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Brittney Lee Hamilton
November 16, 2015
In spite of her diminutive size, red hair, and brassy delivery, Brittney Lee Hamilton has never played Annie, but has been cast as a child well after her teens. Her love/hate response to this situation inspired her New York cabaret debut, “No, I’ve Never Played Annie,” which recently ended its run at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.
The program included a number of songs from shows featuring child roles, many of which she has played. Martin Charnin and Charles Strouse’s score to the show she’s never played showed up throughout the evening: an opening medley, a bit more mid-show, and her closing number. There were a lot of interesting song choices to be heard and some funny ideas, like a recreation of the mix tape of her Broadway wishes, called the “Toddlers and Tiaras medley,” which she had played in her car as a teen; it included “Born to Entertain” (Marvin Laird, Joel Paley, from Ruthless), Annie‘s “NYC,” and “Let Me Sing and I’m Happy” (Irving Berlin). I liked her pairing “Castle on a Cloud” (Claude-Michel Schönberg, Alain Boublil, Herbert Kretzmer, from Les Misérables) with “I Know Things Now” (Stephen Sondheim, from Into the Woods) to recreate her marijuana-fueled loss of virginity in a car after visiting a 7‑Eleven, complete with a Big Gulp cup, a bag of chips, and a post-coital cigarette.
Hamilton has the right voice for the material, and the idea of the opener held promise, but she was forever interrupting songs with forced patter, so things tended to feel incomplete. She also suffers from a far too common fault in the current cabaret scene: lack of good microphone technique. She held the mic so high and so close that she essentially hid her mouth from us, and even worse, distorted the sound of her voice. It took on a hollow quality that did not serve her or the material well. Might I suggest to her, and to any other singer planning a cabaret show, that in rehearsal they sit at a ringside table and have a friend, an associate, or even one of the wait staff stand center stage and hold the microphone at various heights. It will be readily apparent what the right choice should be.
Perhaps because this was her debut, she worked too hard and was too “on” all the time. She did all the feeling for us, and in such big broad strokes that we didn’t get to participate. Even the patter was delivered in a heightened, rapid-fire intensity that flattened both the humor and the warmth. At a moment that should move us in “No One Is Alone” (Stephen Sondheim, from Into the Woods), the catch in her voice seemed more an acting choice than an honest emotion.
When Hamilton told us about her proposal, she loosened up a bit and delivered the story in natural time and volume. Even better, when she finally got to “Tomorrow” from Annie, she embraced a terrific, non-cliché arrangement by her musical director, James Cunningham, and really enjoyed herself—and lo and behold, she allowed us to enjoy it as well. It was a delightful close to the show.
“No, I’ve Never Played Annie”
Laurie Beechman Theatre – October 5, 14, November 6
Gerry Geddes has conceived and directed a number of musical revues—including the Bistro- and MAC Award-winning "Monday in the Dark with George" and "Put On Your Saturday Suit-Words & Music by Jimmy Webb"—and directed many cabaret artists, including André De Shields, Helen Baldassare, Darius de Haas, and drag artist Julia Van Cartier. He directs "The David Drumgold Variety Show," currently in residence at Manhattan Movement & Arts Center, and has produced a number of recordings, including two Bistro-winning CDs. He’s taught vocal performance at The New School, NYU, and London’s Goldsmith’s College and continues to conduct private workshops and master classes. As a writer and critic, he has covered New York’s performing arts scene for over 40 years in both local and national publications; his lyrics have been sung by several cabaret and recording artists. Gerry is an artist in residence at Pangea, and a regular contributor to the podcast “Troubadours & Raconteurs.” He just completed a memoir of his life in NYC called “Didn’t I Ever Tell You This?”
In spite of her diminutive size, red hair, and brassy delivery, Brittney Lee Hamilton has never played Annie, but has been cast as a child well after her teens. Her love/hate response to this situation inspired her New York cabaret debut, “No, I’ve Never Played Annie,” which recently ended its run at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.