Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris--Live performance

Thanks to a friend of mine, I was able to attend the opening night of Jacques Brel... at the Theatre Conservatory of the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. I've long had a fascination with this show and the songs of Brel, so a chance to see it live was greatly appreciated. I've previously discussed listening to the original cast album and seeing the film version.

The musical theater program at Roosevelt is strong, and as evinced by the cast of 21 in this review, deep. There are also clearly capable, creative faculty and staff leading the young casts and creating the productions. Brel is the perfect show to expand into a large cast from its roots as a review for 4 singers. That expansion here has been ably handled by stage director and music director--both on the faculty at the school. The arrangements of several songs in the show to incorporate a chorus were particularly impressive--I wonder if these versions are available for other productions?

The inclusion of a bit of narration about Brel and the world he came from (along with quotes by him and about him) was kept to a minimum and provided good transitions between songs, allowing the cast (all of whom were on-stage for the entire show) to re-set their positions.

I was particularly impressed by the strength of the singing voices in the show--these were kids who clearly have vocal training and are learning the mechanics of their voices. While several upper registers were not yet fully developed, no one had vast breaks between registers, and most singers handled the transition between registers very well. A particular treat was hearing unamplified voices, which could be accomplished in the relatively small confines of Roosevelt's O'Malley Theatre. As I have done in the past, I do not wish to mention any student performers by name--it would be unfair to criticize performances in a non-professional setting--but several in the cast are worthy of mention and deserving of professional careers in the near future.

Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris

Music and lyrics by Jacques Brel (this is what the program said, but I question this; I thought Brel wrote the lyrics and had several composers he worked with)

English lyrics by Eric Blau and Mort Shuman

A lively and accomplished cast of 21 undergraduate students

Live performance at Roosevelt University's Theatre Conservatory

This production only plays one weekend through Sunday, November 22, 2009.

So hurry.