Review: Paul Potts, Edinburgh Playhouse

Published on Wednesday 14 October 2009 10:15

Paul Potts *** Edinburgh Playhouse

THIS kind of concert falls somewhere between what, for want of better names, are known as classical and pop. Even though there appeared to be more empty seats than were in evidence the last time Paul Potts sang at the Playhouse, his style of presentation continues to attract a fair audience.

Winner of the first series of ITV's Britain's Got Talent contest, Potts has led a busy life as a direct result of his success. Thanks to the circulation of his recordings on YouTube, his voice has been heard and admired far and wide.

Between January and November, 2008, he gave nearly 100 concerts in no fewer than 23 countries. A busy schedule for any artist.

Much has been made of the miracle of how it was discovered that he is the possessor of a fine tenor voice. He tells us he sometimes feels as if he is passing through a dream world and will wake up some day soon to find himself back where he started. That seems unlikely to happen – at least in the immediate future. Some questions arise, however, about the nature of what he offers and where he might go from here.

He confines himself to relatively few items of repertoire. His interest in Italian opera was reflected by three Puccini arias. There was a promising selection based on the recordings of Mario Lanza. Familiarity ensured that it went down well, but Potts has a habit of wandering off into less familiar Italian stuff – concerning which, he might perhaps consider that in the absence of supertitles, many of his listeners cannot know what he is singing about.

Technically, he sings with admirably good intonation, but his rhythm is less secure. There are times when he is inclined to overstretch a phrase. It would have been interesting to hear him attempt a Puccini aria without microphone. A general criticism is that the music he chooses to sing is all too much of a muchness in style.

Luciano Pavarotti made capital out of Puccini's Nessun dorma! and so a wide public can identify with the aria – because of football associations. It was expected of Potts as an encore. A footnote to that: there was no need so late in the evening for him to offer a synopsis of the opera where it belongs.