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Barbra & Frank… The Concert that Never Was: Holiday Show

Barbra & Frank… The Concert that Never Was at the Westin Casuarina could easily be called the concert that should have been.  But then Barbra and Frank themselves might not have carried off the performance as impressively as Sharon Owens and Sebastian Anzaldo.

Barbra Streisand and Frank Sinatra never shared the same stage at the same time; in fact, their popular duet, “I’ve Got a Crush On You” was recorded separately, meaning they didn’t even sing together in a recording studio.  If they had performed together, that performance would, no doubt, have been laced with competitiveness, which Owens and Anzaldo bring out, showcasing both the good and the bad of what might have happened, had the two powerhouses ever joined forces for an evening.

Owens’s comical barbs take the show out of the realm of your typical impersonation show, making it a wholly entertaining show that is truly unique.  Among some of her acerbic witticisms are the suggestion that he try a bite of the poinsettia that is on stage for the holiday season and, when he fails to remember that she played Vegas in the 60’s, suggests that that is because he was “down the street boozing with hoodlums.”  Anzaldo and Owens open the show together with “I’ve got a Crush on You” and “Lady Luck” before Owens performs her solo routine.

 If Owens looks familiar, it may not be just her striking resemblance to Barbra Streisand that you’re noticing: Owens appeared on the Fox television show “Performing As…”  Although Barbra fans may find it hard to believe, Owens’s  talents match those of Babs herself as the vocal powerhouse performs a musical journey through the decades with “Memories,” “Second Hand Rose,” “Nobody is Gonna Rain on My Parade,” “Silent Night,” “Hello Dolly,” “Evergreen,” “Woman in Love,” “Enough is Enough,” “Papa Can You Hear Me,” and “You’ll Never Know.”  During “Hello Dolly,” pianist John shows off his own talents with a spot-on impersonation of Louis Armstrong.

Long-time Vegas favorite Sebastian Anzaldo takes to the stage with Sinatra classics “I’ve Got the World on a String,” “Strangers in the Night,” “Come Fly with Me,” and “Fly Me to the Moon” before a Sinatra-style rendition of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”  He closes his solo portion with “One for My Baby (and One More for the Road),” “My Way,” and “That’s Life.”

Rejoined by Owens, they perform a medley of “A Very Good Year” and “Memories.”  Transitioning into the holiday portion of the show, “Streisand” complains about the lack of Hanukkah carols—maybe the dreidel song Babs?—performing “Jingle Bells,” “My Favorite Things,” “What Child is This,” and other Christmas favorites.  Their comedic rendition of the 12 days of Christmas—in which Barbra receives seven democratic senators from Obama as a gift and Sinatra receives bottles of Jack—keeps the audience laughing hysterically throughout as they make fun of each other and their own characters.

The show ends with “People” and “New York, New York” leaving audiences eager to return to see their show after the holidays.  Owens and Anzaldo are as unbeatable of a combination as Barbra and Frank themselves would have been if they had ever shared a stage.