You may recognise Christina Bianco from various viral videos on social media; such as her version of ‘Let it Go’ or ‘Total Eclipse of the Heart’- which lead to television performances on The Queen Latifah Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and more. If you haven’t seen her performances, you should know that Christina is “every woman”…that’s right, she’s a diva impressionist! A very good diva impressionist…
Once her band is set on the festively themed stage, Christina enters in true diva style in the first of many beautiful dresses for the evening. For those unfamiliar with her talents, she begins to introduce herself and some of the most well-known voices in the world.
Sticking with the holiday theme, we are met with songs such as ‘O Holy Night’, a parody of ‘All I want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth’, and a particular highlight…a spoken and sung rendition of Doctor Seuss’s ‘The Grinch’. In this version of ‘The Grinch’; not only do we get to hear from Drew Barrymore, Miley Cyrus, and Penelope Cruz… we are surprised by British reality show star Amy Childs and even Peppa Pig! Which she absolutely nailed by the way.
Something endearing about Christina’s performance is that you can actually see just how sweet a person she is and therefore this gives such a warm performance and atmosphere in the Charing Cross theatre. She introduces her band and best friend on piano Joe Louis Robinson- all of whom are very talented. Later when Christina asks the audience to choose a Christmas song and diva from crackers that were passed out to the audience, she and her band adapt on the spot to make hilarious renditions. I was lucky enough to see Julie Andrews sing Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’… but I don’t think Julie will add this to her repertoire anytime soon.
The list is endless on the fun parts of the show. There’s a section where she even talks about Christmas television, so not only do we get to see Christina sing songs as diva’s but also do mini scenes. These include much loved TV stars such as Jennifer Aniston, Sophia Vegara, and my personal favourite, Megan Mullally.
While Christina Bianco is a great impressionist, she’s also a brilliant vocalist herself. Just before the interval, she leaves us with a gorgeous performance of ‘Let Me Be Your Star’ from Smash. It’s nice we get to see Christina sing as herself, as well as the many diva’s throughout the night.
Towards the end of the show, our lead performer gives her view on who she believes is the greatest diva of all time, and that is Barbara Streisand. Christina owns Streisand’s interior design book and shares just how amusing this book is with of course some impersonations along the way.
While not every impression is nailed vocally, they are all still performed excellently through various mannerisms and characteristics. I saw Christina at Edinburgh Fringe in 2015 and the entire array of impressions has widened and improved. ‘O Come, All Ye Diva’s’ is the perfect Christmas cabaret. It’s warm, it’s festive, and it’s full of surprises. If you want diva’s, trust me, you’re getting them!
Reviewed by Ellie Devonshire
O COME, ALL YE DIVAS plays at the Charing Cross Theatre until 7 January 2017. Tickets
Watch my 2015 video interview with Christina Bianco …
INTERVIEW: Christina Bianco has Tea With Wilma chatting about her 2016 UK tour
