Review

Beth Tysall – In Concert
By Patrice Herring

New artists are a dime a dozen, to use the American phrase. Yet how often is it that one comes along with something different, something unique, so they stand out amongst the rest? On Saturday I believe I saw one performer who is doing just that. Rugby girl Beth Tysall launched her second album at the beautiful Avon Valley School theatre with a concert that was artistic, dramatic and full of energy.
The warm up act was itself of high quality. You may remember Sean Rumsey from the 2007 X Factor series as being one of the twelve finalists under the care of Sharon Osborne. He performed several of his songs including ‘Crazy’ by Gnarls Barkley. The most intimate moment was perhaps ‘Evil Things’ which was performed with only the piano for accompaniment. It is clear his passion for music has not demised any and I am confident he will be entertaining audiences for some time to come.
With three back up singers and four dancers, Beth fills the stage with action or song nearly the whole time. It has been clearly thought out and meticulously planned.
She first enters on stage with a fast paced song, showing immediately her confidence in herself and her team. When she is off stage the dancers entertain with short dance movements performed as solos or with partners. There is hardly a seamless moment.
When I asked her which of her songs were the most challenging she replied ‘Solace’ as she had never hit her highest whistle note in front of an audience before. Shimmering in her green dress she moves her body slowly to the movement of the song. If this was her most difficult song it clearly did not show as no matter what position she was in she made it look very natural.
It was also very natural for her to intermingle with the dancers whether it be a dramatic gesture or a routine dance. In fact, she has the ability to interact not only with her team on stage but she engaged with the audience throughout the night.
Just as her dancers switched from ballet to contemporary, she too showed how wide her musical range is, with a song from Gershwin’s ‘Summertime’ to a duet with rapper Bruce John called ‘It is Time’. Here her artistic flair truly shines as she connects contemporary music with rap adding an artistic back drop that keeps the mood of the piece while Bruce raps away.
Her voice is golden with a range that compares to Leona Lewis and the energy of Shania Twain. With her music video for a back drop she performed her new single ‘I’m Still Here’ that seasoned performers could learn from.
When I asked her what she had liked about the night she humbly replied “I’m very glad to have a team of very talented people.” I look forward to watching her future as I believe she has a very bright one.
Beth’s new album ‘Ten Faced’ is now available on www.bethtysall.co.uk and to see more of Beth or Sean, please log onto www.myspace.com/bethtysall and www.myspace.com/seanrumsey