- Theme: Andrew Lloyd Webber. Songs performed: Syesha Mercado - "One Rock & Roll Too Many" from "Starlight Express"; Jason Castro - "Memory" from "Cats"; Brooke White - "You Must Love Me" from "Evita"; David Archuleta - "Think of Me" from "Phantom of the Opera"; Carly Smithson - "Jesus Christ Superstar"; David Cook - "Music of the Night" from "Phantom."
- Theme: Andrew Lloyd Webber. Songs performed: Syesha Mercado - "One Rock & Roll Too Many" from "Starlight Express"; Jason Castro - "Memory" from "Cats"; Brooke White - "You Must Love Me" from "Evita"; David Archuleta - "Think of Me" from "Phantom of the Opera"; Carly Smithson - "Jesus Christ Superstar"; David Cook - "Music of the Night" from "Phantom."—IMDb editor
- "American Idol" - Top Six Performance Show - April 22, 2008
It's Earth Day and Ryan points out that Fox- whose snipe includes a green, earth-shaped O- will be using Greenpower to reduce the carbon footprint of the finale. He also notes that the band has descended from it's balcony perch and is onstage tonight. He then tries to conduct them.
Theme: Andrew Lloyd Webber
In the audience: It's a busy night tonight as we get shots of ALW himself; David Duchovny: Allison Janney from "West Wing" and "Juno"; Roselyn Sanchez from "Without a Trace"; Ricky Schroder; Paul Stanley of Kiss; Joely Fisher from "'Til Death"; Courteney Cox
Video Package: ALW has been writing music since he was seven, he's composed well-known musicals like "Jesus Christ Superstar," "Cats," "Phantom of the Opera," "Evita" and less well-known ones like "By Jeeves." The kids were flown out to Las Vegas to meet ALW at the theatre where "Phantom" is in residence. He thinks all the kids can make it work and tells them he's here to serve them. He emphasizes story and "words, words, words." (Which is interesting since Lloyd Webber doesn't write lyrics.)
Ryan asks Randy if ALW is a challenge and Randy says it will likely be the toughest of the season. He wants to know from Paula if it's still anyone's game and out of the words she uses we figure out that she's saying that the front runners are still running in the front. Since Simon uses the word "Broadway" as negative feedback Ryan wants to know what he thinks the "Idols" should do. He advises making the tunes contemporary.
Contestant #1: Syesha Mercado
Song: "One Rock & Roll Too Many" from "Starlight Express"
Video: Syesha is excited that it's ALW week. She asks ALW if she should be "animated." He asks her to do it both ways and they agree she should do it the second way. Considering the first way involved her standing stock still while letting her eyes roam around lifelessly this seems like the right choice. He thinks she'll bring the house down.
Performance: Looking slinky in a form-fitting red dress with a plunging neckline, Syesha's secret plan is revealed. As she has told us several times she is an actress and it's clear that, while pop stardom would be nice, she's really gunning for the legit stage. It's her best performance yet as she imbues the song- an utempo musical theatre number with r&b desires- with soul and sass as she shimmies around the stage and does a little hand jive with Ricky, who's looking pretty hep in a fedora as he conducts the string section. She doesn't quite bring the house down and there are a couple of off notes but this is clearly her wheelhouse as she gets to be playful, go for money notes, and use her eyebrows a lot. The crowd fully digs it.
Randy: Calls it her best performance yet and says she could be a huge Broadway star.
Paula: Says that she knew Syesha would be great because musical theatre was her "happy place."
Simon: Agrees with Randy and also says she was very sexy and that she showed loads of personality.
Contestant #2: Jason Castro. On the stools Jason says he was freaked out by the idea of ALW week and that he was like "oohuhhh" to demonstrate his freaked-out-ness.
Song: "Memory" from "Cats" (He was so freaked out that he naturally chose ALW's most famous song.)
Video: ALW has never pictured a man with dreadlocks singing this song. (That seems a strange limit to the imagination of man who could picture cats singing poetry). He thinks Jason kind of understood it. Cut to Jason: "I didn't know a cat was singing it." ALW thinks Jason is brave. Jason is really nervous because "it's kind of a popular song." ALW wouldn't be surprised if Jason jettisons all his advice but still kills it because he makes it his own.
Performance: Sitting on a stool Jason is soft, breathy, tremulous and Jason-y. The song reveals that sustain is not Jason's forte. Neither Betty Buckley nor Barbra Streisand is feeling threatened. As he awaits judgement he looks abashed.
Randy: For him it was a little bit of a train wreck vocally. He can picture him doing a Jack Johnson song but thinks it had too much melody for Jason. (Jason says "that's cool.")
Paula: Knows that everyone is used to hearing this song by a female power balladeer but she thinks it was a wise choice because he made it all unique and slathered it with Jason-y goodness. She compares it to Joe Cocker's "You are So Beautiful (To Me)." Randy is unsure of that. But calls him a beautiful guy.
Simon: It felt to him, and he suspects to Jason, like the longest two minutes of Jason's life. Jason laughs and essentially agrees. Simon compares it to a young guy being forced by his parents to sing a popular showtune at a wedding. Randy agrees. Simon thinks it was clear that Jason was miserable.
