Billed as an entertaining show full of glitz, glam, glitter and humour, the Francis and Dominic Show currently touring the Netherlands is a true celebration of all things musical. A celebration of how music moulds so many of us into the people we are today, from the music we listened to as a child to the music we share with others, in times of joy, in times of sadness and in moments of national pride. From the opening number – a cartoon sketch detailing the pair’s journey to Enschede where Dominic is seen pumping up his inflatable double bass before driving in his mini, complete with a union jack painted on the roof – to the wonderful cabaret set of the second half, this slick production, eighteen months in the planning, has something for all and the audience absolutely loved it.
Dutch soprano Francis van Broekhuizen, and British virtuosic double bass player Dominic Seldis, both highly accomplished in their respective fields, have the amazing ability to make classical music not just accessible to all, but interesting, relevant, and fun as they flit between the two languages, Dutch and English, finding humour at every turn. Van Broekhuizen, with her very direct and witty (kwinkslag) style of humour, turning the mundane into the hilarious, conveys the deepest of emotions in such an accessible way that everyone feels part of the drama on stage. Her rendition of Puccini’s Vissi D’Arte from Tosca was opera for all as she hit the top notes with the greatest of ease while strutting around dressed in blue tracksuit bottoms. Van Broekhuizen is the first soprano I have ever witnessed singing and strutting around the stage while brushing her hair – and even turning her head upside down in the process! The unpacking of underwear and the careful maintenance of hair extensions seemed like the obvious next step!
The pair joked about things like Persil – a brand of washing powder, not be confused with Purcell, the 17thcentury British composer – as an introduction to a most intimate and astonishingly evocative performance of When I am Laid from the opera, Dido and Aeneas. Van Broekhuizen sitting with her back to the audience in relative darkness, singing about how she wanted to be remembered after her death, accompanied by just a single repeating solo double bass line from Seldis, literally laid bare the fragility of life.
Learning English!
We learnt about the idiosyncrasies of the English language with words like Worcestershire and Gloucestershire, and how to pronounce them like the late Queen and even Meghan Markle. We learnt about Seldis’ recent concert on the River Amstell for King’s Day on May 5th and how he agreed to perform Una Furtiva Lagrima by Donizetti with just 12 hours’ notice before performing the rather beautiful arrangement. Highly impressive as usual. Seldis, affectionately known as the Dutchman’s favourite Englishman, really is one of the finest double bass players on the circuit.
Wandering through a medley of music from the musicals allowed the eight-piece band to come to the fore and in particular the hugely talented young British drummer and percussionist, Tom Pritchard, currently studying at the Amsterdam Conservatoire. Meanwhile, Van Broekhuizen was skipping round the stage in My Favourite Things (The Sound of Music), lying on her back on the sofa and crouching on the floor in Some Enchanted Evening (South Pacific) and leading the unprompted audience participation in You’ll Never Walk Alone from Carousel. Never a dull moment!
The band and backstage crew
Cabaret time!
The second half saw the set and cast transformed into a cabaret club enhanced by some very effective lighting effects before moving towards what we had all been looking forward to – audience participation. Seldis’ dry, wry, British sense of humour was totally infectious. One lucky audience member volunteered to learn how to conduct and aided by some very clever graphics on the screen high above, this was conducting made easy. The result was hilarious. Not to be outdone, three more audience members joined the stage to augment the band’s percussion section. This too was an absolute hoot – cymbal playing with such commitment and tenacity!
Finishing the night with Climb Every Mountain, a reference to Van Broekhuizen’s role as Mother Superior in the recent run of The Sound of Music at the Carré Theatre, Amsterdam, was inspired. Possibly the greatest song ever written and the highlight of Christmas Day in the UK, we looked back to a world before DVDs and videos and streaming services, when families all sat around the TV on Christmas Day, finding inspiration in the words: Follow every rainbow, ‘til you find your dream.
Where next?
Where next then for this immensely talented and hilarious duo? I think their encore, a rendition of the iconic Morecambe and Wise number Bring me Sunshine, complete with singing and dancing, provides a clue. The concert hall in Enschede was packed and everyone was having fun. There is a real appetite for this old school type of entertainment where a love of music brings people together. I look forward to hearing much more music and hilarity from this pair in the future.
Reviewed at the Muziekcentrum, Enschede on Thursday 6th April, 2023
Photos © Annemieke van der Togt
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