“In the central role of Cathy Whitaker, a happily domesticated wife and mother in 1957 Connecticut who embarks on a romance that shakes up her tidy little world, is Kelli O’Hara. Her bright soprano and natural grace, now being shown to fine effect in ‘Nice Work If You Can Get It’ on Broadway, are among the happy wonders of the New York musical theater.” - Charles Isherwood
I fucking love this woman with all my heart. As Ben Brantley said, Kelli O’Hara is “one of the finest musical actresses of her generation.” She sings every phrase with such meaning. The clarity of the text always comes through…flawless!
Now here we have the wonderful soprano, Kelli O’Hara: arguably the most exciting musical theater singer to emerge in the past decade. Anyone who saw her in “Light in the Piazza” and “South Pacific” is aware of how remarkable she is. Ms. O’Hara clearly understands the style and the voice is always used in service to the text. Notice how she seems to be speaking the text. You almost forget that she’s singing. Compare this with Fleming’s rendition, and you’ll see my point.
“Ms. O’Hara is the possessor of a liquid soprano that was made for the shimmering romantic confessions so essential to classic American musicals. Offering sincerity without saccharine, her voice seems to emerge almost involuntarily, as if she just couldn’t help acting on an irresistible urge. Though obviously highly trained, that voice brims with a conversational ease that makes you forget that singing is not usually the form we choose for confiding in others, even in this age of ‘Glee.’” - Ben Brantley
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