Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Slipped Disc, November 5, 2013 by Norman Lebrecht: Audra McDonald, Musical America Magazine's 'Musician of the Year'

Audra McDonald, MUSICIAN Of The Year
Musical America WorldwidePhoto: © Jennifer Taylor 

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MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR: AUDRA MCDONALD
 
Audra McDonald  is unparalleled in the breadth and versatility of her artistry as both singer and actress. She is fearless, vocally and physically. Her immediately recognizable soprano is rich, flexible, and incandescent, with a huge dynamic range, equally persuasive as silk or gravel, belt or whisper. It's also genre-bending, since she can sing across the spectrum, from opera to blues, pop to gospel. She is what Barbara Cook  calls "the whole package."

Among numerous accolades, she has received five Tony Awards, the first of which she won at only 23 for her performance as Carrie Pipperidge in Nicholas Hytner's legendary production of Carousel (1994) at Lincoln Center. Other musicals were Ragtime (1998) and The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess (2012). Two of her Tonys are for performances in dramatic productions: Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun (2004) and Terrence McNally's Masterclass (1996), where her role as a vocal student required her to sing a Verdi aria in every performance. This Juilliard School graduate relishes acting without the support of music and she approaches every role, musical or non-musical, even every song, precisely the same way. It's all about character, she tells Katrine Ames in Musical America's tribute, and something she can connect to: "Who is this person? What does she want? What truth am I trying to convey?"

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