Last week on Popstar to Operastar, we lost larger-than-life soul singer Jocelyn Brown who followed Midge Ure back into the world of musical obscurity. Last night it was poor Melody Thornton’s turn to be sent packing home by the judges. With just five contestants left in the show it is time for the remaining celebs to bring their A-game- but who is standing out from the crowd?
The first performance of the evening came from Buck Fizz star Cheryl Baker. Before taking to the stage to perform ‘Je Veux Vivre’ from ‘Romeo and Juliet’ the singer admitted that she was nervous about playing the part of a fourteen year old girl. However, when she thought back to her teenage days, she quickly found inspiration from a young boy she was once acquainted with (poor Simon Callow was only short of hearing her whole life story).
After her energetic performance in a vibrant pink dress, Simon told her: “That was fantastic. You have an absolute unique gift.” I definitely agreed with Katherine Jenkins when she said that there was a huge difference from Cheryl’s first performance to her latest one – hopefully she will keep the good work up. I was blown away by how well Cheryl hit those high notes, and I did think she sounded very professional. I do believe that she is one of the only contestants who are in the competition for a bit of fun, and not for a career boost. Work on giving that voice body girl (whatever that means), and you will make the top three!
After a quick ad break that conveniently promoted Rolando Villazon’s guide to opera cd, it was time for Toploader’s Joseph Washbourn. He narrowly avoided being voted off the show last week, and once again he made it into the bottom two. I find it quite difficult to read this cool laidback rocker as nothing seems to faze him, but I just don’t think he is bothered about being in the competition. I wasn’t a bit surprised when Joseph admitted that bringing humour to ‘Madamina il catalogo e questo’ from ‘Don Giovanni’ was the hardest part (someone needs to lighten up).
Although Rolando commented on how Joseph needed to work on “the colour of the voice,” Vanessa Mae was quick to pitch in that his performance turned her on (Cringe). I predict the Toploader star will be sent packing home next weekend as he seems to be the only contestant who is not progressing, and he doesn’t look like he is enjoying himself at all.
The third act to take to the stage was former Steps star Claire Richards, who seems to be a favourite among the judging panel. Initially I did empathise with the nervous performance, but it really is about time that she got back into her groove and stopped moaning (at least there were no tears this week). Claire went to see a group of up-and-coming opera stars in an attempt to build some confidence, and the session appeared to have benefitted her live performance.
As always Claire looked nervous before she began to sing, but luckily her gorgeous black sequinned dress distracted from shaky start. Following her performance of ‘Sempre Libera’ from La Travaita, a delighted Katherine stated: “That’s the performance I thought you were capable of in week one, and I’m so pleased you’ve found your opera persona.” It would be great if Claire could waltz out on stage next week and just go for it, instead of ranting and raving about how she hasn’t performed in such a long time (yawn). I am not her biggest fan, but she may just grow on me if she gets her act together.
Next up was Erasure’s Andy Bell who was forgot some of the lyrics to ‘Non Piu Andrai’ from ‘The Marriage of Figaro’ (in fairness I don’t blame him). He covered it up well by repeating the same line a few times, and I think Rolando was wrong when he said the performance was down to nerves. It looked like Andy just got a bit overwhelmed with the difficult lyrics, but apart from that I thought he was confident. At the moment, Andy blends into the background.
Former Pussycat Doll Melody was next to perform, and this week she revealed that she is extremely homesick. Despite looking beautiful in a voluminous ballgown and shiny tiara, Melody’s rendition of ‘Mon Coeur s’ouvre a ta voix’ from ‘Samson and Delilah’ was not good enough to keep her in the competition. I thought her performance was amazing, and above all I could tell that she was trying hard and putting her heart and soul into the song. I believe the judges got this one wrong – Melody should have been saved!
Last but not least was the wonderful Joe McElderry who sang a song from Giuseppe Verdi’s opera ‘Rigoletto’. I forgot just how infectious his personality was, and I found it difficult not to smile when he was performing. As always Joe nailed the performance and he showed that he has great control over his voice when he sings. I was dubious about whether he would hit the high note at the end, but was over the moon for him when he breezed through it.
Joe to win!
Laura Delaney
