Who Has a Bad Day?

Last time on “Any Dream Will Do”: The (not-so) live shows began! The judges were impressed with the caliber of performances but there were some they weren’t sold on. In the end, England put Ben and Chris C into the bottom two. Because of the judges’ uncertainty on Chris, Ben was saved and Chris had to turn in his coat. Who goes tonight? Find out!

The second (not-so) live show opens with Graham in a lovely blue suit with a gold shirt. He gets the audience riled up as the Josephs enter to perform the opening song—“Jacob and Sons/Joseph’s Coat.” Well, an abbreviated version of it as the real song is about seven minutes long. Funny that Lee gets his chance at the camera when they sing “black.” The only bad part of the show is that I get the “ah ah” theme music stuck in my head ALL week long. It’s hard doing payroll with that in your head.

Graham introduces the panel and Webber before going straight to Daniel and Craig. Webber meets with Craig as he sings while Daniel talks about his bad comment from Webber. And the Lord is still not thrilled with Daniel’s acting choices.

Coming up: Daniel goes in front of the Lord.

Daniel goes first with Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone.” I saw her nearly a year ago at the Papal Youth Rally. She sang it there but was rushed off stage because they thought the Pope was coming (he was still on 72^nd Street in Manhattan). I like Daniel’s voice but I don’t think the song’s suited for it, particularly in the beginning. But I can feel the joyful side, I don’t get why Webber wanted him to be angry. Clarkson doesn’t read as furious while singing it. They show Daniel’s supporters as Craig’s song starts up. He sings “Home” from Michael Buble and it is much more suited to him than Daniel’s song. However, it does sound like a cabaret standard.

The two stand before the panel. Graham asks what Daniel thinks Webber thought and about Craig’s acting. Bill praises both men’s singing. Denise wants to see Craig do more than just be cabaret. She wants him to express more. She loved Daniel and thinks he could be Joseph. Zoë loves Craig and Daniel as well, disagreeing with Denise. Webber is happy with Daniel’s commitment. He does worry about Craig as well.

Coming Up: Keith and a messy house.

Keith and Seamus go up next. Keith is happy from Zoë’s comments. He is then shown cleaning up the Joseph House. He recalls his trip from grocery store to singing for Webber. One Joseph asks if he ever stops smiling. My coworkers ask me the same thing! Seamus is worried about John’s comments about being a team player.

Keith sings “Who am I” (not the Les Mis song, the Will Young one). He gets a “Josephine” to sing to. He has a very expressive face. This is such a pretty song…I hope my YouTube provider still has these songs available for download because I may go back and get this one. Two years and you forget how good some of these guys really were. Seamus follows with “Being Alive” from Stephen Sondheim’s Company. This always struck me as funny as Sondheim is revered in the theater world but Webber’s popularity and success always eclipses him. As for Seamus’ performance, it’s pretty good. Of course, if I’ve heard this song lately it was either sung by John Barrowman or Raul Esparaza. Wow, these fans have some pretty neat signs.

Graham asks Keith about being “Mrs. Mom” and then questions Seamus about his feelings about teamwork. He explains he does feel he helps but does want to better himself. John thinks Keith was a good singer but says he needs better diction. For Seamus, he wanted him to feel the words more. And that leading company, he needs to be a part and enjoy the ambiance. Bill feels good diction or bad diction, Keith proved he could be Joseph. He reminds Seamus to be a team player as he is such a great talent. Zoë does agree with John about Keith and isn’t as forthcoming with the praise as last week. Zoë tells Seamus to get over his nerves but he argues it isn’t nerves. Webber hoped that Seamus would’ve used more joy in the song. He praises Keith’s acting but not so happy with the diction.

Coming Up: Ben isn’t Joseph.

Ben is the fifth Joseph up. He talks about being in the bottom two and we even get to see his mum! He doesn’t want to be in the bottom two. Then the other Josephs agree that he isn’t Joseph. He promises to fight. He performs “All By Myself” and is not part of a duo, odd man out. You know people knock them, but I love Eighties rock ballads. Probably because I grew up on them, but still…It’s a lovely song but I’m not getting much acting from him, in my opinion. Webber doesn’t look too thrilled.

Graham talks to Ben about scraping into the competition and then being in the bottom two. He says he’s given it his all. Denise thinks the opposite from me: not great vocal but good acting. John agrees with Denise and still loves Ben. Zoë doesn’t think it was a great performance, focusing on his vocal performance. She promises to do more work if he survives. Webber doesn’t think he did a good job either.

Coming Up: Johndeep and a mirror.

Graham introduces Johndeep and Chris B. Johndeep talks about his family seeing him sing. His mum was proud. And he gets another Sondheim song…Well, Sondheim/Bernstein song. Zoë works Johndeep. Webber listens to Chris B sing and the Joseph hopes he impressed him. Johndeep sings first, performing “Something’s Coming” from West Side Story. He’s a bit of the opposite of Ben for me: good acting, not so strong vocal. Little side note, if you live in New York City, go listen to a 4 train pull out of a station. It sounds like the first few notes of “Somewhere” from this musical. Chris B gets that Jackson 5 standard “I’ll Be There.” This is on my iPod (though with the Jacksons singing, not Chris!). Like Keith, he gets a Josephine to sing to. I feel between him and Johndeep, Chris is the stronger of the two. Which is a shame, as I love Johndeep.

