kate Baldwin’s voice, the two were phenomenal. They complemented so well together. Mr. Jackson’s tenor voice with had a suave quality that complemented Ms. Baldwin’s sweet soprano voice perfectly. They sang Old Devil Moon, and I was completely mesmerized by their voices. The song was so romantic and they swaying voices made it even more lovely. Resembling the song, it was like they’ve “got me flyin’ high and wide, on a magic carpet ride.”  It was really an amazing duet done by a terrific duo.

It seems that this show did not need the luck of the Irish because they had pure talent. Every voice just added to the gold pot of beautiful sounds that they poured upon the audience. Rob Berman’s music is truly a work of art and the performers definitely embellished it more. In the musical there is a song called, Look to the Rainbow. The rainbow may look beautiful but in this musical, it sounds even better.