Emily Haig

The Pheasantry Pizza Express – 12 August 2019

By John Harvey

‘The Pheasantry’ in Kings Road, Chelsea is one of my favorite venues. Seating is at tables (well, it is a restaurant after all) set around a central low stage, giving a wonderfully intimate atmosphere with a chance for performers and audiences to interact in a way that is quite special. If you book early enough (I usually do) you can ask for a small table immediately in front of the stage (performers regularly place their drinks on these tables to be within easy reach) but even the most distant is probably no more than about 30 feet (9m) away from the stage.

Thus, one Monday evening in early August, I found myself in a prime position with coincidentally (or maybe not) two friends at the tables either side of me, comfortably satisfied after a bowl of delicious Pollo Pesto and eagerly anticipating Emily Haig’s grand entrance. Emily had already been through a little earlier in her curlers (the only way from the dressing room to the ‘facilities’ is through the restaurant – I did say it is an intimate venue, didn’t I?) and said hello.

The dressing room at The Peasantry is behind and above the stage with a grand sweeping staircase connecting the two. As the appointed time approached, David Harvey (no relation as far as I know) descended the staircase, sat at the Steinway and began to play as the lights came up. Emily made her appearance at the balcony at the top of the stairs and launched into a powerful Broadway-style number – which was new to me. I wrote down the first line “What’s a lady like me” intending to look it up later to discover the title. It turns out the title of this song by Murray Grand is, in fact, the same as first line.

Emily successfully navigated the staircase (not the easiest of feats, I am told, in a long tight dress and heels) to reach the stage during the song, and followed up with the somewhat more familiar ‘Broadway Baby’.

We then turned to the world of opera, with ‘Habanera’ from Carmen. A more familiar song perhaps, but there was no sense of complacency in the energy and sensuality which Emily brought to the performance.

Two Andrew Lloyd Webber numbers were next – ‘Unexpected Song’ and ‘Love Never Dies’, both beautifully sung with feeling. We were back to more traditional opera for the two Puccini arias which followed –  a playful ‘O Mio Babbino Caro’, and the intense ‘Vissi d’arte’ from Tosca.

On to Bernstein’s Candide for the spectacular ‘Glitter and be Gay’, powerfully performed by Emily encompassing the whole gamut of emotions. Emily doesn’t just sing a song – she lives it.

The next few songs from the world of Broadway are perhaps less frequently performed in a classical crossover context but were nonetheless welcome as I love to hear different music. These were ‘You Don’t Know this Man’ from Parade, Gypsy Rose Lee’s ‘Some People’, and Kurt Weill’s ‘What Good Would the Moon Be’ from Street Scene.

Perhaps the highlight of the evening for me was Gershwin’s ‘Summertime’. I could feel the goosebumps rising on the back of my neck as Emily’s voice glided sensually through the high notes.

A little light relief came with ‘Popular’ from Wicked, before turning on the emotions again for ‘With You’ from Ghost the Musical. ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ brought us back to safer ground before a delightful Trip to the Library – ‘She Loves Me’.

All good things must come to an end, but as the concert drew towards its conclusion we were brought to a high with a wonderful rendition of ‘Never Enough’ from The Greatest Showman, and ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ from Carousel.

You should never leave things on two Nevers, and sure enough the standing ovation and shouts of “More!” brought the hoped-for response with an encore of ‘Orange Colored Sky’.

All in all, it was a fantastic evening with a wonderfully varied selection of music from opera and musical theatre. There were enough familiar classics to leave the audience with that warm comfortable feeling, but some unusual and even unknown songs to make you sit up and take notice. Emily sings it all with such passion – living every line. Emily is definitely an artist worth making an effort to see. If you can catch her singing an anthem at a sporting event, that’s great, but if you get that rare opportunity to attend a full-on Emily Haig concert then I suggest you grab it with both hands.

Learn more about Emily Haig
emilyhaigsoprano.co.uk