I Get The Music In You

Queenie van de Zandt is a legend amongst Music Theatre and Cabaret lovers. Her alter ego, Jan van de Stool, is almost as famous – thanks to Queenie.

Jan van de Stool is a brilliant comic creation, and the total antithesis to Queenie herself. Jan is Dutch and mangles her English….but very subtly. Everything about her is subtle and played deadpan – even her lack of talent. Through vocal lessons, interpretive dance gestures, and tapping into our own Intimate Harmonic Narratives, Jan gives lessons basically in how NOT to sing – but how to get the most out of our lives. Like most “Life” experts, she flogs her merchandise - CDs, coffee mugs, vocal courses and even BBQ aprons. It’s all wonderfully dry – and certainly not for those who want their comedy to hit them over the head with a grungy hammer. Instead, what we get are comic gems, like her explanation for dropping down the octave, rather than “Belting” the top notes. In practise it’s hilarious as she demonstrates, hitting notes just slightly off key (which is difficult for a fine singer to do - perfectly demonstrated by the great Jo Stafford as HER alter ego Darlene Edwards). Every moment is a gem and after 2 minutes you forget it’s Queenie at all, so perfectly realised is the character of Jan.

Van de Zandt is a marvellous talent, whatever she does, with a set of vocal pipes that are the envy of everyone in the business, and thankfully we do get to hear her, in the guise of one of her students (whom Jan dismisses as a “Belter”), as she ends the show with her own glorious voice singing Streisand’s “A Piece Of The Sky” from Yentl – which has the note to end all notes at the finish. It’s spine-tingling.

This isn’t stand up - and it isn’t a pure MICF offering - but what it is instead is a brilliant comic creation who provides great entertainment with finesse and talent and lots of laughs.

It should be on everyone’s must see list.

Coral Drouyn