REVIEW DURBAN SUPPER THEATRE: 'TAKEFIVE' - Gisele Turner

The Rhumbelow Theatre in Umbilo was packed to the gills for the closing performance of ‘Take 5’, a musical revue featuring five beautiful, talented ladies. These excellent musicians took to the tiny stage and sparkled with energy and enthusiasm; each individual was given her chance in the spotlight, and all of them came together for some tight, well arranged harmonies. It was a treat! - Gisele Turner

The five musicians featured in ‘Take 5’ each have something special to offer this excellent show. The beautiful Shelly McLean, who has countless successful productions under her belt, lent an air of relaxed experience, which held things together lightly, but firmly.  Her confidence at the piano and her vocal versatility made her the natural leader. Dependable Tory Du Plessis also showed self assurance and experience at the keys and her musical voice was strong and well modulated. 

Haylea Hounsom has a clear soprano and was equally at ease with light opera as with the more popular repertoire; she also drew the eye with her expressive face and body language and her enthusiastic interpretation of the lyrics. Tammy Saville, with her unusual sultry looks, brought her exquisite contralto to the party, adding depth to the harmonies and delight to the solos. Youngest of the five, the lovely Chloe Clark, offered a strong and versatile voice as well as ingénue poise and energy.  They performed in various combinations, taking turns at the piano, the guitar and a little percussion as well.

As to the repertoire, the songs flowed easily into each other, with successful changes of energy and range as well as emotional content. Included in the programme were medleys from tight harmony group The Carpenters, nice arrangements of classics like Somewhere over the Rainbow, a selection of Tracy Chapman’s fabulous songs with Tammy doing the solo honours on Fast Car and a little African medley that included Waka Waka which showed off the sweet potency of Chloe’s voice. There was a lilting rendition of Ave Maria and Adele’s really lovely Make you Feel my Love from a shiny-eyed Shelly.

There was also fun and games with the famous-gone-viral Cup Song (When I’m Gone) from the movie Pitch Perfect, which was done by the whole group  who managed the tricky rhythm and the sweet bluesy song perfectly. Warmed up and glowing, the quintet then moved into the closure of the programme with a challenging musical round which included the Chordette’s lively version of Lollipop. A generous encore in the form of Michael Jackson’s I Never Can say Good Bye  brought an evening of fabulous entertainment to a close  and the audience to their feet.

The programme was well thought out, not only to showcase the range of talents but to please a wide range of listeners. This was evident in the generational demographics in the audience which had many more young faces in the crowd than I have seen before at Rhumbelow. As this is a wonderful and well established venue, it’s highly likely that tireless musical promoter Roland Stansell can expect some fresh talent knocking on his door. And meantime, the group, ‘Take 5’, will be out and about so don’t miss them!