Critically-acclaimed singer and performer Anne Carrere is reprising her role as Edith Piaf in “Paris! The Show,” coming to George Washington’s Lisner Auditorium this coming Tuesday, October 22nd. She originally portrayed the famous French chanteuse in Piaf! The Show, where she toured the world and sold out Carnegie Hall on the anniversary of Piaf’s first show there. She’s back touring the world for this music-theater spectacular, produced and directed by Gil Marsalla. She took some time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions for the MD Theatre Guide:
1. How does it feel to play someone who actually lived?
Edith Piaf is universally legendary, so it’s an honor to continue to preserve her music and spirit.
2. How did you prepare for the role of Edith Piaf?
I met a lot of people who knew Edith Piaf, such as Charles Dumont, her main composer, Ginou Richer, her personal secretary, and Germaine Ricord, who opened for her and supported her on tour. Here is a video of me meeting Germaine. I also read a lot about her and watched all the videos of her live performances
3. You have had the opportunity to travel the world performing. Do you have a favorite place where you have performed?
Certainly! Carnegie Hall in January of 2017. Gil Marsalla, my producer, wanted to mark the 60th anniversary of her unforgettable concert on that very stage. It was an indescribably incredible experience to perform on the same stage as she did 60 years later to a sold out Carnegie Hall!
4. What about Edith Piaf’s life and music resonates with you most as a performer?
First and foremost – love – love in all forms. Piaf’s music is filled with love and it is that which inspires every night that I perform her songs.
5. What is your favorite song to perform and why?
Paris! The Show brings the best Paris songs to life. It’s hard to narrow down my favorite as I truly love to sing all of them. But, if I had to choose, it would be the vocal trio I do with Jules Grison and Stéphanie Impoco. It’s a song that tells the central love story in the production, which is set in Paris in the 1950s. As I said, Edith inspires love, so it’s perfect!
“Paris! The Show,” a musical performed entirely through French song and dance, is a vibrant tribute to the greatest French songs of the post-WWII era. Music from Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour, Jaques Brel, Maurice Chavalier, and more are performed by a star-studded French cast including Carrere.
If you want to check out this one-night-only performance, click here for a preview of the show: and here for ticket information.
