West End actress and singer CASSIDY JANSON has teamed up with Amber Riley and Beverley Knight to form Leading Ladies.
This one-of-a-kind group of stage powerhouses has recorded an album called Songs From the Stage which features numbers from Beautiful, Dreamgirls, Memphis, Rent, Funny Girl and many more.
Cassidy recently wrapped up her run as Carole King in the award-winning bio-musical Beautiful and was also fortunate enough to perform with Carole King last year at British Summer Time Hyde Park.
Cassidy’s other credits include: Dessa Rose at the Trafalgar Studios, Candide and Tick, Tick… Boom! for the Menier Chocolate Factory, Blood Wedding at the Courtyard Theatre, Rooms: A Rock Romance at the Finborough, Company at the Southwark Playhouse, and West End productions of Lend Me a Tenor, Avenue Q and Wicked.
Here, Cassidy is in conversation with Tal Fox.
How did Leading Ladies come about?
It was all, as I found out a bit later, Beverley’s idea. My agent called me and said someone has been in touch from East West Records to ask if you would you like to do an album with Beverley Knight and Amber Riley.
I was a bit, like, what the hell? Then I said: “Yes, of course I would love to, where do I sign?” So that was the phone call from heaven as I call it.
Leading Ladies Cassidy Janson, Amber Riley and Beverley Knight
What is it like working with them?
Completely wonderful, they’re such gorgeous women. Beverley and I had said hello and knew each other from quick chats, but we had never worked together. To work with such talented and lovely women, and also the combination of us working together, is really special and organic, we harmonise really easily together.
There is something spookily natural about how we sing together and the tone of our voices blend beautifully. We had a really lovely, creative time. We all thought it would be good but we were taken aback with just how well it worked out.
How did you choose what songs would make the cut for the album?
We all sat around in the recording studio listening to lots of different tracks and saying “yes, no, yes, no”. It took a long time to get down to the actual album tracks because there’s so many good songs out there. We would think “Oh, we can’t not do that”, but then we’d have two songs serving the same purpose, so one of them had to go. We got there in the end and it was such great fun.
Do you all sing songs from shows you’ve been in or do you mix it up?
We mixed it up. I’m singing ‘A Natural Woman’ from Beautiful, but actually ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’ – which is also from Beautiful – is a three-part harmony throughout. Beverley is singing stuff that she’s sung as her solos from Memphis and The Bodyguard. Amber is singing stuff for her solos which she’s never sung, so it’s all a nice mix really.
What was your favourite song to record for the album?
I think we all had a really lovely time with ‘Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow’. When we were working out the harmonies we sat there and thought that this was very special. Even when I hear it back, even though I recorded it, I feel it’s really beautiful and I think people are going to very much enjoy that.
How was the Leading Ladies showcase when you performed songs from the album?
We thought we’d have a big response but the crowd was just going crazy for it; even the journalists who see this kind of thing all the time seemed excited.
We knew how each other worked in the studio, but we had never performed together. Suddenly I was looking to my left and there was Amber shining like a star, and I looked to my right and there was Beverley shining like a star, and we were giving each other “Go on, girl!” kind of looks. It was even more exciting than we had imagined.
Are there any more live performances in the Leading Ladies’ future?
Yes, we have a few things in the diary, and as of this moment things are being discussed about future performances.
There’s a Christmas song on the record, do you think you might record a Christmas album?
I think there’s talks of recording another album if this does well so we shall see. There is a Christmas song on the album so it’s kind of aimed at the festive time of year. Hopefully people will buy it for their Christmas stockings, that would be lovely.
What has been the most memorable moment or role in your career?
It’s going to have to be Carole King, singing with her at Hyde Park last summer. It was the most amazing concert, there was a crowd of 65,000, it was like a sea of people and we sang ‘I Feel the Earth Move’ at the end of her concert. It was just amazing. All the cast ran on stage and it was just an fantastic moment. Carole is so lovely and warm and to get to work with her just a little bit was a real honour.
What was it like playing her in Beautiful?
It was like a therapy, she’s so lovely, she’s so warm, and to take on her personality every night was such a lovely thing to reach for and hopefully attain. She thinks the best of people, she’s encouraging, and she doesn’t sweat the small stuff.
Our voices are in a very similar place, which is something she mentioned when we met for the first time. For me, singing in my true, natural way for two years was a real privilege, and to sing those great songs every night was a gift. It was one of those roles that fit perfectly, they don’t come along very often. I stayed for two years and I loved it.
Carole King visits Cassidy Janson during the run of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical. Picture: Craig Sugden
Did you feel any pressure playing someone who is still around?
There’s definitely a different level of consideration when playing someone who is still alive. Carole came to see the show in March, she surprised everyone. I was so shocked that she’d been watching and she said lovely things to me. I was portraying her life for a span of about 15 years and she said: “You were who I was, you felt what I felt, you were me.” For the woman herself to say that was very overwhelming. You do your best to portray someone and then that very individual gives you that kind of acknowledgment – it’s what you dream of as an artist, to get that kind of nod.
Did you sing together when she saw the show?
We all sang along to ‘You’ve Got a Friend’ at the end of the show. The audience members were going mad for it because they didn’t know she was there either. There are videos of it on YouTube.
Was this role quite different from fictional characters you’ve played?
Essentially approaching a role is always the same. In Tick, Tick… Boom! my character did exist to a degree but there was a slightly freer range to how I could create the character.
What other projects are you working on at the moment?
I’m writing a lot of music with different groups of people which is really exciting because I’ve not really been focusing on that for a while, so it’s fun revisiting that. I’m writing with two different groups of people: my album with a chap called Rupert Christie, and with other people on production albums.
Do you have any more shows lined up?
Not at the moment, just auditioning which is quite lovely actually. I had a nice audition the other day which was how you want all auditions to be, really warm, encouraging and fun. It makes it easier to do when the people are so personable.
What advice could you give young aspiring actors?
Make yourself known however you can. Do showcases, do stuff for free, you have to start somewhere. If you can’t get in a show then hire a small venue with a group of friends and put on a showcase yourself. Be very self determined and cause things to happen yourself, don’t wait for things to happen.
If you track back to how you got the big job in the West End, it’s often because earlier you met someone who got you your first agent, which then got you this job, which led to that job.
It’s always humble beginnings and you grow from those places. I’ve done musicals above a pub, I’ve done free work – when starting out you should certainly grab every opportunity you can can to get yourself on stage and visible.
* Songs From the Stage will be released on 17 November
www.eastwest1.lnk.to/LeadingLadiesSFTS
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Leading Ladies Beverley Knight, Amber Riley and Cassidy Janson launch new album – News
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