Sarah Drake and friends bring a fundraising musical revue to YouTube for one night only, and it proves to be a vibrant collection of show classics and pop numbers.
An American who now makes her home in London, Drake acts both as a link between the performances and singer of some numbers herself. She displays a fine voice, an ease with the camera, and a pleasing personality as host.
With songs from Next to Normal, Cabaret, The Prince of Egypt and Godspell rubbing shoulders with numbers from Bill Withers and Whitney Houston, there is enough variety here to showcase both musical numbers and those who perform them from their homes.
I continue to be fascinated by the minimalist homes of singers and musicians, and wonder idly what has been pushed out of sight of the camera: I know in my house you’d be hard pressed to find a bare wall or bookshelf. Performing from home set-ups has become far more professional over the year of lockdown, and despite a few variations in sound level, there is a generally high standard of filming throughout There Will Be Light.
The revue has a positive message about theatreland reopening and coming back to life, from Drake’s invitation to ‘raise a glass’ at the start to the atmosphere created through a thoughtful curation of numbers.
At some forty-six minutes, this show introduces some new names who are surely worth watching as their careers progress. Although all are accomplished singers, I would highlight Tavia Rivée, Tiffany Chalothorn, Emma Salvo and Solomon Jaye as performers who I particularly enjoyed. There’s also a fab duet between Drake and Rebecca Stenhouse from Mean Girls which shouldn’t be missed.
The other performers on the show are Michael Tacconi, Alex Lodge, Rebecca Gilhooley, Nick Hayes, and it is dedicated to Drake’s father, who passed away in 2020.
You can donate to the 14 charities which comprise Acting for Others here, or purchase The Show Must Go On merchandise here.