Sapphire Soul – London Hippodrome

Sapphire Soul performed at the London Hippodrome

Sapphire Soul performed at the London Hippodrome.

Deciding on a set list for their recent inaugural performance at Leicester Square’s Hippodrome Casino, fiery female vocal trio, Sapphire Soul and Black Sapphire Productions must have had quite a creative quandary before plumping for what was a pretty interesting mix of ballads, up-tempo numbers, and of course, a few old cabaret standards.

Collectively, Lisa-Marie Holmes, Sejal Keshwala and Laura Tebbutt pack serious vocal punch, each bringing their own substantial performing experience, diverse personalities and musical influences to the table.

Clearly intent on showcasing as wide as possible a repertoire – a disco and Aretha Franklin medley were both performed in the first half – they also had the wisdom to break up the music, squeezing in some genial banter on how the group had come about, chatting about the creative synergy between them, what drives them and how they chose the act’s name.

If them covering ‘I Will Survive’ seemed like very old cabaret hat, then that was thankfully counterbalanced by two great solo numbers during the first set – Prince’s ‘How Come You Don’t Call Me’ from Keshwala and then a fabulously slinky version of Whitney Houston’s ‘Saving All My Love For You’ from Tebbutt.

The latter was described during the show as having a voice ‘that belts so high only rare breeds of dogs can hear her’. As it panned out, canine qualities were not required of the audience. Incidentally, her colleague Seshwala is dubbed the ‘soul sister’ among the trio, and Holmes the ‘powerhouse’. As entertaining as the first half was, being a light entertainment review veteran, I wasn’t totally convinced that come the break I’d really witnessed anything very different from a fair few acts on the circuit.

But, that opinion changed with Act II when thankfully the piano on stage, which had so far just been gathering dust, was employed to great effect by Peter White, on the keys for a few numbers and clearly loving being on stage with Sapphire Soul.

Once the opening number, ‘One Night Only’, which has been done to musical death, was out of the way and with White poised over the ivories, what followed – a medley from Little Shop of Horrors; an intricate, sublime cover of Somewhere Over the Rainbow; then a West Side Story homage – moved the show up a good few notches and into an altogether more interesting league.

When it came to Holmes’ turn to be in the solo spotlight, performing Streisand’s ‘The Woman In The Moon’ – she’s performed as Streisand in the UK tour of You Don’t Bring Me Flowers – hers was a charismatic, charming and perfectly performed musical cameo.

Sensing a palpable, growing, almost tidal wave of appreciation from the increasingly lively audience, there was no stopping the trio now going into vocal and dance move overdrive, a Bond medley (cue some patriotic lighting) being one of the highlights of a high-energy, hugely enjoyable finale.

For a first performance (directed by Sarah Ingram), this was ultimately pretty impressive. One aim of the group is to apparently target the high-end cruise ship market – life on the ocean waves is going to a whole lot more fun if these dynamic divas are on board.

Derek Smith