To Diva Or Not To Diva: A Most Eclectic Selection – Cabaret Fringe Review

Crown & Sceptre, Fri 26 Jun What do you do when you’ve got the heart of a diva and an amazing, versatile, and classically trained voice that can do Broadway, rock’n’roll, or opera, but maybe aren’t sure which direction to turn? Well, if you’re Tahlia Ries, you put together a Cabaret Fringe show that allows you to showcase all of those talents at once! And as a bonus, when you write your own show, you don’t have to dance if you don’t want to! Such is the impetus for To Diva Or Not To Diva, a splendid and captivating vehicle for the charming Tahlia to do whatever she wants, and it turns out that what she wants is mostly to sing the hell out of some challenging standards with the piano accompaniment of Musical Director Emma Knights. Whether she’s taking on Regina Spektor’s Musicbox, belting out Stephen Sondheim’s Broadway Baby, reinterpreting John Lennon’s Real Love, or even forgoing the microphone to present Dvorak’s Song to the Moon, Tahlia’s voice was a finely tuned instrument, and a genuine treat to enjoy. Early on in the show, Tahlia explains that she has finished school and is pursuing her diva dreams, but is unsure of her career path, so she tries on various approaches which double as song themes, indicated by a casually-flipped stack of signs, like “Broadway Baby,” “The Teacher,” and, “LOVE.” For the teacher section, Tahlia explained that she’s been teaching vocal lessons to children and demonstrated by directing the audience’s attention to the laminated lyric sheet on our tables, inviting us join in a rendition of The Sound of Music’s Do Re Mi, which was great fun for everyone. It’s not every day that you get to see a genuine and well-studied talent in action, and this is a fine opportunity to support a rising star. Matt Saunders  To Diva Or Not To Diva continues at the Crown & Sceptre Hotel on Sun 28 Jun.  Book at TryBooking.com. Click HERE to purchase your tickets.