All the Right Notes

Mr Kane Parsons will take the stage at Regent Theatre to realise the dream of a lifetime. Having hit All the Right Notes late last year at the Globe Theatre, Mr Parsons is taking his previously solo performance to the bigger stage and to new orchestral heights.

Most recently acclaimed as the lead in The Buddy Holly Story, Mr Parsons’ musical talent knows no bounds. In All the Right Notes: just not necessarily in the right order, he promises to take his audience on a journey through the history of classical music, but it is a journey which takes many an unexpected turn.

Combining forces with the Manawatu Sinfonia and Youth Orchestra, conducted by Peter Ellery, and guest soprano Kathi Craig, Mr Parsons’ show turns general preconceptions about the seriousness of classical music upside down and inside out. Classical works are made accessible through comedy, promising a night of family-friendly good fun and laughter.

The inspiration behind Mr Parsons’ creation is the great Danish pianist/comedian Victor Borge (1909-2000) who made an art of bringing serious classical music to the people through comedy. Borge, the Clown Prince of Denmark, was a musical prodigy but is most famous for his signature ‘stand up’ act, blending classical piano and humour.

Borge’s comedy resonated with young and old alike, and All the Right Notes has the same appeal, a fact which Mr Parsons thrives upon: “It’s amazing having 3 year olds and 90 year olds laughing at the same comic routines”. He hopes to introduce a new generation to Borge’s style, while also taking those who do remember the Great Dane for a trip down memory lane.

In the process, Mr Parsons will be literally treading the same boards as Borge who himself performed on the Regent’s stage in the 1970s. This happy coincidence both humbles and impassions Mr Parsons: “To be sharing the same stage as the great man is a pretty special feeling indeed”.

Like Borge, Mr Parsons will also present the music of the big names – Beethoven, Chopin, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, and more – in a way which makes it accessible and enjoyable to all. And audience members may well be surprised at just how recognisable the musical repertoire is with so many of these great works having subliminally made their way into the common psyche.

The biggest draw-card of All the Right Notes is perhaps best captured in its subtitle: just not necessarily in the right order. Expect the unexpected. Classical music will be transformed, redefined, and most importantly, made fun and funny. For Mr Parsons shares the sentiment of the man who inspired him:

If I have caused just one person to wipe away a tear of laughter, that’s my reward. - Victor Borge

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