Review: David Archuleta Is A Christmas Star With MY ONLY WISH at Joe's Pub

Right on the heels of ending his super successful Earthly Delights tour, David Archuleta is back in New York City for the MY ONLY WISH tour, a Christmas show that is playing Joe’s Pub through December 14th before heading to parts out west.  Having seen and reviewed the Earthly Delights show (read the review HERE) and having enjoyed it in the extreme, naturally enough, I wanted to see how Mr. Archuleta’s holiday show would differ from his pop music show, the former being seasonal and sweet, the latter being sensual and sexy.  So, I asked BroadwayWorld Cabaret editor Rebecca Kaplan for the honor, and the fine folks at Joe’s Pub said to come on down.  They also said, “Please come to the VIP Meet and Greet before the show,” which is an invitation I always turn down because my general point of view is that I don’t want to meet the artists whose show I am about to review.  It’s not a hard-and-fast rule, but nine times out of ten, I just want to get in and out and get home to write up the story.  Having interviewed David earlier this year, though, this time I said, yes, I would love to come to your meet and greet.  And since this VIP package is a part of the ticketing for the show, before I get to writing about the show itself, I would like to take a moment to report back on what I witnessed at Joe’s Pub, regarding the VIP Experience for David Archuleta’s My Only Wish concert.

Upon arriving at Joe’s Pub at the appointed time (5:15 pm), my husband and I were checked in by a very nice, very professional woman at a table where VIP ticket holders could pick up their swag and purchase additional merch, while waiting to be admitted into the Joe’s Pub theater.  These guests congregated in the lobby of The Public, genially visiting with one another for a few minutes, before being escorted into Joe’s Pub, where Mr. Archuleta was wrapping up his sound check.  A step-and-repeat had been set up for photos, and the VIP guests were invited to make themselves comfortable in the theater, while a highly professional (and friendly) team of people took them back to meet the artist who is, clearly, the apple of their eye.  What I observed about the VIP guests that really caught my attention is an overwhelming sense of happiness.  This group of people of wildly varying demographics were so joyful, so excited to have this moment with David Archuleta, but not in that screaming for the Beatles kind of way, but a more peaceful and grateful way.  Everyone was friendly with each other, they were respectful of the process, the others in the room, and Mr. Archuleta himself, and simply happy to be there.  When it was our turn to meet David, my husband and I had a few minutes of conversation during which he interviewed us, not the other way around.  How did we meet?  How long had we been together?  FORTY YEARS!  (His shock was matched only by his glee.)  And what is the secret to forty years together?   We didn’t get the bum’s rush, we were given a generous and healthy amount of time to visit with the gentleman, and the nice woman who checked us in took Pat’s phone and snapped a few photos with David.  It was a greatly enjoyable experience, made even more so by getting to witness the happiness of the fans who partook.  Now, I’m not going to discuss the tawdry topic of money because what a person is willing to spend for a VIP experience is between them and their wallet, but what I will say is that, when the show started, I noticed that the people from the VIP experience had prime seats to the show, and during the concert David spoke to some of these people, remembering their names, and personal details about them, like the anniversary that they were celebrating, or what state they had traveled in from.  So, yeah, if you’re into the VIP Experience thing (this was my first, ever), I can sign off on the David Archuleta Meet and Greet.

Now, on to the show.