Graham is surprised that Johndeep hasn’t seen West Side Story but says he didn’t see it to prepare so as not to be influenced. Chris says he’s worked hard. John thinks Johndeep was camp and asks him to find the happy medium, which Chris found. John thinks Chris is his Joseph “so far.” Bill thinks Johndeep’s interpretation was the wrong one but thinks Chris has it. Graham notes Zoë is not happy because she corrects things but they still do it, like Johndeep’s breathing. She compares Chris’ voice to chocolate. Webber agrees with Bill on Johndeep’s performance but feels Chris was the better one.

Coming Up: Antony seduces Webber??  

Next up are Rob the Builder and Antony. Rob is thrilled with his performance. Zoë praises him as well in practice. Webber meets with Antony. And that’s when he has to “seduce” him with his song. Rob starts with “Piano Man,” the Billy Joel standard. When I saw Joel at Madison Square Garden, we couldn’t use lighters so the arena was lit by cell phones. Rob gives a great performance of the song and is a strong actor. Antony follows that with “Light my Fire,” complete with red lighting and Josephines. He sings well enough but I think the seduction aspect was lost in the bigger setting than the rehearsal room.

Graham asks the two if they find it harder to sing for Webber or his family. Rob says Webber, Antony says his girlfriend. Denise praises Rob for getting better and the contrast from last week. Denise tells Antony to relax, he’s too stiff on stage. Insert “that’s what she said” here. Bill loves Rob as well and tells Antony to engage the audience. Zoë admits she was worried about the two in rehearsal but admits it was for naught. Webber asks the audience if they realize it was two different people singing. Silence. He says that was something to work on but Rob was great. He praises Antony.

Coming Up: Lewis is a clown.

Lewis and Lee finish up. We get clips of Lewis being the house clown before he sings for Webber. He advises Lewis to think about the words. Lee was worried that people would not be behind him due to his professional experience. His family is happy for him. Lewis is up first, singing “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word.” We get a shot of Nanna Jean. He doesn’t appear to be the clown we saw in the montage. Lewis was one of the Josephs I was always unsure about, I wanted him to stay, I wanted him to go…But now on reviewing, I do like him. Lee finishes with “Bad Day.” You all remember this song, so all together: “Cause you had a bad day…” Lee owns the song, singing to his Josephine and his decision to make it comforting song works. I do want to kill the back up singer—let Lee sing alone! And he gets a kiss.

I wish I was that Josephine.

Graham asks Lewis about how he felt about panel comments from last week. He says he just wanted to prove he could do it. Graham asks Lee about the worst thing about the competition. “The cleaning,” he replies. “You’ve got Keith Jack for that!” Graham shoots back. Denise praises Lewis and calls him her Joseph. She praises Lee for rising to the challenge and for his acting skills. Bill agrees with Denise. He’s impressed with Lewis’ maturity. He tells the two they are in and they hug each other. Aww. John says he won’t rain on their parade. He praises both as well. He calls Lee a leading man. Zoë tells Lewis not to breathe in the middle of a word and says her son loves him. She says he has taste. She tells Lee to believe in himself because the panel believes in him. Webber praises Lee and how he handled the song. He says he’s glad he gave Lewis that song because he did well. Webber says he’s been surprised by the Josephs.

Coming Up: Elimination. You know, I wanted to see the Joseph Missions. Guess I’ll have to go back to YouTube for those…

Graham announces the Josephs’ fates. Chris: He is in the bottom two. Lewis: Safe, like there was any doubt. Lee and Keith: Both are safe. They hug and join Lewis. Rob and Daniel: Safe, so they leave the stage for a Joseph group hug. Antony: Still safe. His girlfriend is ecstatic. The remaining four come down off the stairs. Three are safe, one is not. Seamus: Safe. Craig: Also safe. He shakes someone’s hand as he leaves the stage. It’s down to Ben and Johndeep. Who is safe? It’s Ben. Johndeep is in the bottom two. Ben gives him a reassuring pat before joining the others.

Chris and Johndeep sing “Let it Be” by the Beatles. My senior class considers this for our graduation song…for about five seconds. We ended up having two: “What I Did for Love” and “Now and Forever.” Once again, though I want Johndeep to pull through, I find Chris the stronger of the two. They join Graham to stand before Lord Webber. He now must save one person and crush the other one. Webber is not pleased with the results. He feels both should be safe. He thinks who would be a better Joseph and decides to save…Chris B. Darn it. I hope Johndeep continues singing, he has a great voice. Graham tells the Josephs to listen carefully. There will be a double elimination on next week’s (not-so) live show.

Johndeep gets his goodbye. The remaining ten stand as he sings “Close Every Door.” His parents look ready to cry. Chris and Antony strip him of his coat. He finishes the song and breaks down. Poor guy.  

Still Could Be Joseph:

Rob

Lee

Chris B

Daniel

Craig

Keith

Seamus

Anthony

Lewis

Johndeep

Ben

Chris C

Next week: JOSEPH MISSION! FINALLY! And they quote Television Without Pity in the promo! Anyway, the panel gets tough. Who will survive the double elimination! And if you want to be surprised, NO PEEKING ON WIKIPEDIA!

Quote of the Episode:

“And if you at home were thinking of redecorating your lounge, some good ideas there. Educational and entertaining. Ochre?”—Graham

So, pleased with the elimination of Johndeep? Think he went too early? Were you rooting for him like me? Do you agree with Webber that two others deserved to be in the bottom two rather than Johndeep and Chris?

Once again, thanks to Chrissi and AngelRose.