BWW Reviews: SISTER ACT Takes Over Bass Hall

Alright DFW, if you didn't take my advice with my last review, you still have this week to go see SISTER ACT. This time however, the show has moved to Fort Worth's Bass Hall in their last show of the 2012-2013 season of Broadway at the Bass supported by Sewell.

Even with the new venue, everything about the show is the same, with the exception of a few of changes in the cast. For the part of main character Deloris Van Cartier, normally played by Ta'rea Campbell, this week will be played by Gisela Adisa. But, don't be too disappointed, Adisa is a force to be reckoned with. The talented performer brings the right amount of sass and unique sense of genuine to the roll. The vocal range of Adisa is astounding, with what sounded like a three octave range, the actor can hit both the high and low notes and still sound like the diva she is. Remember the name Gisela Adisa, it won't be the last you hear of her.

In the last review, understudy Dashaun Young stepped in for the roll of "Sweaty" Eddie Souther, but this time E. Clayton Cornelious was back and ready to stake his claim. Cornelious calmed the nerdy-ness of the character down a little to try and make him almost as cool as the character wanted to be. His soulful voice and "smooth" moves make Eddie "the sexiest geek ever," as said by one audience member.

One of my favorite characters who offered a lot of laughs was mob boss Curtis Jackson's nephew TJ, played by Charles Barksdale. The use of body language and attitude along with the quick one-liners made Barksdale steal whatever scene he was in. The Texas native made his national tour debut with the show and it sure won't be his last.

If me singing praises for the actors hasn't sold you yet, there's always the music. In my opinion, it doesn't get much better than Alan Menken, so the music for the show was just as I expected it to be; catchy. Even the next day, I find myself humming the tune to the show-stopping "Raise Your Voice." In both the musical and movie version, Van Cartier takes over the church choir with her audition song. Both songs have a religious theme to them, without actually being about God himself, but the diva turns into to a religious song for the choir. In the movie, it's the song "I Will Follow Him" made famous by Little Peggy March. However, in the stage version it's a little ditty called "Take Me to Heaven" written by Glenn Slater. Even from the beginning, the songs have you dancing in your seat. It's definitely worth a buy on iTunes, or even at the gift trolley in the lobby where you can also buy some pretty cool t-shirts and other trinkets.

In case you don't want to take my word for how good the show is Jacqui Graziano, a member of the ensemble also from Dallas, told me what she thought made SISTER ACT so special "Not to get too sentimental, but the minute I saw this show watching Youtube clips before I was even hired, you just connect with the show and I just knew it was something special. For me, being a person of faith, I get to pray every night; I get to raise my voice, it's like their giving praise and thanksgiving and we forget when we do it 8 times a week what the content is we're just doing our show, but I try to remind myself that the content is praying and talking about God and love and forgiveness. This show is fun, it will definitely lift your spirits. It's very joyful, by the time we get to the end, it's a celebratory good time."

SISTER ACT is at Bass Hall until Sunday, June 23rd, which is half the fun of seeing the show. Bass Hall is a very beautiful landmark for down town Fort Worth, to get tickets call (817) 212-4280 or go to www.basshall.com

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