A musical art gallery of Broadway composers
Christine Carrillo
As part of a musical salute to Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein
II and Andrew Lloyd Webber, the Pacific Symphony Pops has
collaborated with a trio of Broadway stars for two nights of musical
revivals at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa.
With 11-year principal conductor Richard Kaufman at the helm, the
three well-versed soloists -- Doug LaBrecque, Jodi Benson and Ron
Raines -- combine forces to present the familiar songs of the famed
lyricists.
LaBrecque is known for his work in “The Phantom of the Opera,”
while Benson has been immortalized as Ariel in “The Little Mermaid.”
Raines played the lead in a recent Broadway revival of “Showboat.”
“I think the singers are terrific,” said Kaufman, a Grammy
Award-winning conductor. “And the audience, for them it will be like
going to see 15 Broadway shows in one night.”
The concert, which has its last performance tonight, will also
celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Rodgers, who was best
known for his collaborations with Hammerstein.
The trio will begin the tribute concert by singing selections from
a few of the American composers’ collaborative efforts, selections
from such musicals as “South Pacific,” “Oklahoma” and “The King and
I.”
“I think it’s been really a wonderful opportunity to sing their
music,” said LaBrecque, who was featured in Hammerstein’s 100th
birthday celebration. “You feel like you really delve into their
songs. The amount of care that they’ve taken with every lyric written
... it does evoke a kind of simpler time.”
With a career that began with a high school rendition of Rodgers
and Hammerstein’s “South Pacific,” LaBrecque never knew that his
musical talents would have granted him the success his career has had
thus far.
“It was just my little niche,” he said. “When I sang, people
seemed to appreciate it, and at that age, that’s all I needed.”
Just as Rodgers and Hammerstein kicked off his career, Andrew
Lloyd Webber has employed LaBrecque for a good portion of it. He
conquered the roles of the Phantom and Raoul in Webber’s “The Phantom
of the Opera.”
LaBrecque, who has starred in a number of other Broadway roles,
admits that this type of performance carries the challenge of
performing in character, but without props or costumes.
“You always have to be driven from the character -- that always
takes precedence,” LaBrecque said. “We all try very hard to imply the
character as we sing.”
But the soloists aren’t the only ones to face challenges.
“I think the orchestra responds as any fine ensemble does. They
take it off the page and play and do it with great passion,” Kaufman
said, adding that the 65-piece orchestra will only have a 2 1/2-hour
rehearsal with the trio.
“Hopefully it won’t be difficult,” he said. “Fortunately, the
musicians in this orchestra are really excellent.”
The tribute concert will also salute Webber’s contributions to
Broadway.
“It’s all different,” Kaufman said. “It’s kind of like going to an
art gallery with a lot of musical paintings.”
All the latest on Orange County from Orange County.
Get our free TimesOC newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Daily Pilot.