reviews

... After the interval, the repertoire was a riot of recognition. It began with excerpts from Bizet’s Carmen. In this the Paletti Orchestra played heartily... on the entrance of Miss Emily Barlaston, who squeezed her way through the audience, so that she arrived late. She sang the ‘Habañera’ of course – sublimely interpreted, by the way – with an enormous dose of humour. She also presented some ‘music hall’ numbers, in which the fun was complete. In cahoots with the conductor [Menno van Duuren] notes were chopped off just to make others longer. The lollipop ‘We’ll meet again’ became, in a sort of never-ending story, a great funfair, in which Miss Barlaston opened her shopping bag, full of party-poopers and streamers. Just the way to start St. Valentine’s Day.

Wim Beunders, Twentsche Courant/Tubantia

The Christian Democrat audience in the jam-packed Assinkhof enjoyed itself yesterday not only with political pep-talks from … premier Lubbers [of the Netherlands], party chairman Van Velzen and justice minister Hirsch Ballin. A comically artistic climax was provided by no-one less than the retired British prima donna Miss Emily Barlaston... With her performance she had the whole audience in stitches. Accompanied by pianist Andrew Wise, she offered a perfect interpretation of “Vissi d’arte” from Puccini’s Tosca. For the prominent guests she had a present: an opera CD, of course...

Twentsche Courant

Miss Emily Barlaston plays delightfully with pitch, gender, and classics from opera and musicals... A bourgeois lady with her hair in a bun unmasked herself as a Japanese woman-of-war from The Mikado (Sullivan), in which a lot goes wrong, but she made the whole theatre laugh...

Frans Mulders, Dagblad Tubantia

It was Miss Emily Barlaston who gave impetus to the show with “Let’s call the whole thing off”, the most famous quarrel in the history of the musical, and rounded off with tap-dancing and a little waltz... I firmly insist that the one who can unite perfect absurdity and incomparable technique is Miss Emily Barlaston. She surprises the audience again and again, for example with “Indian Love Call”, in which a very unsubtle echo is heard from the balcony, and she comes down the stairs with a tomahawk in the shape of a telephone receiver...

Koen Edeling, Twentsche Courant

...thunderous applause greeted the undisputed star of the Vienna congress: Miss Barlaston. The sherry-loving great-aunt certainly contributed musically, as others before her, but with the advantage of puns and body humour. She certainly lost some of her popularity when she did not reply to the riotous applause and encores. But it was necessary to leave the stage...

István Ertl, International Evening, Austria

An interesting novelty... consisted of Miss Barlaston’s act. Without a doubt she comes from Britain... Work out her age yourself: she said that Giacomo Puccini was a personal friend of her mother’s and that she herself – imagine! – once danced during a congress in Vienna with Roger Bernard, that romantic Frenchman. Miss Barlaston’s department is music, from opera and operetta, with a repertoire from Tosca, My Fair Lady and The Mikado. If we believe the rumours that under the fantastic costumes (among them is one made from “fifteen yards of velvet and three chickens”) – that under the British great-aunt’s exterior there hides someone completely different from an elderly British lady, we may appreciate so much more the singing capabilities of Miss Barlaston.

Her show is indeed a cabaret, which almost without exception means a humorous monologue with puns, jokes and disrespectful allusions to well-known people in UEA. During the act were mentioned, Roger Bernard aside, chairman John “Christopher” Wells, bookshop manager Pasquale Zapelli and even the managing director, whose first name was cabaretised into “Monkey”. A singing female, therefore, in itself an amusing species. Apart from that, an elderly, wittily British garbling female. When one regards some-thing highly, but of which one is also a little bit ashamed, it is still possible to pay homage to it by making it ridiculous. Be it sickly sweet music, or great-aunts, or even Esperanto.

Giulio Cappa, Persone, Italy

...We were concerted, we were cabareted, we were Barlastoned...

John C. Wells

I liked Miss Barlaston the most!

the late Michel Pilger, John C. Wells, Bengt-Arne Wickström

[...Emily Barlaston], in a costume which might have been created by Dame Edna... took the public's breath away with “Là ci darem la mano” by Mozart. The absolutely high part of the evening was a kind of “Last Night of the Proms” which Miss Barlaston took charge of and which she turned into a real happening, by means of the brilliant sing-along number “Land of Hope and Glory”. She threw flags, party-poopers and streamers into the great auditorium of the chock-full Twentse Schouwburg theatre.

Twentsche Courant

...the festively chaotic finish was introduced by Miss Emily Barlaston, who persuaded the audience to take part in “Land of Hope and Glory” in the well-known style of the Last Night of the Proms. The “grand old lady” had brought party-poopers, bells, streamers and flags... she attacked selections from the operas Carmen and Don Giovanni with professionalism. So much so that for the “Prom” there was already a lot of excitement, and one gentleman even stood up to conduct the orchestra with enthusiasm, and the audience sang along at the top of their voices.

Dagblad Tubantia

Ah, that cabaret with Miss Emily Barlaston! The congress delegates, whom she had already conquered last year, are ready to believe anything about her. Even that she is an honorary member of the Red Army. Now, after her glorious deeds in [Palau de la Música,] Valencia, she will certainly be promoted to colonel... in an admirably ridiculous Carmen costume, and with that young lady’s famous aria! For the rest, the costume was stripped off, and Barlaston appeared in her usual, rigorously English twinset. The audience enjoyed: the brilliant duet of Emily and Elena Puhova, her faithful pianist, Tosca’s aria, the magic tricks, even the handcuffing of an innocent young man to a chair... Anyway, riotous applause was not stinted, the audience stayed content with their adored lady.

