Dinah Was |
REVIEW by Willard Manus LONG BEACH,
CA -- Yvette Freeman makes a sensational Dinah Washington in DINAH WAS,
Oliver Goldstick's musical biography of the legendary r&b singer,
who fought poverty, parental abuse, diastrous marriages and racism in
climbing to the top of the showbiz ladder, only to die an accidental overdose
of diet pills and alcohol at age 39. |
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While she's waiting--and suffering--the play flashes back and forth in time, dramatizing the key points in Dinah's short but full and passionate life. Mixed in are numerous musical numbers which allow Freeman to show off her vocal chops on such songs as "What a Diff'rence a Day Makes," "Baby, You Got What It Takes" and "Come Rain or Come Shine." Freeman is backed by a five-piece band (led by Lanny Hartley) and a talented four-person cast who play a variety of roles. caryn morse desai directed this red-hot, scintillating production. At the International City Theatre, Long Beach Performing Arts Center, 300 E. Ocean Blvd. Call (562-436-4610 or visit ictlongbeach.com |