No Surrender – Paul Bogaev for one night only. Upstairs at the Gatehouse, Highgate Village, London N1. 29 January 2024.

4****: William Russell

“Bogaev proves to be a blast.”

Paul Bogaev has the sort of voice that sounds like two pieces of sandpaper being rubbed together and when he plays the piano it not so much a case of tinkling the ivories as beating hell out of the keyboard but his hour long one off appearance Upstairs at the Gatehouse was thrilling. Currently in London as musical director of Sondheim’s Pacific Overtures directed by Trevor Nunn at the Menier Chocolate Factory – he was also musical of Nunn’s production there and in the West End of Fiddler on the Roof – he packed the Gatehouse on a chill Monday night as he performed songs by Bruce Springsteen and Tom Waites, chatted about his career – his film credits include Chicago, Dream Girls and the Lion King and he has worked on Broadway as a musical director and performer – and introduced us to two of his sons there for the show not to mention Nunn. The evening was called No Surrender – well the audience did. It had no option. Springsteen and Waites are not my sort of singers of songs but Bogaev was enough to send me seeking them out. He i what one callss a class act although in this instance sadly on for one night only – the run of Pacific Overtures ends soon so presumably it is back home for him. But he certainly brought excitement to a dreary January evening in London. Bogaev proved to be a blast.