Dudu hits the right notes

CONCERT REVIEW: DUDU FISHER

FOR a moment there were two Dudu Fishers. At his Melbourne performance on March 7, Fisher walked on stage, and in the seat directly in front of me, a miniature of him on the screen of a mobile phone beamed out of the dark, as a young person snapped photos.

Yet as his vibrant, joyous performance unfolded, there was no sense of generational divides – no distracted fidgeting or whispering, despite the mix of ages. From the elderly to gen Ys, Fisher captivated hand-clapping, singalong fans of all vintages.

He even wisecracked about a stray ringing phone, with a “helloooo?” that had the audience in stitches.

Chassidic cantor, Yiddishist, Broadway star – the globetrotting Israeli tenor held court with a repertoire that crossed the spectrum, under the deft hand of musical director Shai Bachar.

Opening with the boisterous They’re Coming to Jerusalem, a reworking of Neil Diamond’s foot thumper from The Jazz Singer, Fisher set the scene for a high-energy night.

From the moving Papa, Can You See Me? out of Yentl – which he introduced with a story about his father’s 80th birthday – to a hilarious solo skit on several characters auditioning for the job of a cantor; from Yiddish favourites to a stirring Hebrew rendition of the Exodus theme, Fisher oscillated between tugging at heartstrings and funny bones with seamless ease.

In a shmooze, he spun his trademark anecdote of arriving on Broadway by persuading producer Cameron Mackintosh to let him perform in Les Miserables without working Shabbats and yom tovim, the first actor to do so.

Fisher sang about his hopes for peace and took us on a musical meandering through his beloved Jerusalem. He dedicated Bring Him Home from Les Mis to captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

A rousing opening performance by Brett Kaye and the Central Shule Chabad Choir, conducted by Myron Blecher, set the tone for the night – which was organised by Chabad Youth and Beis Chabad Ohel Devorah.

Rabbi Moshe Kahn of Chabad Youth welcomed the audience to the Dallas Brooks Centre in East Melbourne and showed a video of the organisation’s multi-faceted program for young people.

DUDU FISHER MELBOURNE CONCERT
REVIEWED BY PETER KOHN
RATING: ****

PHOTO: Dudu Fisher at the Dallas Brooks Centre. Photo: Akiva Szental