From the Heart review: Meet Don Black at the Garrick Theatre

Elena Leo is the Culture & Lifestyle Editor of Ikon London Magazine.

An 80-minute songbook show, as perfect as a child’s smile on a sunny spring day.

The genre dictates that, as a reviewer, I am required to save the verdict for the end. But this one simply can’t wait.

From the Heart is brilliant. Go and see this show.

That is, if you like exceptional songs by Oscar-, Tony- and Ivor Novello Award-winning lyricist Don Black; performances by a finely tuned ensemble of high-calibre West End and Broadway talent; and a surprise appearance by a superstar — the one and only Michael Ball, who joined the cast for press night.

He delivered, of course, “Love Changes Everything” — the song that helped change his fortunes in 1989, spending 15 weeks on the UK singles chart. But the lyrics to that song, and all the others in the show, came from the golden pen of Don Black — a familiar metaphor, but a particularly apt one for the man who also wrote “The Man with the Golden Gun”, one of his five James Bond themes.

Born Donald Blackstone in South Hackney in 1938 (which, according to Don, probably happened only twenty years ago), he went on to write the lyrics to some of the best-known songs in film and theatre history, including “Diamonds Are Forever”, “The World Is Not Enough” and “Surrender”, featured in Tomorrow Never Dies. His work also includes “Born Free” and “Ben”, Michael Jackson’s solo hit after the Jackson 5.

Working with stars has always been part of Mr Black’s life — and the list reads simultaneously like a Hall of Fame roll call and pub-quiz trivia. Shirley Bassey, Tom Jones and, of course, Andrew Lloyd Webber, with whom he created Tell Me on a Sunday, Aspects of Love and Sunset Boulevard. And then there is the younger generation of singers and songwriters, including Gary Barlow, Natasha Bedingfield and David Arnold, whose music features in the show.

From the heart is not just a celebration of Black’s career achievements, but also of the art of songwriting itself. Lyricists are often less celebrated than the singers or composers they work with, but Black deserves his laurels for a very particular skill: knowing how not to add unnecessary, clunky syllables to a melody, but instead hugging it in precisely the right places, like a couture garment.

He must be a good man to know, judging by the almost family-like atmosphere in the audience on press night and by his 60-year marriage to his wife Shirley, who, as he confessed, had long been encouraging him to create a show like From the Heart.

And perhaps this is the key to understanding the format of From the Heart, which features many of Black’s best-known songs alongside newer material; in a sense, he has been writing this show throughout his professional life. Billed as a tribute to the New York cabaret scene, it seeks to keep alive the spirit of a closer relationship with the audience, even though we are in a West End theatre rather than a club.

Director Nick Winston (Bonnie & Clyde, Loserville) cleverly uses recordings of Black’s soft voice as a kind of confessional narration, guiding us through the stories behind the songs and some of the significant professional and personal milestones of his life. At 80 minutes, with no interval, the show moves at a good pace, offering just enough context without slipping into memoir territory.

Winston’s vision is supported by the wider creative team, particularly the costume and lighting departments, which ensure that the songs come first, without unnecessary distractions. The two musicians, perched on a rostrum at the back of the stage, and the five performers are dressed predominantly in black. An occasional chair or cabaret-style table appears, but that is quite enough. The rest of the work is done by Ben Cracknell’s superb lighting, which creates intimacy when needed. It is a masterclass in creating space with light.

And, of course, there is the magic five: Caroline O’Connor, Michael D. Xavier, Shona McGarty, Frances Mayli McCann and Clive Rowe. Experienced, talented and perfectly in synch, they are as fine in their solos as they are when performing in harmony. Their timing is impeccable; they bounce off each other with ease and know how to hold an audience’s attention. The songs flow seamlessly into one another, building towards a brilliant final medley. Not a false note, not a wrong step: the performances are fluid and energetic. The result is an evening that looks effortless, but is clearly anything but.

Caroline O’Connor, a musical-theatre veteran who played Velma Kelly in Chicago and appeared in Baz Luhrmann’s Moulin Rouge! (2001), is in her element in “Life Goes On”. Her comic flair is irresistible, and her performance is deliciously larger than life, even if she occasionally pushes it a little too far. But then, a star of her calibre was never going to do things by halves.

Frances Mayli McCann (Bonnie & Clyde, The Great Gatsby) has the stage pedigree and the voice to match. In “I’ve a Hundred Things to Do Before I Die”, she embraces the song’s deliciously morbid humour, although the sweetness occasionally threatens to become a little cloying.

Olivier Award-winner Clive Rowe (Hadestown, Guys and Dolls, Chicago) has a warmth in his voice that would melt ice cream in a freezer, and a steady, slightly cheeky stage presence. He gives us one of the evening’s more emotional moments with “I’d Go to Bed Earlier”, sung next to an empty chair and speaking candidly about life after your partner is no longer by your side.

Rowe also reveals his playful side in “Fizzy or Still”, a sparkling duet with the effortlessly charming Michael D. Xavier. The two play off each other beautifully in this comic number about sobriety and the decidedly unglamorous business of choosing bottled water.

Michael D. Xavier (Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard, Professor Henry Higgins in My Fair Lady, and roles in Into the Woods and The Phantom of the Opera) brings his trademark vocal richness, natural charm and impeccable comic timing to “Me Too”. His moving interpretations of “Everything But the Blame” and “How Do You Fall Out of Love?” reveal real emotional depth, while his commanding performance of “Sunset Boulevard” is a thrilling reminder of his stature as one of musical theatre’s finest leading men.

Shona McGarty (Whitney Dean in EastEnders) is a familiar name to anyone who watches the BBC soap. Since leaving Albert Square, she has been demonstrating the breadth of her talents on stage and in music. In “Things a Lady Shouldn’t Do”, she brings a smoky, bluesy sophistication, while “Diamonds Are Forever” showcases her glamour and commanding stage presence. Her detour into “Anyone Can Fall in Love”, the song built around the EastEnders theme, was an interesting turn — it seems that Black, a former stand-up comedian, couldn’t resist setting up a punchline.

What you take away from the evening is a sense of the extraordinary dedication to the craft. Every member of the cast seems to enjoy themselves just as much as the audience does. If joy is the secret ingredient, then From the Heart is the best dish on the menu: a feast for the heart and soul.

These days, even natural diamonds are being replaced by shiny synthetic alternatives. But Don Black’s lyrics are still the real deal.

So go and see From the Heart. And if you’re lucky enough to find Don Black himself at the final curtain call, get to your feet, give him a big round of applause, and simply say, “Thank you, sir.” Because you’ll leave the Garrick Theatre a better person than you you were when you arrived.