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An Evening with Lorna Luft
Venue: Fairfax Studio at The Arts Centre
Reviewer: Jacqui Bunting
Date Reviewed: 3rd May, 2008
While most thespians are all too familiar with the legend of Judy
Garland and the career of her daughter Liza Minelli, few are aware
that youngest daughter, Lorna Luft, has forged her own television
and stage career. Not surprising then that she began her recent show
at the Fairfax Studio with the Walker/Arnold classic ‘You Don’t Know
Me’.
Sitting amidst a crowd of predominantly middle-aged men in the
occasional silk scarf and the odd fur-clad red-lipped female hanger
on, one couldn’t help but have high hopes; the result of marketing
material trading heavily on Lorna’s heritage with phrases such as
“at last she is returning to Oz to belt out a few showstoppers - as
only one of her pedigree can”. While this certainly serves to get
bums on seats, the inevitable comparisons to her mother and
half-sister ultimately leave Ms Luft looking as though she belongs
back at the ‘South City Junior Leagues Club’ in Sydney (the location
of her first Australian gig) singing for “shrimp-eating teenagers”.
They say, ‘it’s not how you start its how you finish.’ - lucky for
Lorna. The opening number had me uncomfortably shifting in my seat
as a panic stricken Ms Luft battled to find her pitch, sending
wide-eyed desperate glances to her musical director/accompanist
husband, Colin Freeman. Apparently this was due to inadequate
foldback - strange considering she had completed an afternoon show
at which you’d assume the levels had been set. Luft managed to
partially redeem herself with the Act One finale, a highly
entertaining ‘Johnny One Note’ signalling a welcome change from an
uninspired hour including a tribute to former brother-in-law Peter
Allen and an original take on South Pacific’s ‘A Cockeyed Optimist’
done in the style of poignant tragedy. Whilst I am normally a fan of
obscure interpretations of classic musical theatre standards, trying
to relate lyrics such as ‘I could say life is just a bowl of Jello…but
I’m stuck like a dope with this thing called hope’ to the war in
Iraq just didn’t work. You know something is lacking when the woman
next to you at interval remarks, “Do you think she’s wearing
stockings? I wonder what brand they are, they really blend with her
shoes” rather than commenting on any aspect of the performance.
It was only when she tackled material from her UK Show, Songs My
Mother Taught Me that Luft found some spark. Her renditions of
‘Chicago’, ‘The Man That Got Away’ and ‘Rock a Bye’ were polished
and performed with the confidence and pizzazz expected of a show
charging $75 a seat. I couldn’t help but wish that she had brought
the show over in it’s entirety (which she has since decided to do)
because the snapshot she presented was completely engaging and all
too short-lived. In contrast, ballads such as Jerry Herman’s ‘Time
Heals Everything’ and Arthur Hamilton’s ‘Cry Me a River’ lacked
impact due to the absence of raw emotional energy. In a 2004
interview, Lorna described her childhood as a time that had
“incredible highs and then mellowed out and then went into a
landslide”, so if anyone has a range of emotion to draw from it’s
her. Yet at times the show felt like cabaret by numbers (i.e. woman
in front of microphone staring into distance + spotlight + torch
song + tear = wow!) Because of this, up tempo numbers such as ‘It’s
Today’ and her Oscar medley of all the songs never nominated were a
welcome change from the ballad heavy repertoire. There was just
no…magic.
On a positive note, Ms Luft looked great. Act One saw her fabulous
legs on display in a blue tiered satin dress and sky high flesh
heels before changing into a fitted black suit with sequined collar
for Act Two. Very classy wardrobe choices set off to great effect by
the simple mood lighting.
On the whole Luft is likeable which is more than one can say for her
husband who spent the night banging away at the piano with a face
like a slapped arse surrounded by five lacklustre Aussie musicians
who looked like they’d rather be at the pub. The band often drowned
out Luft’s lower register which could have been rectified by the
sound technician. In contrast, her impressive belt voice was loud
and clear and used to great effect for a lot of ‘big finishes’.
To say I was shocked at the standing ovation is an understatement.
Perhaps people were on their feet because of some allegiance to the
brilliance of her mother. Perhaps their predetermined decision to
have a great night took hostage of reality. Perhaps they plain and
simply just loved it. After watching a show billed as “exclusive
and intimate”, one should’ve left the theatre having had some sort
of insight into the life and emotions of Lorna Luft, the offspring
of the most tragic and talented songstress of the MGM era. Instead,
I walked away unmoved, still not knowing who she is.
Jacqui Bunting is an accomplished performer having completed a
Diploma in Musical Theatre at Tshwane University, South Africa. She
has performed with numerous Melbourne theatre companies including
CLOC, Devanesen Productions, Waverley Theatre and Just Pretending
and was most recently seen as Cassie in Whitehorse Musical Theatre's
A Chorus Line and as a member of the ensemble in The Producers.
Jacqui Bunting is currently studying ‘Professional Writing and
Editing’ at RMIT University
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