Truth is, Brightman’s long hiatus from musical theatre has diminished her theatrical skills, and vocal stylings that work like a charm in the recording studio don’t always translate well to the stage. Humour, pathos, menace: these are the notes you’ve got to hit as Norma Desmond, an ageing silent film star and classic femme fatale. And if few musical notes are beyond Brightman – who’s renowned for her three-octave range – her vocals here are so operatic, and resort to such heavy vibrato, that you sometimes can’t make out the lyrics.
OUCH