Ryan asks Simon how people should vote and he says that you don't vote for that. But adds it's America and people should vote for whoever they want.
Contestant #3: Brooke White
Song: "You Must Love Me" from "Evita" (written especially for the film version for Madonna.)
Video: ALW doesn't think Brooke knows what she's singing about. He learns her on the background and then deems her next, better-informed effort terrific and calls her a wonderful natural actress. She deems it a powerful experience.
Performance: Sitting on a stool Brooke begins but quickly forgets the lyrics and starts over. She's very earnest. She actually does a nice job with the longer notes and the song's beseeching tone fits her personality.
Randy: For him it wasn't great but he thought it was good that she listened to ALW and tried to feel the song emotionally but thought it was vocally a little bit tough.
Paula: Tells Brooke she must never start and stop and then gets all Stuart Smalley on her about how's shes great enough and strong enough to pick up the pieces. She's happy Brooke didn't overact and thought it was emotional.
Simon: This is why he loves live tv because he found her false start so dramatic. Unfortunately, he felt that it made her tense and said her voice was straining in the middle and that it actually became quite uncomfortable. He thinks she's going to be disappointed when she watches it back. (I actually think he's going to think it was better than he thought when he watches it back.)
Ryan asks why she started over. She lost the lyric and says it's the first time she's ever done that on the show. Simon calls it a brave thing to do. Randy agrees. Paula sticks to her guns that Brooke could've just muddled through. Brooke gets trembly and teary.
Contestant #4: David Archuleta On the stools Ryan brings up some young female fans to hug David.
Song: "Think of Me" from "Phantom"
Video: ALW can't picture a boy singing the song. (Again, I must point out, singing cats). After hearing David sing it he says he's got him all wrong-footed because he's surprised by his gender and his arrangement. He says bravo to his originality. "Little David has a real musical soul to him," says ALW, but counsels Little David to keep his eyes open.
Performance: Starting with acoustic guitar accompaniment David recasts the song as a lite-FM ballad. He keeps his eyes open, though it looks like a struggle on the big end notes. It's light and pleasant and he adds his own spice to it.
Randy: Thinks it's cool and that if you can sing you can sing anything. "Dude it was the bomb, this boy is the one to beat!"
Paula: Says it was absolutely perfect and was pleased that he was able to turn a showtune into a pop ballad.
Simon: Thought it was pleasant but that it was still one of his weakest performances. He believes it will get him through to next week even though it was forgettable.
Contestant #5: Carly Smithson
Song: The title song from "Jesus Christ Superstar"
Video: Carly begins by singing "All I Ask of You" from "Phantom" but ALW says no way and says he knows her second choice is "JCS" and says she should do that. She does and it's much looser. He laughs, loves it and she calls it more her vibe and personality. ALW says a girl with a sleeve tattoo shouldn't be singing a "girly" song like "All I Ask of You."
Performance: The big brass comes out and Carly struts with confidence. She hits some rough notes and gets a little overheated. Ricky Minor does a little boogie with her. The chorus seems a little outside the top of her range. The lower parts are pleasantly carefree and funky though. She's covering up the sleeve tattoo this week. Will America enjoy a woman repeatedly shouting "Jesus Christ"? If the crowd is any indication, yes.
Randy: Is not surprised that the bigger voices are excelling tonight. He doesn't know if this was her best performance but thinks it was definitely good and that her outfit is fly.
Paula: Loved that it was unexpected, was worried that it might've been too high but loved what she did in the chorus.
Simon: Aside from the fact that it got a bit shouty in the middle he thought it was one of the best performances of the night.
Carly shouts "yes!" and runs to get a t-shirt from Ricky that reads "Simon Loves Me (This Week)" (Ricky is quite an integral part of the show tonight.)
Contestant #6 David Cook:
Song: "Music of the Night" from "Phantom"
Video: David grew up doing musical theatre and calls ALW "the dude." ALW, who has been kind of endearingly goofy, calls it the most sensual song he's ever written. He directs David to pretend he's a sexy young woman as he sings it to him. ALW thinks if David gets the raw passion and sophistication of the Phantom that it might just work.
Performance: It starts a little low for real comfort but by the "garish light" he's in his zone and showing a nice vibrato. The rocker is gone and the musical theatre geek emerges. He's giving himself a slightly clipped elocution that is totally different from his normal vibe, which would be great if he was an actor but seems weird in this context. The fact that he's got some long bandanna or t-shirt hanging from his pocket is not enough to make it edgy. The vocal is mostly fine but it's kind of a yawn overall, which is partly the song's fault.
Randy: Loved it and reiterates his "if you can sing" maxim. Calls it an amazing vocal performance. "Another molten hot lava bomb!"
Paula: Says it proves that he's so well-rounded as a performer, that he has a beautiful instrument (hubba hubba) and that it was fantastic.
Simon: Thinks he made the most of the song he was given but it was not the side of David that he likes.
With the two Davids untouchable and Syesha pulling out a few sassy stops every streetlamp seems to beat a fatalistic warning for Jason, Brooke, and Carly.
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