Michael Bronstejn, Cabaret

...A completely different kind of theatre was enjoyed by the audience [in Krudttønden, Copenhagen] to the absolutely apocalyptic Miss Emily Barlaston! The programme consisted of opera arias, songs, dances, sketches, parodies – everything needed for a fun-filled cabaret of high standard: and Emily was perfect and incomparable! An amalgam of high professionalism with personal charm, a special talent in engaging an audience to sing along, makes this show unforgettable.

Zofia Banet-Fornalowa, Denmark

On Thursday the long-awaited Queen of Burlesque finally satisfied her already enthusiastic admirers, who had arrived en masse... Miss Barlaston is a unique figure in our already vast and multicoloured entertainment panorama. She really can, with wit, verve and virtuosity attack the audience with fun, and bring roars of applause, by means of her shocking statements, the movements, getting the audience to take part, especially in singing... Yes, indeed, this is more than cabaret; more a clown’s act (in the positive sense of the expression), but from a person who is extremely capable of exploiting all the tricks of the trade. Yes, the rave reviews of last year were not exaggerated. Bravo, come back soon, Miss Barlaston!

the late Aldo de’ Giorgi, Heroldo, Italy

The mysterious soprano Miss Emily Barlaston, O.B.E. showed herself last night as the absolute star of the unique programme Drie maal alleen [Three times alone]... Falling or standing, the opera singer delighted her audience with a selection from musical comedies, just as new as it was ridiculous...

Dagblad Tubantia

Miss Emily Barlaston O.B.E. (Order of the British Empire) walks through the foyer with a tray of sherry... “Would you like some?” and stumbling she goes on her way. Afterwards she stumbles onto the stage... Bottle, glasses and handbag on the piano, accompanist Hans Middelhuis untroubled and sober at the keyboard. Miss Barlaston, “retired soprano”, begins her first song. Miss Barlaston is a creation, and more, such a beautiful creation that it doesn’t matter any more who is behind it. Glass after glass, she lubricates her throat and sings pieces from My Fair Lady, The Hot Mikado and Crazy for You... For laughing, you could forget that you are listening to a glorious voice... the “very British” ex-soprano.

Hans Beuzel, Twentsche Courant

Miss Emily Barlaston’s show was very charming, humorous, and satisfying. Her act is situated somewhere between lyrical singing, cabaret, and theatre-sketch; she succeeded in capturing the entire audience (young as well as old). Not to be missed.

Rafa Blanco, Rok-Gazet, France

...Miss Barlaston made the audience laugh [at Sheraton Walker Hotel, Seoul, Korea]. I looked around me – the Asians had fallen in love with her!...

... To finish off the variegated international farewell evening with dignity, that famous and mysterious Miss Barlaston from Britain appeared on the platform, and entertained the audience with two numbers: one from Puccini’s Tosca and “I could have danced all night” from the world-famous My Fair Lady. Thunderous applause accompanied the “prima donna” – did she have to leave urgently for Britain?

Norman Fleury, Evening, Canada

Special attention must be paid to the artistic shows which abounded in [the Palace of Culture] Prague... As might be expected, our hit lady of burlesque, soprano Miss Emily Barlaston, attracted a full house to the Zamenhof Auditorium, making everyone laugh. Yet again she provided cabaret, song, sketch, extravaganza and histrionics as only she is capable of doing. Except maybe this time, rather more than usual, she made use of the more serious genre...

the late Aldo de’ Giorgi, Como, Italy

Miss Emily Barlaston, Els de Schepper and the dance company Corpus are appearing at the civic theatre in Enschede. Miss Barlaston, retired soprano, announced a piece from... Figaro, but she makes the audience sing along (“La-la-la”, very difficult) in something from Carmen. There is no way to silence the audience, which pushes Miss Barlaston to spontaneous despair. Glorious.

Hans Beuzel, Twentsche Courant

There she is, then: Miss Emily Barlaston. On a podium not much bigger than two metres square. In a long, white dress with red spots, pursed red lips, red painted nails, matching pearl earrings and necklace, and with a handkerchief at her wrist, she looks like a Queen. An old Queen, it should be said, but with a voice as clear as a bell. Last weekend she was the star guest at C.O.C.-Club Paradox, where the “Gay and Lesbian Weekend” took place between Friday and yesterday.

It is almost eleven-thirty on Saturday evening when Miss Barlaston ascends the podium. Together with her pianist she is able to enthral the audience with her play on words, suggestions and songs. Songs which sound as if she had just escaped from an opera. The glorious robe is replaced by a sensible, two-piece suit. The Queen becomes, with her grey hair in a bun, a normal, upright lady of advanced years who, whenever a song is finished, downs a glass of red wine or is it port, or could it be something else? She almost topples off the podium, but she manages to stay on her feet. At the end of the act, no longer sober, she takes a Marks & Spencer’s bag and begins to take things out. There are Union Jacks, tooters, fireworks and song-sheets with the words of “Land of Hope and Glory”. There has to be a rehearsal for the final song, and the audience takes part with full lungs. Miss Barlaston rushes to an upper floor to find her deep-blue robe of velvet with fur, to finish her act as a true prima donna, and once more quite sober.

There exists some confusion over Miss Barlaston’s proclivities. “I did have a gentleman friend during the war,” she says in her dressing room, “but he passed away in a horrible way. After that I never bothered with gentleman friends, I never had the time for that sort of thing. I’m always globetrotting. I don’t need a big family, as I already have a lot of nieces and nephews.” “Aren’t you a little bit lonely then?” “Oh, just a little bit,” she says and ends the interview, somewhat embarrassed.

Arnhemse Courant, our lady reporter