Review: Shanay Holmes In Concert (Cadogan Hall)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Shanay Holmes has seemingly done it all. As well as taking on some iconic roles in musical theatre, not just in the West End but all over the UK, she has also produced and presented the seasonal West End Musical…  concerts, and is responsible for what has become a highlight on many a theatre fan's calendar, Musical Con. With such an extensive and impressive CV, it's surprising to learn Shanay has never headlined a solo concert before. That wrong was righted on a scorching hot Saturday night as Shanay took to the stage at the beautiful Cadogan Hall. As it turns out, it wasn't just the sun bringing the heat that evening.

If you’re unfamiliar with Shanay Holmes as an actress, she is perhaps best known for her recent role as Nancy in the West End revival of Oliver, with previous credits including Get Up, Stand Up!: The Bob Marley Musical, Rent, Miss Saigon and The Bodyguard. All of those shows were represented during the concert, with Shanay revisiting the roles to reprise some of the numbers from them. However, there was another purpose to the concert, following the recent announcement Shanay would be releasing her debut album ‘Becoming’ in October. Featuring her take on some iconic musical theatre numbers, audience members were treated to an early taste of what to expect with numbers from that album.

Cadogan Hall is one of my favourite venues for musical theatre concerts due to the beautiful sound experienced there, and Shanay being accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra didn’t just make full use of this, it lifted it even further. Conducted by Chris Poon, it ensured the quality of sound on that stage was breathtaking throughout, with Shanay’s vocals and the exquisite performance from the orchestra a match made in heaven, allowing some of the greatest musical theatre songs ever written to have their full potential realised, sounding as wonderful as they possibly could.

It was Shanay Holmes we were here to see, however, and she certainly didn’t let us down. Having seen Shanay multiple times in the past, I knew she had a remarkable voice. What I didn’t realise was just how versatile her voice is. Whether she was offering a more restrained approach, highlighting the sweet tone she has, singing legit or giving it her all with a range that seemingly knows no limits, the one consistency of the night was the quality of her vocals. Absolutely outstanding, Shanay astounded at any song she tried her hand at.

The evening got off to a fairly restrained and understated start with renditions of ‘The Sound Of Music’ and ‘Maybe This Time’. Numbers from her upcoming album shared a theme for the evening of retaining hope and optimism in a frequently scary world, with performances of ‘Not While I’m Around’ from Sweeney Todd, ‘Somewhere’ from West Side Story, and closing number ‘Everything’s Coming Up Roses’ from Gypsy sending the audience home feeling uplifted and inspired. Little teases of why songs were selected introduced them, with Shanay speaking of her love for Disney and fulfilling a dream by performing ‘A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes’.

If anything, I would have liked to have learned a bit more about Shanay, with more anecdotes and stories from her life and career so far to make the performances feel more personal. That said, you could tell this concert was Shanay going out of her comfort zone - at one point saying she would be in her bedroom at home if it wasn’t for her husband pushing her. Any nerves Shanay may have had walking onto the stage slowly disappeared, and she became calmer and more confident as the evening progressed. This is a woman who is very clearly at home on stage, and while she may be more used to playing a character, it was a joy to get to see a bit of the real woman behind those characters.

Of course, we were treated to numbers from Shanay’s previous credits, with ‘Waiting In Vain’ from Get Up, Stand Up encouraging a singalong from an audience including her former co-stars, while her time in Rent was honoured with a timely and poignant ‘No Day But Today’. One performance was always going to be a standout, and it was fitting that ‘As Long As He Needs Me’ from Oliver was saved from the encore. Though the song has existed for more than 75 years, few people have ever been able to perform it quite like Shanay - this song highlights her at her best, tapping into the emotional heart of the song and managing to showcase her phenomenal vocals while never losing sight of the sentiment of the number. It feels as if her time as Nancy in the show has had a profound impact on Shanay, with the sense her iconic red dress has inspired the theme behind her album and this concert.

There were other standout moments of the evening, including a Whitney Houston number in Act One. Revisiting her time as Heather Headley’s understudy in The Bodyguard, she took on one of the hardest sings there is with a spine-tinglingly excellent ‘I Will Always Love You’. Refusing to go too hard too quickly, Shanay bided her time so when THAT moment hit, it landed with such an impact, it left my jaw on the floor. The first single from her album is a take on ‘No One Is Alone’ from Into The Woods, and the accompanying performance on the night created another rousing highlight. It was an extremely ballad-heavy set, that may have felt surprising given how used I am to seeing Shanay tackling uptempo numbers during her West End Musical concerts - though perhaps one or two to break it up may have added a touch more versatility to the evening, the carefully chosen songs all sounded glorious performed by Shanay and the orchestra. 

I have long admired the bridge she has created between performers and fans in theatre through the creation of both Musical Con and the West End Musical franchise, and it is hard to believe that, despite all of that, this was the first time Shanay Holmes had ever headlined her own solo concert. If there was a fear of Shanay being able to hold a stage as herself, without any character or other event to co-exist with, she needn’t have worried. Over the years, Shanay has proven herself a force to be reckoned with in theatre, and this concert wonderfully played to her strengths. Her vocals are incredible, no matter what she sings, and getting to see this used to its full capability on different songs really confirmed what a star she is. We may be used to seeing Shanay Holmes as Nancy in Oliver, Joanne in Rent and will soon be seeing her as Miss Sherman in Fame, but seeing her as just Shanay was a rare treat. This may have been her first concert, but it certainly won’t be her last, and I look forward to the next time she gets to take the stage as herself.

Setlist:

The Sound Of Music

Maybe This Time

A Dream Is A Wish Your Heart Makes

Smile

Maybe (from Annie)

Not While I’m Around

Waiting In Vain

Alfie

I Will Always Love You

Somewhere

—

Don’t Say I Didn’t (Warn You)

No Day But Today

Where Is Love

Maybe (from Miss Saigon)

People

I Could Have Danced All Night

No One Is Alone

As Long As He Needs Me

Everything’s Coming Up Roses

Shanay Holmes played at Cadogan Hall on Saturday 11th July.  Her debut album ‘Becoming’ is out on Friday 16th October and can be pre-ordered at https://www.shanayholmes.com/