It was a sunny and lovely Palm Sunday afternoon in Houston and it seemed like the perfect time to get musically reacquainted with the talented Lone Star Lyric group, founded many years ago by its leader, Kelli Estes. In the interests of full disclosure, I must confess that Kelli and I are longtime friends from her days back in New York, at a time when we even briefly shared the stage together on one amusing occasion at THE LAMBS Theater Club in The Big Apple. But enough about me!
Long known for their increasingly popular shows at Houston’s Ovations nightclub, this new LSL production was a kind of celebration of a new venue for the group, THE GORDY THEATER complex in Houston’s tony Upper Montrose neighborhood. The comfortably modern house sports 3 theaters, including the modest “black box” Levit theater for this performance, as well as two larger theaters, the 200 seat Smith and the 250 seat Sterling. (More about that latter one in a moment.) There is even a lobby bar and adjacent car garage. And who wouldn’t enjoy a house with a sound system that gently sprinkles you with the likes of Satchmo and Ella Fitzgerald as soon as you enter the spacious lobby?
The fun got underway as the onstage band showed its skill with the very jazzy, “Yardbird Suite.” (Debner Franks on piano, Alan Simmons on Bass, Bobby Adams on Drums, and multi-talented Ernesto Vega on sax, clarinet and flute). That terrific warm-up paved the way for the bright arrival of one of the group’s former regulars, Sarah Brindley, who had been away, as she described it, “raising babies” for a period of time. Her performance would begin with as much sparkle as her glittering black dress, which seemed adorned with all the stars in the sky. And speaking of sky, she quickly launched into a joyful. “Blue Skies” that was nicely decorated by solo moments on sax from Ernesto.
Kelli then brought a smooth transition to, “Night and Day,” that was dressed up by a touch of skat singing. And speaking of dresses, do I dare mention that the statuesque Ms. Estes’ elegant, knee-length frock revealed a very handsome pair of gams. (Apologies to any offended wokesters out there). Next came the arrival of longtime LSL fan favorite, the deep-voiced bass baritone, Stephonne Smith. Quickly establishing a good-humored rapport with the audience, he reflected on his youthful visits to Harlem and the Cotton Club in years gone by. He went on to tip his hat to Duke Ellington with a velvet smooth, “Satin Doll,” nicely enhanced by solo moments from Ernesto on clarinet.
Sarah returned with with a perky and Roaring, “It’s Only a Paper Moon,” that had great piano highlights from Debner. Then, in a flash, Stephonne returned with a deliciously seductive, “Masquerade,” showcasing his uncanny ability move smoothly between vocal octaves.
Kelli’s rhythmic and Latin-flavored, “East of the Sun,” then took on a special glow from the soft and ever-changing colors of Jim Elliot’s lighting designs warmly embracing the cast throughout the show. Sarah had fun demonstrating how her young daughter enjoys a soft and tender “All of Me” lullaby at bedtime, while her rowdy younger brother prefers a more noisy version of the same song. The audience enjoyed both.
As Stephonne began a rich and thoughtful rendition of, “Everything Must Change,” he mentioned being influenced by singer, Arthur Prysock. Readers may want sample that singer’s influential style on YouTube. Closing out Act One, with eyes sparkling like the gleaming rings on her fingers, Kelli had a pleasant assist on saxophone for her bright, “Fly Me to the Moon.”
ACT TWO would have plenty of deights of its own with Kelli weaving a musical tapestry for the song, “Misty.” Sara offers an elegant transition with, “As Time Goes By.” Stephonne arrives with a “Say It Over and Over again,” that is so richly mellow, if he weren’t standing right there in front of us, one might think such a perfect vocal was being manipulated in the control room.
Sarah delivered a spry, “Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, and then the band took over the room for the show’s title tune, “Just in Time.” Alan dazzled the crowd with dancing fingers on the bass, and Debner matched him on the eighty-eight amid feisty drumming from Bobby and spicy clarinet from Ernesto. As if that wasn’t enough excitement, there would still be time for the Latin-flavored rhythms of Kelli’s, “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was,” Sarah’s bouncy, “Summertime,” and the zany, wild man antics and hilarious body language of Stephonne’s, “Tain’t Nobody’s Biz-ness If I Do.”
Wrapping things up, Kelli and Sarah seemed to transform themselves into a couple of Red Hot Mama’s for a jazzy finale of, “Blues in the Night.” But one thing is certain. No one in that cheering audience was experiencing the blues on such a joyful night of music.
Coming soon from Lone Star Lyric
Many readers are probably familiar with the two decades of excitement that have surrounded composer, Stephen Schwartz’ multi-award-winning Broadway musical, WICKED, which has now moved on to major Hollywood success with the recent release of the blockbuster film version, and a “Part II” slated for release next year.
Now, Lone Star Lyric is proud to announce its forthcoming collaboration with Mr. Schwartz himself for this summer’s Regional Premiere of his 2009 Opera, Séance on a Wet Afternoon, based on the novel by Mark McShane and the Screenplay by Bryan Forbes. Performances will be in the aforementioned Sterling Theater of the beautiful Gordy Complex on July 9*, 10, 11 @7:30PM & July 12@ 2:30PM *Opening Night reception with Stephen Schwartz. Check this summer for tickets & information: LONESTARLYRIC.ORG
The columns of David Dow Bentley III have appeared on Broadway websites, in newspapers from the East Coast to the Gulf Coast, and may be viewed online at the website: www.ThePeoplesCritic.com. E-mail may be directed to ThePeoplesCritic3@gmail.com
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