Maria Friedman in Concert – Cadogan Hall

Maria Friedman was in Concert at the Cadogan Hall, London

Maria Friedman in Concert at the Cadogan Hall, London.

Internationally acclaimed singer and actress Maria Friedman expanded upon her ‘Lenny & Steve’ show, first produced at the Matcham Room at The Hippodrôme last year, for the musical theatre concert series at the Cadogan Hall.

Friedman has long been associated with Stephen Sondheim, the relationship starting in 1990 with her playing Dot in Sunday in the Park With George at the National Theatre. By all accounts, they seem to have a jokey, bantering friendship based on mutual respect, and given Sondheim’s early partnership with Leonard Bernstein, this was a good choice of material, allowing us to chronicle the different styles, subject matter and musical forms the composers developed over the decades.

In this carefully structured show, songs were sometimes grouped according to the musical they originated from and others by association of ideas. Occasionally, she sang an item in character, such as ‘100 Ways To Lose a Man’, but for the most part she chose to sing as herself, putting her own stamp on the material. An example of this was the love-song medley of ‘A Little Bit in Love’, ‘In Buddy’s Eyes’, and ‘I Have a Love’.

Despite the large size of the venue, Friedman managed to make everyone feel included and the space seem intimate. Her singing, while displaying exemplary breath control, is not big and brassy. If anything, it is more ‘legit’ in sound. Nor does she resort continually to belt technique. It is her storytelling, expression of yearning and intensity, and dramatic interpretive skills that distinguish this artist. Her renditions of ‘Lonely Town’ and ‘Being Alive’ should not be missed.

The combination of her vocals and the accompaniment from her long-time collaborator Jason Carr results in a collection that stirs the senses and delights throughout.

I have seen, and written about, many cabarets and concerts and not many artists move me to tears. With ‘Losing My Mind’ and ‘Send in the Clowns’ especially, Freidman never failed to do so. If you have not seen her in concert, your education is lacking.

 Fiona-Jane Weston