“Il Divo, A Musical Affair: The Greatest Songs of Broadway Live” is playing for just six performances at the Marquis Theater, and coincides with their release of a new album.
The group, which Simon Cowell of American Idol fame formed ten years ago, is made up of four attractive male opera singers. Few theater critics were invited to see this show, but those who did attend were disappointed, based on the reviews so far:
Joe Dziemianowicz, Daily News, “…often came off disconnected to what they were singing in their Broadway debut. It made for several murky versions of iconic theater songs…Garish projections during the show’s two hours — and three costume changes — didn’t do much to help….Die-hard Il Divo fans probably won’t mind. But musical theater lovers might shed a tear.”
Elysa Gardner, USA Today: “not a single selection from the calalogs of Cole Porter, Frank Loesser or Kander and Ebb. Or the contemporary, pop-savvy Stephen Schwartz, for that matter…you’d be hard-pressed to detect a rhythmic pulse in any of [the songs]. But the volume is seldom subdued, and when it is, you know that these guys are just gearing up to bang you over the head with another loud burst of garish color and vibrato….If A Musical Affair were a food, it would be a very heavy cheese.”
Stephen Holden, The New York Times, If nothing else, its performance on Thursday was a feat of vocal and robotic coordination.vAs these formally attired gentlemen moved up and down a staircase and grouped and regrouped on several different levels, the concert suggested a solemnly executed drill at a military funeral, with glamorous lighting….A measure of Il Divo’s vocal stamina was the failure of their special guest, Heather Headley, to match its standards. Ms. Headley is not a bad singer, just an ordinary one…Melody — stately, clumping, assertive, heavily echoed — ruled.
More reviews if and when they become available
Song list of their new album (not necessarily of their Broadway concerts):
1. Memory (feat. Nicole Scherzinger)
2. Can You Feel The Love Tonight (feat. Heather Headley)
3. Bring Him Home
4. Tonight
5. All I Ask Of You (feat. Kristen Chenoweth)
6. Some Enchanted Evening
7. Who Can I Turn To?
8. Who Wants To Live Forever
9. You’ll Never Walk Alone
10. If Ever I Would Leave You
11. Love Changes Everything (Michael Ball and Il Divo)
12. The Music Of The Night (Barbra Streisand with Il Divo)
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