Ravinia 2023 Issue 2

MATTHEW MURPHY We spoke in 1999 and you told me the reworked Robert Falls production of Aida was giving your ‘friend’ a makeover and giving her some pretty ‘new clothes’ to wear. Did I say that? [ Laughs .] Well, the new clothes worked, didn’t they! I am grateful for that show and that character. Aida is still in me. She will be forever. I love her. What can the audience expect from your performance at Ravinia? I like to tailor programs to the audi- ence, to the location, to the venue. Big songs that I usually bring to concerts, like “Can You Feel the Love Tonight?” and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” will stay in, but there may be some new picks. I do want to make this show special and different for Chicago and Ravinia. What’s it like to perform with a musical force like the Chicago Symphony Orchestra? The best musicians in the world are in the CSO, right? So it can be intimidat- ing! I mean, they play Rachmaninoff on a regular basis! However, we do get together beforehand, and that’s where the conductor comes in, to lead us into the emotion of it. Performing with the CSO, I think, is like hopping a train. Because as a performer, when you get that timing right, that train will take you to the most beautiful places. It’s gentle at times, it’s fast, it’s powerful, it’s calm again. It will even change your world standing still and feeling that power. But if you jump at the wrong time, with something that powerful, it will run right past you. So, it can be frightening, but it is also exhilarating. And what of the musicians of the CSO timing up with your locomotive-like talent? I’m honored if the CSO thought thinks way about our performing together! I have had some members of the orchestra tell me how much fun they have had working with me. When people of that caliber compli- ment you, it means so much. I will have to bring my ‘freight train’ to match them. When you play with the CSO, you have to bring your A-game. How do you choose the songs to perform? I see songs like dresses. Like some- thing I’d like to try on. I’d like to do some songs sung by men. I like to try on many different ‘new dresses.’ But sometimes the dresses don’t fit! No matter how good the seamstress is, I can’t squeeze into it … the song just isn’t right for me. But we do try to ‘take it in’ a little here, or ‘cut the sleeves’ there, to see if it will ‘fit.’ And that’s al- ways fun to explore. If it doesn’t work, I’m still happy I tried it on. Any memorable ‘dresses’ that have caught your eye? I was in London when I was nomi- nated for an Olivier Award [British theater’s equivalent of Broadway’s Tony Award] a few years ago, and during the program, Tim Minchin, who wrote the music for the stage musical Matilda sat at the piano and sang “My House” from the show. I grabbed my husband Brian’s hand and I told him, ‘I’d like to try that on to see what it sounds like.’ I love those songs you can take out of the context of a musical show and they still resonate. And so, I did. I tried it on. We did make a few alterations—cut some things, moved others around—and it worked out. It’s been a beautiful song for me to sing. That’s how I feel about The Sound of Music , I would like to ‘try on’ Maria just once and get it out of my system! It must have been quite a culture shock to move from Trinidad to Indiana. Every single bit and more of a culture shock. It was a different country, a different climate, a different accent, different food, different topography— everything was different. We landed in October, and in November I wrote back to my Trinidad friends that I had made it through the winter. I had no idea how long winter was here. But I am grateful I came to Fort Wayne first rather than going to a huge city like Chicago or New York right away. Fort Wayne was a gentle entry for me. I may perform in Trinidad soon. I would like to introduce my children to where Mommy is from. Your career has taken you to many places and in many directions. Has that been by plan or serendipity? There has been a bit of both. I always have ideas of what I’d like my life to be. I am a Christian, and I do pray on things. And God has outdone any dreams I may have had. My dreams for me are not as big as His dreams are for me. But I also have been discerning about my projects. I turn things down. I tell young people it is okay to say no because sometimes a no can lead to an amazing yes —a new opportunity you never expected. I get to do what is instinctual for me. I nev- er call it work; though, yes, sometimes it is work. I like to think I’m minister- ing. Let’s go minister to some people with music and make them happy. James Turano is a freelance writer and a former entertainment editor, feature writer, and columnist for national and local magazines and newspapers. He has written official programs for eight Elton John tours since 2003 and is also a Chicago radio personality and host on WGN 720AM. Fifteen years after her Tony-toting bows as Elton John’s Aida, Heather Headley made a triumphant return to Broadway as Shug Avery in The Color Purple , having hitched her star in the interim to making an equal statement as a concert and recording artist, winning a Grammy with her album Audience of One . Now both sides of her winning songbook feature in her concert program “Broadway, My Way,” which sees her back at Ravinia after a lauded outing last summer. RAVINIA MAGAZINE • JULY 3 – JULY 16, 2023 8