Here her incredible vocals and delightful insight into the human heart were complemented by the outstanding ensemble of The Impossible Orchestra. These two forces were united together. While the stage initially seemed at physical capacity for the orchestra, Washington and a grand piano, it was a perfect venue for the ethereal evening.
While there is, currently, no album title, there was a strong thematic theme: love. Every song played was a love song. Yet, these were not your conventional love tales. Washington drew inspiration from political and social events to reveal the love, or lack of love, or the desire for love beneath the surface of events. This included a love song inspired by the election of Donald Trump and another directly addressing Australia’s survey on same-sex marriage.
Washington’s sharp sense of humour and curiosity about love was also present as she told the backstory for some of her songs. This included a track influenced by the incredibly complicated love story between a gorilla called Bokito and a woman called Petronella. According to Washington, Petronella visited Bokito every day for three years and Bokito imprinted on her. One day, Bokito broke free from his enclosure and grabbed her before authorities intervened. The longing, the literal ‘we can never be together’ and the destruction from this story ran through the veins of the song that it inspired.
Washington’s own experience inspired several numbers. Her encore song was inspired by the time she attempted to deflect a guy’s sexual advances by singing him to sleep. In providing the backstory, Washington created an intimacy with the audience and displayed a further strength in telling a story through prose. Her dead-pan sense of humour was dotted throughout the story. Stories, such as these, painted her songs and showed how multifaceted and unconventional a love song can be.
The Impossible Orchestra performed with a strong magnitude and proved that they deserved their reputation as a “symphonic supergroup”, they became a strong, emotive force that harmonised with Washington’s lyrical and vocal gifts. Washington could’ve provided an amazing performance wearing a potato sack and accompanied by a broken tambourine. Instead, her otherworldly, artfully draped velvet dress, remarkable lighting design and the significantly large orchestra accompanying her created a phenomenal and unforgettable performance. Her wit and poetic insight to love was thought-provoking. Sometimes love is the best thing we can experience and sometimes it can break us. Yet, it should never be forgotten or dismissed in its entirety.
Highlight: The warmth and intimacy created by Washington’s stage banter.
Lowlight: The cellist’s buttons banging against the cello during his otherwise amazing solo.
Crowd Favourite: ‘Lover/Soldier’.
