Presented by Adelaide Festival Centre
Reviewed 20 June 2019
Right from the start, when in the blackout, the audience is treated to the haunting sound of a Tongan choir singing The Lord’s Prayer, in their own language, through to the finale of Bridge Over Troubled Waters, this world premiere show Between Two Shores wonderfully reflected the Tongan/Australian heritage of these amazing singing sisters Vika and Linda Bull.
Through an incredible array of songs we shared in the story of their upbringing in Doncaster, Victoria which served to develop their incredible musical talent and hone their voices to perfection. Influences ranged from hearing their mother sing as the soloist in the Tongan church choir to being sung to sleep as their dad sang an Irish Lullaby, to practising by singing along with music on the television. The skills of the band were on also display as they ran through a nostalgic medley of TV theme tunes and advertisement jingles with the audience particularly enjoying Louie the Fly from the Mortein ad.
The different, but oh so complementary and harmonious, voices of Vika and Linda were definitely on show in the gospel songs and I especially enjoyed their take on Up Above My Head by Sister Rosetta Tharp. Their vocal range is impressive and despite Vika saying that Linda sings ballads better than she does, they both have the ability to rock out a number but also have brilliant musical timing and know when to produce a softer, more delicate sound. This was most evident in Willie Nelson’s You Were Always on My Mind on which Linda took the lead.
As she also did in the finale of Bridge Over Troubled Waters. A reherseal for this song is on their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/vikaandlindabull/. It was a great version but seemed a little downbeat for a finale – but that’s just a personal taste. They left the crowd standing and cheering for more as 70 minutes was nowhere near enough of this wonderful duo.
Reviewed by Jan Kershaw
Rating out of 5: 5
Venue: Dunstan Playhouse
Season: June 20, 21 at 9pm and 22 at 3.30pm
Duration: 70 mins
Tickets: $79.90, $69.90 Conc $64.90
Bookings: https://www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com.au/events/vika-linda/
https://www.adelaidecabaretfestival.com.au
http://www.vikaandlindabull.com/
More News
