I recently had the pleasure of attending an Idina Menzel concert, compliments of One2One Network. Idina is best know for her Tony award winning role of Elphaba as well as the role of Maureen in Broadway's "Rent". Idina has just released her third solo albulm, "I Stand", and is touring the country to promote it. Like her albulm, her concert cannot escape Idina's Broadway training. Her stage presence and incrediblly talent voice has been nutured on Broadway, and has every bit of the quality you would expect from a Tony award winning actress/singer. Do not mistake that the tour or the CD is predictable though. This is no study in showtunes.
Idina's new album is pop. It is produced by Glen Ballard, who produced Alanis' CDs in the 1990s.The CD has exactly what you would expect from Idina: strong vocals that demonstrate her range both musically and stylistically. For the most part, the songs speak of empowerment and hope. "I Stand" is a classic pop ode to the things we find important and make us unique. "Gorgeous" has a catchy Latin vibe and show cases Idina's unbelievable voice. "Enemy" is a song about self sabotage that has a surprisingly edgy sound to both the vocals and the accompaniment.
Idina in concert is truly a feast for the ears. At times, she sings without accompaniment, or only acoustic guitar. Her voice will truly give you chills. This is not, however, a Broadway-esque, campy over the top concert. Rather, it is quite intimate. Idina interacts with the audience between each and every song. She relates the personal stories behind the songs and gives you a glimpse at Idina the Woman, not just Idina the Star. Throughout the concert, her "die hard" fans would yell out obscure bits of personal information in an attempt to let her know that she is "known". Idina never was irritated by this, and playfully bantered with the audience throughout the show. She even recreated her stints of being a wedding singer in the 80s, complete with big hair and sequined dress. The scene is quite humorous as she is singing her most requested wedding song, Whitney Houston’s "Saving All My Love" and pointing out that the song is about infidelity. She gaffed at brides picking this song for their first dance and admonished the audience to listen to lyrics before picking songs for such occasions. Overall, Idina in concert is entertaining, magical and not to be missed.
