Reviews from Edinburgh 2009

ALL THE FESTIVALS
Martin (The Falsetto) Milnes ***** 5 STARS

Martin (The Falsetto) Milnes was just my cup of Tetley’s, complete with chocolate hobnobs, thus I find it difficult to review this show without simply gushing a string of excitable commendations and praise.

With the voice of a young Elaine Paige, Martin without a shadow of a doubt is undeniably gifted. It is that simple. The guy can sing from a male bass to a female soprano, which spans more octaves than I can count. On top of this, his pitch and tone is so pure that he was able to belt out some of the greatest musical classics, better than some of our leading ladies in the musical circuit, and his recital of ‘Pie Jesu’ literally moved me to tears … what more can I say.

Despite the faultless musical talents what was far and away the icing, the cherry and chocolate sprinkles on the cake was how modest a performance he gave. The show was delivered in jest almost, and with complete folly … Tenuous tongue-in-cheek links, which again humbles such a show …

You cannot escape the fact that Martin’s talent shines … A genuine pleasure to behold … Destined for something magical.

THREE WEEKS MAGAZINE
MARTIN “THE FALSETTO” MILNES *****
This is a unique journey through musical theatre with Martin “The Falsetto Milnes” … Milnes has the unique ability to sing both soprano and tenor … From pink umbrella twirling to Union Jack waving … some hilarious pastiches of the musical theatre genre … It is to the show’s credit that they manage to produce some genuinely poignant numbers, rather than to succumbing to the temptation of performing songs that are only funny because of Martin’s voice.

For its sheer creativity and entertainment, this show deserves a cult following. You’ll probably never see anyone like Martin Milnes again.

BROADWAY BABY (Official Review)
Martin Milnes is a unique talent – with an exceptional voice and good vocal technique to go with it …

[Martin] opened his mouth and let one soaring, spine-tingling, body-thrilling sexy high note out – and the show really began. Martin’s vocal presence is amazing and wins the audience over …

Martin runs the gamut of Operetta, musical theatre numbers and Opera. It’s a good mix of well-known familiar tunes and some lesser-known gems. To sing at high energy, giving off firework after vocal firework, with only a small break in between, for an hour, without the aid of a microphone thankfully, finishing off with one of the most technically demanding arias in the coloratura repertory, and to do it night after night is impressive … And when he goes into belt quality, the sound hits you like a hot stone massage – invigorating, revivifying, regenerating.

It’s definitely a show to catch, and if you catch Martin this early in his career, you’ll want to follow him all the way through.

BROADWAY BABY (Audience Review)
Every so often the Fringe contains a talent so special it makes you gasp in amazement. Martin Milnes is one of those. By some occurrence he has two separate voice ranges and a powerful frame to send them through the rafters. In its own right, Milnes’ tenor voice is superb and rewarding to listen to. He is accurate, competent, musical and he achieves satisfying traction; he really gets hold of a note and drives it home. But this is just one part of Milnes. He can also do soprano, and not just do the range, but do it with as much power as with his lower range. To hear him do the powerful soprano is to experience something you will (I hesitate to say never, but I’ve never before heard anything like it, so, what the hell …) never had heard before. There might be professional female singers who, on hearing him, give up and go work in a factory.

No hesitation. Five stars. If you want to see an act that will keep you thinking for days afterwards and beating back the urge to stop people on the streets to tell them about it, go see Martin the Falsetto. You will rarely again hear a human voice quite like it.

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