Brightman at Her Best With Show Tunes

Sarah Brightman’s fans like to refer to her as the “Angel of Music,” in part, no doubt, because of her bell-like soprano voice, in part because of her lovely, seraphic countenance.

But the English singer--once married to composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and a principal in several of his musicals--sounds more cinematic than celestial in PBS’ “Sarah Brightman in Concert at the Royal Albert Hall.”

The references that come to mind during Brightman’s program, in fact, mostly date to an era before she was born, a time when Hollywood was enthralled by such photogenic light classical sopranos as Jane Powell, Deanna Durbin and Kathryn Grayson. Reminiscent of those once-popular artists, Brightman has a high, sweet voice and a lovely, engaging appearance.

Also, as was true with Powell, Durbin and Grayson, her talent is best suited to music that does not demand an especially rich vocal timbre. And Brightman wisely limits her classical presentation in this program to a focused, cameo-like rendering of the familiar aria “O Mio Babbino Caro” (from Puccini’s “Gianni Schicchi”).

Brightman is much more in her metier with show tunes, especially the music of Lloyd Webber, which has played a dominant role in her career since she appeared in a production of “Cats” in 1981 and created the role of Christine in “Phantom of the Opera” in 1986.

*

Lloyd Webber, who makes a guest appearance at the concert, accompanies her in an attractive reading of “Whistle Down the Wind,” and she provides a different perspective on “Music of the Night” (sung by the Phantom in the production but originally written by Lloyd Webber for her, according to Brightman, in a completely different context).

Her great popularity in Europe is underscored by a duet with Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli on “Time to Say Goodbye,” a No. 1 hit, and she further demonstrates her versatility with an operatic rendering of “Summertime.” It’s not exactly the music of the angels, but Brightman’s easygoing appeal makes for a pleasant pledge-drive special.

* “Sarah Brightman in Concert at the Royal Albert Hall” airs at 8 tonight on KCET-TV Channel 28.