Live From...Our Living Rooms

All the typical pre-concert activities occurred. Gotta get to the bathroom before the show. I live by myself so, no line, woot! The odor of the restaurants my fellow audiences members enjoyed before the concert permeated the room. Ope, just me and the smell of the popcorn that I popped before the show. The house lights dimmed. Me again, I hit the light switch on the way to my couch. Away we go. My first live virtual concert. 

Jessica Vosk, one of my favorite Elphabas (2017 tour + actual 15^th anniversary performance on the Broadway!) performed live Sunday evening with Seth Rudetsky. Rudetsky, perhaps best known for his satellite radio show, is a savior. He is almost single-handedly feeding those of us in the Broadway starved community with Stars in the House and The Seth Concert Series.

Rudetsky has been in the Broadway universe for decades and can probably pluck away any song, Broadway or not. But Vosk’s journey to Broadway is unique. After spending her post-college years working on Wall Street, anxiety and panic attacks led her to reexamine her path. It surely took guts to leave a high paying job for the uncertainty of a performing career. But for Vosk, pursuing her passion became the fulfillment she needed. Broadway or bust. 

Lucky for us, her passion and persistence paid off. After debuting on Broadway in The Bridges of Madison County, Vosk went on to perform in Finding Neverland, Fiddler on the Roof and Wicked. Last night, Vosk opened with Carole King’s “Beautiful” and proceeded to show off her range. She touched on pop, Broadway and even Disney. Some of the standouts were “Your Song,” “What Baking Can Do,” “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “I Can Do Better Than That.” Vosk’s voice is pretty close to impeccable. Her tone is rich and crystal clear. And that girl can belt. And that girl can riff. And she does it all flawlessly. 

So can a virtual concert replace the live concert experience? Of course not. But can it accomplish some of the same things as a live event and fill just a little bit of the huge void that the pandemic has created? You bet. Check out the upcoming concerts in The Seth Concert Series. You may have missed Vosk but you  should not miss these!