My recent Tuesday night had me hungry for dinner at first. Stepping into Claire's Kitchen in Oxford St, I was kindly told to head upstairs for the show. There, I got my name checked from the ticket I bought and was directed to sit at an allocated table. I treated myself with sparkling water and ordered the items from the menu when I was ready. While I waited, I was relaxed to bossa nova renditions of classic songs I would normally hear on Smooth FM.
For the entree, I ate roasted scallops with pumpkin sabayon, micro herbs and crispy leeks. The presentation looks neat and the way they are lined up gives you an option on which scallop you'd want to eat first. Each scallop had the same soft and tender taste for each bite. Thus, the sabayons, herbs and leeks were neatly layered so that they gave me a feeling that I'm eating more than one item component simultaneously.
After the audience had their entrees, the very eclectic Rosie Meader performed on stage, along with her brother Josh on guitar. Her stage presence is elegant, with her blue dress allowing her to glow through the venue's warm lighting. Performing mainly originals, Rosie kept the audience captivated and engaged throughout her 30 minute set. One of her songs, Hot Topic (which was in Everybody Loves A Wedding by BP Theatre Company), was very catchy due to the way she used facial expressions and hand gestures throughout the song. Hence, her dialogue in some parts (ie Step number one) made me felt like I was watching a musical theatre show for a second. Her crowd engagement is great as she got them clapping towards the end of her set.
Listening to her speeches in between songs made me better understand how and why she had written a song. The majority of which are for an upcoming musical she's currently writing with her team: Spitfire The Musical, which is, in summary, "a remarkable true story of young female pilots during WWII". While the musical is currently in the writing stages, her thought process is very detailed and shows how much passion and commitment she has into bringing the musical to a reality. Her singing voice also show a contrasting juxtaposition when she approaches jazz and musical theatre respectively, the latter putting her into character portrayals and the former showing her softer side.
Following Rosie's amazing performance, I was treated to poached Atlantic salmon roulade stuffed with prawn mousse, served on wilted spinach with steamed potato and Riesling beurre blanc for the main course. The presentation and where the salmon is placed is nicely organised. When I sliced the salmon, I felt just how soft it can get. Taking each small bite with the fork, I found that there's a delicious vibrancy to the protein. The spinach also felt soft, but crisp in taste once I swallowed it down. I was happy with the main course overall and thus, my stomach was full after.
Finally, for desserts, the Belgian chocolate mousse contained a variety of things I didn't know which one to start. Even though I couldn't finish all of it due to the salmon still digesting down me, I was satisfied with the 3 course meal for the night.
After desserts, Chloe Marshall got on stage. Her exquisite stage presence containing a sequin black dress immediately stunned me and the eager audience. Her Dad Ralph Marshall accompanied her throughout her set, who kept the crisp notes from the foldback in delicate perfection. Chloe explained about her experiences, most notably when she went to Berkeley College at New York in 2018 as she describes it her "best experience". She also got a scholarship there, which explains how and why she had perfect articulation within her vocal range and how she was able to sustain high notes flawlessly.
Claire's set ranged with various genres, which includes soul, R&B and pop. Her strengths shows in soul thanks to the high notes. Her accent is also very crisp with flair. What grabbed my attention during her set is her falsetto in the middle of her beautiful cover of "You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Woman" by Aretha Franklin. It was totally unexpected, but she executed it flawlessly!
The duets of Rosie and Claire have marvellous harmonies which blend in captivatingly perfect across every angle. Their chemistry is undeniable as they show how much enjoyment they have on stage together. The first song from Rosie's set, "Firing Line", had a memorable chorus which showcased how delicate their vocal harmonies and ranges are, including sharing main vocal duties. Hence, the minor chords reminded me of what it would sound like if Architects, Periphery and Northlane combined into one. The second song from Claire's set had them singing a happy song which got me and the audience in a happy mood. Their duets were the highlight of the night as they were double bill headliners one would not want to miss out. A Tuesday night well spent and enjoyed overall.
Great review. Love the option of dinner through the show. Food looked sensational!