Scary Spice

I caught Melanie Brown as Mimi in Rent last night and although she threw herself into the role and was a committed actress, she seemed to be in some vocal distress. She was fine in the soft moments but when she put pressure on her voice things got hairy. She may have been sick - her voice was husky and it sounded like she was singing through phlegm. I hope that's all it was. Overall, I liked her, she looked great and she has a radiant presence on stage - but I was concerned for her vocal health last night.

BTW, star of the show for me was the wonderful Maggie Benjamin as Maureen. What a knockout!

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But how do you not sing in your throat?

facial mask honeys!! send it right through!

the girl needs a better vocal coach

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I saw Rent recently, but she wasn't there. I have heard that she doesn't show up a lot, but I have also heard that she doesn't do any matinees at all (which is what I saw). Is this true?

SINGING IS NOT FROM THE DIAPHRAGM. This is one of my pet peeves! The diaphragm is an involuntary muscle. You support mainly with the abdomen but also the intercostals. You're right that the air should separate the vocal chords. Singing in the throat refers to using muscles in the throats to make the vocal chords slam into each other, rather than gently vibrating. It's not only bad in terms of damage, but it sounds really bad. Singing should NEVER sound forced.