Wednesday 6th June
It's the final of Any Dream Will Do on Saturday so vocal coach Zoe Tyler relives the highs, the lows and the bum notes on the quest for the perfect Joseph...
Are you confident that the remaining boys have got what it takes to be a West End stage star? "In their own way they could all be Josephs, although each one of them has an insecurity of some kind, or a vocal fault that could do with some work on. I think by the time the actual show opens in July, whoever it will be, will be fabulous because they’ll be trained to the limit. But they’ve all got the capability of being Joseph somewhere inside them..."
What have been the high points of the search? "Watching the change in all their singing. For instance, Craig had no vocal expertise whatsoever with his clubby, cabaret voice and I managed to open up his voice, fine-tune his technique and see his face when he hears himself. He gets really emotional because he can’t believe the way he’s sounding. I used to be a cabaret singer and I had to turn into a West End singer from cabaret. Basically you have to iron out things like slides and cabaret wrists – it needs to be more simple and to take out the cheesiness."
How long have you spend coaching them? "I spend all day Tuesday going through their solos and sometimes Wednesday if needed but, generally, they go off and film on Wednesday, then [I coach them] all of Thursday and Friday, preparing them for the Saturday night."
Should they have sung more show tunes than they have? "I think you can’t really have a Saturday night show as purely musical theatre. It has to appeal to a very wide audience. We’ve done more musical theatre songs than we did in Maria. And what the show is doing for musicals is amazing... People can pan us and diss the show, but we’re doing incredible things for the musical theatre industry in this country."
Have you agreed with all of Andrew’s ‘saves’? "No, I haven’t. Most of the time, say 90 per cent of the time, I agree with him, but not when he got rid of Daniel Boys. And John Barrowman was very upset with him, too, that week. There are lots of disagreements behind the scenes between the judges. We have quite a few meetings and you know, we’re not going to have the same opinions.
"Bill Kenwright wants something different from what John B is looking for. It’s just different opinions, given vociferously. But it’s Andrew’s decision at the end of the day, and most of the time he gets it right. But there were a lot of people up in arms over Daniel’s rejection."
Do you find yourself rooting for a different Joseph after every performance? "Yes. They are so different. Ben is a showman on stage – he could have been the dark horse. And Keith’s the sweetest – he’s such a cutey. Basically I think if you took an element from all of them you’d have the perfect Joseph."
Have you seen anything of ITV1's Grease Is The Word? "I’ve seen one episode, before the bootcamp, so none of the live performances. David Ian is one of my best mates, and I trust his integrity. He’s usually always right. Maybe David Gest isn’t the best person to judge. I don’t know though."
Do you regret any of the criticism you made, like when you called Lee rubbish? "It’s hard because I love the boys and I get really upset having to say who’s not Joseph every week. Sometimes what I say may sound harsh, but its borne out of frustration and disappointment. They promise things they’re going to do on Saturday and I’m sitting there waiting for them, then it doesn’t happen. It’s frustrating because I know If they’d done what I’d taught them it would have made them the winner that night. I’m often disappointed with them, and I know they’re going to be disappointed, too. I get criticised for being harsh, but you know no one should pay £60 or £70 for a West End Stage show and hear one flat note."
The final's going to be nerve-wracking - any tips for overcoming nerves? "I’ve tried lots of things with them, breathing exercises and everything, but nothing seems to combat the nerves of this bunch. You’re either a person who suffers with nerves or you're not, and nothing much can change that. Well, I suppose they can’t drink! It’s mostly about breathing and all those techniques I’ve spent seven weeks drumming into them. It’s when they get on stage and get nervous that they tend to forget their technique, and that’s when they do silly things. It’s about keeping calm and being strong."
How aware are they of the millions watching them? "They play to the camera, but when they go out, like at the OK! party or to the BAFTAS, they suddenly realise how famous they are. It’s become a phenomenon, it really has."
Do you get emotional when they exit? "They’re all really lovely, lovely boys and there’s not one I’m not going to cry for when they’re out. Denise is rubbish at holding back the tears. We’re all really passionate about them. I say to them whatever my comments are I have to give them, but I’m on their side each week. I want them to do their best."
What’s in store for the winning Joseph? It will be exhausting because there’s not much time between the TV show finishing and the West End show opening. They’ve got to learn the show, the songs, the dances and then all the rehearsals. Not to mention all the press attention they’re going to have to deal with. Connie was exhausted, she went straight into recording an album, straight into all the press and straight into rehearsals. A similar thing will happen I expect for our Joseph. It’s just a hideous amount of work."
What's in store if they lose the final? "I can’t see Keith back on the supermarket tills scanning beans, can you? He’ll have a great career because his singing voice is stunning. And if Lewis doesn’t win he should be a pop star- he’s got pop star qualities. Now he’s binned the hair straighteners. He looks a lot better without them."
Do you think the losers could become one of Joseph's 11 brothers in the stage show? "I would think so, but I don’t know if those parts have already been cast or not. I would hope it might be possible. All of them could be a brother, but we’re not looking for a 'brother' [on the TV show]."
