Stage West Calgary - "British Invasion"

The Saturday Morning “Nobody-Asked-Me-To, But-Here-I-Go-Anyway” Review: Stage West Calgary’s “British Invasion”.

I suppose I’m going to have to start rethinking that title – I HAVE been asked to do this review, and will even be writing one officially for The Calgary Herald again (link to be posted here when that runs). I will also have interviews with the three stars of the show (pictured above from left Gerrad Everard, Melissa O’Neil, some old guy, and Terry Hatty) – available for free downloading over the next few days. What a great group!

OK, so…

Paul McCartney, Herman’s Hermits, Tom Jones, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Graham Nash, Rod Stewart, The BeeGees, Elton John – all British icons of pop music over the last few decades – all artists I’ve seen perform live. Although technically, I believe The BeeGees are Australian, but I will admit they do sound British…

The above are just a few of the artists who rode the waves of the original British Invasion back in the mid-60’s, and whose songs are included in this terrific retrospective, arcing over the past 40 years.

Buoyed by exceptional performances overall, with loads of laughs injected throughout, this production will appeal to both theatre-goers, AND fans of this swath of musical history – music that really changed the North American landscape. I might be closer to the actual demographic that lived through that generation than most of the cast members last night, but the effort put into recreating the era was ultimately entirely convincing.

Top-billed stars Terry Hatty (originally an East Coast music scene staple whom has even spent several years fronting The Guess Who), Melissa O’Neil (Season Three Canadian Idol winner), and Gerrad Everard (billed as a “local favourite”, but like Hatty has seen the world as a musician) were indeed standouts. Hatty killed on several solo performances, notably covering Clapton, Eric Burdon of The Animals, Robert Plant, and Freddie Mercury. This gentleman makes first-time listeners instant fans.

Charismatic Melissa O’Neil hit several home runs of her own, notably a trio of Dusty Springfield nuggets – “old soul” has become a cliché describing younger singers that interpret material with such compelling insight, but lacking any newer or better clichés, I’ll stick with that one.

And as for Mr. Everard – what a hoot! Adding comic dimensions to his ample vocal range for his roles, the man was a stand-out alone in his Mick Jagger sequence.

None of this is to suggest that the rest of the cast had any trouble keeping up with their top-billed colleagues. Sure, there were a few less-convincing covers of some songs, but there were far too many knock-outs to quibble. Some were rubbing shoulders with the headliners.

If you enjoy music and entertainment with your dining, and especially hearing some of the biggest hits and artists from 1964 forward, you will absolutely want to catch this production, running here in Calgary until January 24, 2010…

And check back here in the coming week, for that link to the Calgary Herald review, plus the interviews that will be available for your listening pleasure.

Chow for now!!