Opera star expands range
Few words in the English language are more feared to the average MTV-fed American than "opera." With that in mind, Alison England wants to make it clear that her one-woman show is nothing to be afraid of, despite the presence of the dreaded word in the title.
Calling from Paris (where she was appearing at the city's opera house), England said "Normal, everyday people who would see 'opera' and run like hell for the hills have told me (afterwards) that they didn't want to come because the show said 'Opera, Broadway & Beyond.' But as soon as they were into it 10 minutes, they were wanting to call their friends and tell them to see it."
'Opera, Broadway & Beyond'
Featuring Alison EnglandWhere: Hawaii Theatre
When: 7:30 p.m. tomorrow
Tickets: $40 ($100 VIP tickets include admission to post-show reception with England)
Call: 528-0506
Yes, Hawaii's opera community will remember seeing England here last year when she played Musetta in Hawaii Opera Theatre's production of "La Boheme," but the aforementioned show she's bringing to the Hawaii Theatre tomorrow night is something else entirely.
Quoting a recent review of her show, England said: "'Anyone who stayed away from the recent concert because the dreaded word "opera" appeared in the title made a serious mistake. England not only had a tremendous wide-ranging talent, but she can also sell a song.'" Another writer described England's show as a blend of Maria Callas, Carol Burnett and Judy Garland.
"Nobody that comes in with a fear of opera is gonna leave with it. No one who comes in loving opera is going to be disappointed," England added, now speaking for herself and thinking perhaps of the opera fans who enjoyed her work here last time. Selections from some of her favorite operas, Broadway classics and pop hits will be part of the program.
"It's a wonderful melange of every musical style and my crazy, insane way of explaining what's going on in the scenes (the songs come from). Everyone will feel like they have gone from Point A to Point Z by the end of the evening. I go out front, I meet my audience, I'm in the audience, I talk to my audience. It's a big love feast, besides the great music ... It wrote itself in my mind and I am bringing it out into the world."
ENGLAND encourages audience participation, inviting questions "about anything" after the intermission, and has fielded everything from marriage proposals to queries about her age.
When an obviously well-read man commented during one show that she hadn't sung something that he expected to hear in the program, England replied, "Don't go any further," and sang it for him on the spot.
Aside from the support provided by her pianist and longtime friend Sandra McCune, the show is very much her own creation.
"I design my own lights. I do my own choreography and all the stuff in the show came out of a moment of improvisation with an audience, so that's another thing that's really, really special."
England traces her love of show tunes, pop standards and comedy back to her formative years in New York City.
"I grew up with jazz and musical theater, and my voice happened to be classical ... and I have been thrown into all kinds of different melanges of entertainment. It's just in me to do all of it.
"Most people like to put you in a box and say 'If you're in this box, I understand you -- well, so stay in this box.' But every time I try to do only one thing, it never, ever works for me. The United States goes, 'You can't sing opera and cross over,' but it's not in my being to be any less than everything."
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