Hazel O'Connor Beyond Breaking Glass

Batmanuel · Mod Joined: 20 Oct 2006 Posts: 2500 Location: Canterbury

Hazel O'Connor, Beyond Breaking Glass
"LIVE"
at the Gulbenkian Theatre Canterbury
Tuesday 11th November 2008

We arrived at the theatre only to be told that Hazel had started without us, and were quietly allowed to enter via a rear door which would give us access to the rear row as not to interrupt the performance.

I was immediately struck not by the bleakness of the stage, but more by the sheer presence of the performer. Hazel O’Connor stood at the front of the stage and addressed the audience directly while Cormac De Barra on Irish Harp sat further back to her right.
Hazel continued with her what was to become an amazing autobiographical show, it quickly became apparent that this was going to be something more that just an above average performance.

As the show continued we were told her story from the early days to her rise to fame during the late seventies and later, much later to the present day - it was at times funny, at others, sad, and sometimes unsavory, but at all times it was brutally honest.

I felt in awe as she peeled back the layers to bravely reveal her life, the dialogue only being interrupted by carefully chosen songs from her career performed with a passion and intensity which made the hair on the back of your head stand on end.

Hazel’s vocals were on top form and Cormac De Barra's harp was an absolute joy to listen to. I left the theatre clutching my personally autographed DVD feeling somewhat richer for the whole experience.

Beyond Breaking Glass really is an astonishing piece and I urge you to catch it while it's on tour, check www.hazeloconnor.com and www.ctmuk.com/hazeloconnor for further details, although I fear that by the time this goes to press the show may well be over.
Mind you there is a CD and DVD available, Buy them!

10/10 for this amazing evening.

Review by Your Favourite Well Mannered Boy

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