It's all about choices, confidence, personality and musicality - strung together with voice, dedication, commitment and originality.
Eden Espinosa, a Broadway star brimming with style, charm and talent to boot, exudes such refreshing, delightful and cheerful showmanship, it's easy to succumb to her breezy, commanding, reflective concert appearance and embrace her genuine love of performance, live audience harmony, improvisation and all things musical.
Adventurous, relaxed and playfully intimate, she lives for the moment, goes with the flow, bows graciously, takes chances and transitions from one vocal arrangement to another with unique, laidback cabaret artistry that is both consistent and delightful.
To hear her tell it, she wouldn't have it any other way.
Her voice is one that can do it all - giving way to music that can soothe your soul, make you smile and cheer with great impact upon hearing it.
On stage for Legacy Theatre's celebrated, intimate 2023 "Sunday Broadway Concert Series," Espinosa is quick to point out that she's never done "a matinee concert before." Nonetheless, she's ready to take the plunge and entertain everyone, joined by longtime friend, mentor, pianist, composer and musical director John McDaniel (a charismatic showman and abiding impresario) whose credits include "Busker Alley" with Tommy Tune, the 1999 Broadway revival of "Annie Get Your Gun" and the 2011 Broadway staging of "Catch Me If You Can" with Aaron Tveit.
What's exciting about Espinosa in concert is that everything she does is very real, very exciting and very much in the moment. Yes, things are rehearsed. Yes, the musical numbers are sequenced and chosen in advance. Yes, both she and McDaniel come to Legacy Theatre well prepared.
No matter.
It's all up close and personal.
Smooth.
Engaging.
Lively.
Captivating.
Likeable.
Effortless.
From the very first moment Espinosa takes the stage, she draws you in with grin, enthusiasm, melody and beautifully realized vital, harmonic interpretation.
And that, suffice to say, is what makes her "Sunday Broadway Concert Series" appearance alongside McDaniel ever so special.
Born and raised in Anaheim, California, Espinosa is perhaps best known for her portrayal of Elphaba in the Broadway, Los Angeles and San Francisco productions of Stephen Schwartz's Tony award-winning musical "Wicked." In 2004, she originated the lead female role in the Broadway production of "Brooklyn the Musical." Four years later, she portrayed Maureen in Jonathan Larson's iconic musical "Rent" and remained with the production until its final Broadway performance in January 2009.
Other musical credits include the Fairy Godmother in the Nashville Symphony Orchestra concert version of "Cinderella;" Eva Peron in "Evita;" Trina in the National Touring edition of "Falsettos;" and one of the Narrator's in the 50th Anniversary concert staging of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat."
For her Legacy Theatre concert engagement, Espinosa's setlist - an eclectic mix of Broadway showtunes, ballads, personal favorites and genuinely thrilling moments - is lovingly assembled with that special magic and special power that makes each and every one of her choices come to fruition with remarkable resonance, dazzle and exploration.
There are 11 in all, every one of them important to her concert story, its evolution and its stylish, personal conviction.
"Defying Gravity."
"I Miss the Mountains."
"Another Life"
"Ring Them Bells."
"Yesterday"
"Get Here."
"I Never Knew His Name."
"Holding to the Ground."
"Meadowlark."
"Look Around."
"A Quiet Thing."
Opening the "Sunday Broadway Concert Series" with "Defying Gravity," dubbed "the crown jewel" of the "Wicked" score, Espinosa kicks off her show with explosive heat and energy vocally portraying the truth, acceptance and potential of this signature song with genuine, showstopping bravura. "I wanted to get this one out of the way first rather than doing it at the end of the show," she confesses.
It's brilliant strategy.
And one that gives her concert its free-flowing, effervescent vibe.
With "I Miss the Mountains" from Broadway's "Next to Normal," Espinosa engagingly projects the heartache and aching abandon associated with this haunting ballad bringing just the right amount of personal emotion and intensely focused capability to her rich vocal telling. "Meadowlark" from "The Baker's Wife" is lush, romantic and big. "Ring Them Bells" by Bob Dylan, is rendered with gospel-driven inspiration, spirit and spunk. "I Never Knew His Name" from "Brooklyn the Musical" is rife with the imagination and poignancy of a remembrance, a reflection and a tender kiss goodnight.
When the music stops - if only fleetingly - Espinosa address the audience with wonderfully paced banter and reminiscences about growing up as a young girl in California; why she often declined but finally accepted the role of Trina in the 2019 National touring edition of "Falsettos;" the thrill, excitement and uncertainty indicative of live stage and concert performance; acting as standby for Elphaba in the original Broadway production of "Wicked;" and finally, workshopping "Brooklyn the Musical" before its short run on Broadway.
Candid, natural and unrehearsed, Espinosa's memories thrill and entertain with laidback reflection, flair, syncopation and originality.
Much to the delight of everyone in the audience at Legacy Theatre, a portion of her onstage concert also includes song requests from the audience which, depending on the title or the musical number itself, she could veto or willingly perform if she knows all the words, some of the words, the melody, the rhythm or the beat.
It's a great idea and one that allows Espinosa to engage in on-the-spot improvisation and creativity with her audience, matched by great musicality, dedication and in-the-moment engagement.
The best moments include "Don't Rain on My Parade" from "Funny Girl," "Popular" from "Wicked" and "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" from "Evita." Earlier in the show, there's also a very memorable vocal turn and duet with McDaniel titled "Get Here," harmoniously performed with engagingly, playful interaction.
Espinosa ends her show with "Look Around" and "A Quite Thing."
Both songs not only illuminate her vast vocal range and style, but her versatility as actress, singer and performer.
The voice is hers.
The pleasure is ours.
The experience of Eden Espinosa in concert is memorable, heartfelt and thrilling.
It's fruitful collaboration between artist, musician and audience that's delivered with the care, respect and admiration it so richly deserves.
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