Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Sing Theatre’s A French Kiss in Singapore will run at SOTA’s Drama Theatre from November 27 – December 7 2013.
A French Kiss in Singapore is a musical revue, performed by Hossan Leong, George Chan, Robin Goh and Linden Furnell. The quartet of performers explore the love songs of four French composers: Charles Aznavour, Serge Gainsbourg, Jacques Brel and Charles Trenet.
The singers shine as they mix comedy and emotion with the love songs. Even Leong, whose vocals aren’t as strong and powerful as those of the others, delivers all his songs with such pathos (and often pain), that one can’t help but be moved by his performance.
Chan is the standout performer here as the seasoned veteran, effortlessly singing the hard notes and adding drama and humour to his delivery when appropriate. His performance of “The Wax Doll” in Dutch is something to listen to! Furnell also commands the stage with his smooth vocals and comedic moments, and Goh sings his songs with perfect pitch.
On their own, it’s obvious these guys are talented and skilled, but when the quartet is brought together on some of the songs, magic occurs on stage as their harmonies blend very well, as do their ensemble dramatics accompanying the songs.
Chan has to be applauded for this, as he serves not only as performer but also director and choreographer and is responsible for much of the acting-bodily-humour that comes out beyond the mere lyrics and melodies.
With such wonderful entertainment coming from the quartet dancing and singing from their hearts, the boys got a much-deserved standing ovation. It always amazes me to see such great talent on our local shores, but also makes me sad that we are just an island without a bigger audience because talent like these lads have needs to be unleashed to the world. So if you’re lucky enough to be in Singapore, you should do yourself a favour and catch this show before it ends.
