Oklahoma!, The Music Man and She Loves Me met Brahms, Schumann, Bizet and Offenbach during The Kolkata Classics Club presents ‘Lieder, Love Songs and Laughter’ with t2. Pianist Jennifer Heemstra and vocalist Chelsea Coyne from Texas took the audience on a magical journey at the Goethe-Institut a few weeks ago with their joint effort at musical theatre singing (besides acting out pieces!) beautifully juxtaposed with softer, classical music. 

“We try to do something different in each of our shows, so we change the set list and play around,” said Jennifer. 
And what did Chelsea think of Calcutta? “The people here really understand and appreciate music,” she replied with a smile... a smile that she wore throughout the hour-long performance. 

In pieces like The Girl in 14G, Sempre Libera and Voi Che Sapete we were offered a glimpse of Chelsea’s musical prowess.

The best part though? Before each piece, the duo, looking stunning in Jyoti Sachdev Iyer creations, gave away the background and setting, like how My White Knight is about a librarian looking to find a nice man and settle down. 

“It was a very balanced set with classical as well as entertaining music. All in all, a perfect Friday evening”
— Olaf Iversen, consul-general of Germany

“I love how all her shows are different. Today’s concert was a fun one” 
— Natasha Marikar, who just passed out from Calcutta International School

“I’ve never been to a musical theatre and this has been great”
— Raghavi Mittal, who has been playing the jazz piano for four years and is a Class XII student of Modern High School

Text: Deborima Ganguly
Pictures: Rashbehari Das & Arnab Mondal