Broadway stars to rock with Maui Pops Orchestra
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Featuring songs from hit musicals such as "Tommy," "Jesus Christ Superstar," "Wicked," "Mamma Mia!," and "Beautiful," "American Idol" finalist LaKisha Jones and Dan Domenech will team with the Maui Pops Orchestra led by maestro Jim Durham for a "Broadway Rocks!" concert on Sunday at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center.
"It's songs from Broadway shows that were more outside of the classical realm, and more in the Pops," Jones explained. "We're going to bring a little rock feel to it. Dan is the rocker, and maybe I'm the popper."
The two artists have performed similar "Rocks" shows with a variety of orchestras in the past.
"I love working with Dan," Jones said. "He's a great artist and a great human. One of the songs that we're doing is Whitney Houston's 'I Want to Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me).' You hear it from a different perspective because you have this full orchestration on stage with you. You get the audience involved, and it's not your normal symphony show. You don't have to sit in your seats and just be still and don't clap. We want you to clap. We want you to stand up."
After launching his professional journey with a national tour of "Rent" in 2002, Domenech originated a role in the pre-Broadway production of "Sister Act" in 2006. A starring role in the first national tour of "Rock of Ages" led to a Broadway run. Other career highlights include performing in "Kinky Boots" in Toronto, headlining "Rocktopia" and touring globally with "Broadway Rox."
Dan Domenech has played a variety of roles throughout his career including performing in "Kinky Boots" and "Rocktopia." Courtesy photo
Jones loves singing with orchestras. As a guest soloist, she has performed with a range of orchestras from the Houston and San Diego symphonies, to the Utah Symphony, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and the Minnesota Orchestra, and she has traveled with symphonies to Russia, the Czech Republic and Germany.
"I love that I can connect with the audience in a different way," Jones said. "It reminds me of being on Broadway, but you're on stage without all the bells and whistles of sets. You're telling the story as an artist."
Jones was an "American Idol" finalist in 2007, knocking out the judges. "Jones, who bears a vocal and physical resemblance to Aretha Franklin, wowed the judges with a pair of the Queen of Soul's standards 'Think' and 'Until You Come Back to Me,'" praised The Toronto Star.
"Love this girl," Simon Cowell said. "Love you, LaKisha."
"American Idol changed my life," she said. "It was such a great experience coming from a church background, being on stage every week and just learning music and songs that I was sometimes familiar with and other songs I was not familiar with. It opened doors for me to be able to travel the world and share my gift, and I am forever grateful for that."
Her singing also impressed some Broadway producers as she was subsequently hired for the Tony Award-winning musical "The Color Purple."
She recalled she was on tour and got a call asking her to audition for the role of Sophia.
"I ended up getting the role, and I got to share the role with Chaka Khan," she said. "Our Harpo was BeBe Winans. I was a fan of Fantasia (Barrino) as well, because she just is a powerhouse and she comes from the church background, too.
"To be on stage with her, Bebe Winans and Chaka Khan, I was like, 'Oh, this little girl from Flint, I actually got to hang with Chaka and talk about music and life and being an artist.' She gave me some really valuable information."
Feeling blessed to sing for audiences, she said that when she's able to go to places such as Maui and Russia, if she can touch one person through her singing, then her job is done.
"God gave me this gift, and it's truly a blessing to travel the world and use it," she said.
The Maui Pops "Broadway Rocks!" concert will be at 3 p.m. Sunday at the MACC's Castle Theater. Tickets are $37, $50, $70 and $80. Students 18 and under with an ID are half-price, except for $37 tickets.