Photo: Alan Cumming
Currently appearing in the television series The Good Wife and with numerous film roles under his belt, Alan Cumming is equally at home on the stage, where he has won numerous plaudits for his work, including an Olivier Award for Accidental Death of an Anarchist, and a Tony Award for his performance as the Emcee in a 2014-15 revival of Cabaret. He is also a New York Times best-selling author, a fact he pointedly mentioned during his performance while playfully fishing for applause.
In Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs, Cumming – accompanied by music director and arranger Lance Horne on piano and guest musicians on cello and percussion – covers songs by artists as diverse as Kurt Weill and Miley Cyrus, Stephen Sondheim and Adele, interspersed with an array of charming, amusing and moving anecdotes.
As a storyteller, Cumming excels; he is warm, wicked and witty, whether discussing his dark family history, the unusual placement and colourful origins of his one and only tattoo, or titillating the audience with showbiz secrets passed down by his friend, Liza Minnelli, who encouraged him to stage this very show. Even the occasional moment of faux-spontaneity in what is clearly a well-rehearsed show didn’t distract, though given his acting skills, Cumming may perhaps need to work a little harder at making such moments seem truthful instead of affected.
Cumming is less impressive as a singer. His reedy tenor is pleasant but not powerful, and its limits are quickly apparent in some numbers, such as a mash-up of pop singers Adele, Lady Gaga and Katy Perry, or a thin but passionate cover of Kander and Ebb’s ‘You, You, You’ from their musical The Visit.
His vocal limitations are less obvious in works Cumming has a personal connection with, such as Michael Marra’s ‘Mother Glasgow’ or Rufus Wainwright’s ‘Dinner at Eight’ (which Cumming dedicates to his violent, abusive father); songs he successfully imbues with emotion and drama.
Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs is inspired by Cumming’s year hosting a mini-nightclub, ‘Club Cumming’ in his dressing room during the revival of Cabaret on Broadway, and is comprised of songs Cumming likes. More focus on songs which suit his range would make Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs a stronger evening musically – not that such quibbles seemed to concern his fans, who were quick to give Cumming and his band a standing ovation on Wednesday night. And with such a charming, roguish raconteur on stage, such faults are easy to forgive.
Rating: 3 ½ stars out of 5
Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs
Arts Centre Melbourne
5-7 January 2016
Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent, Hyde Park North
As part of the 2016 Sydney Festival
8-9 January
