BWW Reviews: Energetic THE FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE CD RELEASE CONCERT is Filled with Soul and Heart

There is a certain kind of magic that makes musical theatre such an appealing artform. Some shows are missing it, but other shows nail it with precision. The Fortress of Solitude, which had its New York City debut in late 2014 at The Public Theater, is a glittering example of a musical that captures and is imbued with that magic in every perfectly cast note and each keenly written lyric. Celebrating Ghostlight Records' March 23, 2015 release of The Fortress of Solitude (Original Cast Recording), members of the cast and creative team came together at Joe's Pub for a spirited and rousing night of music at last night's The Fortress of Solitude CD Release Concert.

The evening, conceived as a celebration of the album and music, treated the audience to selections from the riveting score with introductions given by Oskar Eustis, the Artistic Director of The Public Theater, and the show's composer and lyricist Michael Friedman. In these moments, Eustis explained how proud he was of The Public Theater for being the home of The Fortress of Solitude and how cast albums guarantee that musicals are propelled into the future. Friedman discussed the almost decade long road that took the musical from the pages of Jonathan Lethem's novel of the same title to the stages at both Dallas Theater Center and The Public Theater.

Britton Smith, Akron Watson, Juson Williams, and Kevin Mambo opened the show with a sterling version of "Grab Something (And Never Let Go)." That number was expertly mashed-up with "Superman/Sidekick," which added in the beaming pop vocal stylings of Adam Chanler-Berat and Kyle Beltran. The enthusiastic audience responded with thunderous applause and cheers as these men performed with a vibrant Motown, funk sound. Accompanying the vocalists was music director Kimberly Grigsby on piano. Even with the limited instrumentation, there was no denying that these lively tunes captured the hearts and souls of everyone in the audience.

André De Shields, with support from Carla Duren, Rebecca Naomi Jones, and Malaiyka Reid, brought the house down with a stirring performance of the soulful, bluesy tune "The Ballad of Barrett Rude, Sr." Ken Barnett and Beltran impressed with a lovely version of "Painting." All of the assembled cast members tore the roof off of the house with an energetic and moving rendition of the soul and gospel infused number "Take Me to the Bridge," which was a true highlight of the evening. Performing the liner notes medley, Mambo, Smith, Watson, and Williams truly became the quintessential Motown funk group as they sang "If I Had Known Then (What I Know Now)," "Bothered Blue," "Take It Baby," and "Who's Calling Me?" The concert was closed by Chanler-Berat and Beltran singing a heartrending rendition of "Middle Space." When the rest of the assembled cast joined in from the audience, tears could be seen streaming down Chanler-Berat's face and the faces of many in the audience.

Ghostlight Records released The Fortress of Solitude (Original Cast Recording) both digitally and physically on March 23, 2015. The album can be purchased from the Ghostlight Records online store, iTunes, Amazon, and elsewhere music is sold.

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