I have now seen David Archuleta twice.  Each of his shows have been wildly different - the first with a band and back-up dancers and some deliciously salacious content, the second with a keyboardist (the gifted Sean Moran), a stage full of Poinsettias, and David Archuleta in a shiny silver blazer (and a turtleneck, which he would learn was the wrong choice for the hot Joe’s Pub lighting).  And in spite of the vast difference in aesthetic, one thing can be said, without question:  David Archuleta is one of the great entertainers.  It was actually a benefit, having seen the other concert, which was very much a rock concert, with bells and whistles, and lighting, and ambiance, because it gave me a chance to see what David Archuleta is like in the living room.   This is a man who is completely and totally in his element on the stage, whether sitting still for a touching moment like “My Grown Up Christmas List” or rocking around the Joe’s Pub stage with NSYNC’s “Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays,” but it’s more than the musical performances because Mr. A spends a generous amount of his onstage time talking with the audience, sharing stories, asking questions, having conversations, describing his life lessons, being open.  That’s the ticket:  David Archuleta is open.  He is open to sharing his truth, whether in the form of impromptu discussion or the lyrics to one of his own compositions.  He is open to shining his light, whether with his otherworldly vocals or the busting out of some dance moves.  Rolling off the gent and the stage is an abundant air of benevolence and positive energy, and, looking around the room at the sold-out house, this watcher and writer observed that everyone was smiling.  Everyone in the theater was beaming, they were nodding their heads, not in time with the music but in approval of the quality of the entertainment being presented (ok, and in time with the music).  Of course, there were also times when the people were clapping or snapping or even standing at their seats and dancing (glorious!).  It was pure joy.  He is unbelievably in touch with his audience, with his people, and it is beyond heartwarming to see the connection.

As for the musical programming of My Only Wish, it couldn’t have been better.  You know, Christmas shows can be tricky.  They can become boring or twee, if the artist isn’t careful, because of the sometimes treacly quality of seasonal music - also, not everyone is going to want to hear spiritual music, and that’s a fine line to tread.  For his Christmas show, David Archuleta has crafted a program of music from his three Christmas albums (he jokingly says two-and-a-half because the most recent release is an EP), which lends the listener a look at his history of music making, as well as his evolution as an artist.  His 2009 album CHRISTMAS FROM THE HEART is traditional music, some carols and some songs, while his 2018 album WINTER IN THE AIR adds in music from beloved Christmas TV specials, some pop music, and some of his own original Christmas songs.  Then there is the EP (released November 14th) MY ONLY WISH, that is nothing but material in which Archuleta had a hand in creating, and that’s where the good stuff is.  That isn’t to say that the traditional songs like “The First Noel” and “The Christmas Song” aren’t great because they are, thanks to the arrangements and orchestrations (Moran plays the keyboards for the show, accompanied by pre-existing tracks), and thanks, very much, to Archuleta’s vocals, but when a singer-songwriter is working with their own material, the resonance and the reward are both greater.  On the subject of arrangements and orchestrations, Archuleta is performing treatments of “Pat-a-Pan” and “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” that go a long way toward keeping his Christmas show interesting, enjoyable, and authentic to his mission statement as an artist.   There’s nothing that savors of the ordinary, here, but the inclusion of songs that we know gives us a feeling of solidarity, of connection to Christmases past, while the newer songs, the original songs like “Wish at the Top of My List” and “Christmas in California,” provide a feeling of being in the present, of experiencing in real time.  The concert is a perfect mixture of Christmas Past and Christmas Present… and if you think about the hope and humanity that David Archuleta brings to the production and the performance, you kind of have Christmas Yet To Come.  Whichever lane Archuleta is in, whatever vibe he is creating, he does so with impeccable vocals that, on occasion, are actually mind-blowing.  Our minds shouldn’t be blown because we have all, long, been aware of the man’s vocal prowess, but it’s good to be reminded how good the movie Christmas in Connecticut is (the original one), or how delicious your mother’s Holiday Fruit Drop cookies are, or how shockingly beautiful (and rangey!) David Archuleta’s voice is, especially on the almost heartbreakingly beautiful “Winter in the Air” or “White Christmas” (he whistles, too).   So, do, by all means, call up the Barbara Stanwyck film, bake a batch your Mama’s cookies, and get a ticket to MY ONLY WISH while it’s playing Joe’s Pub (two shows are already sold out).  It’s the Christmas show you want to see this year. 

MY ONLY WISH plays Joe’s Pub through December 14th.  Access tickets on the Joe's Pub website HERE or the David Archuleta website HERE.

Visit the David Archuleta website HERE.

Sean Moran has a website HERE.

Photos by Stephen Mosher