A spellbinding and mesmerising performance from the great Lisa Simone
Presented by: Adelaide Festival Centre
Reviewed: 26 July, 2025
After a spellbinding performance as part of the 2024 Adelaide Cabaret Festival, Lisa Simone returned to Adelaide for a night of pure musical magic in a celebration of not only her own career, but that of her mother, Nina Simone.
Lisa’s voice and stage prowess has not only earned her worldwide recognition, but practically every accolade, including Grammy nominations, starring roles on Broadway, and chart-topping albums. In A Daughter’s Tribute to Nina Simone Lisa pays homage to her late mother’s life, music and legacy, and also celebrates her own incredible career. In Lisa’s own words, “Adelaide, I’m so excited to be back here. Tonight will be a celebration of my mom…and me”. And it certainly was.
The haunting opening refrain of Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair (from Nina Simone’s 1959 album Wild is the Wind) echoed through Her Majesty’s Theatre before Lisa walked onto the stage to rapturous applause. Opening with a ballad highlighted Lisa’s incredible skills as a performer — the entire theatre was still as the audience hung on every word.
Between the years 1959 and 1970, Nina Simone on average recorded between one and three albums per year, so the catalogue of music and musical styles to pick from was vast. For A Daughter’s Tribute to Nina Simome, Lisa focused the first half of the evening on stories and songs that were landmark moments from her mother’s vast career, including songs such as I Put A Spell On You, Old Jim Crow and an enchanting version of Mr Bojangles.
The second half focused more on Lisa’s career and many of her chart topping hits. Throughout the evening Lisa spoke of how her mother not only wrote a large number of songs, but she was also able to take another artist’s song and reimagine it as her own. Lisa has gone on to do this with her mother’s music, performing an incredible reggae version of If You Knew, which Nina originally wrote about Lisa.
The set list would not have been complete without crowd favourites My Baby Just Cares for Me and Feeling Good. Lisa ended the evening with her brilliant song My World, about finding your peace and place in the world.
Watching Lisa perform is a masterclass in stage etiquette, performance skills and storytelling. She has this amazing ability to pull a crowd in by speaking in hushed tones between songs, then mesmerising you with the way she interprets lyrics. Vocally, Lisa’s voice is powerful. Her control through phrases makes every note count and her breath control is impressive — what blissful long notes!
Supporting Lisa through the night was a phenomenal band led by her musical director and pianist, Bill Risby. The band featured Gordon Rytmeister (drums), Nick Sinclair (bass), David Longo (guitar), Virna Sanzone (backing vocals) and Juanita Tippins (backing vocals). These mighty fine musicians added to the already electrifying atmosphere. Their musicianship was on point, and you could see their connection through music in the way they bounced off each other during solos.
If you haven’t let Lisa put a spell on you with her incredible performances, keep an eye out for when she may return to our shores (there was a hint from her of a return in the not too distant future and a potential regional tour). Lisa is a world class act. It’s not every day you have the opportunity to see someone of Lisa’s caliber perform and to beautifully carry the legacy of what her mother laid before her.
Reviewed by Ben Stefanoff
Photo credit: Rick Delgado
Venue: Her Majesty’s Theatre
Season: ended
