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Review of "What the Hell...??"
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Boston Metro (MA) - Review of "What the Hell...??"
"'Heaven' Can't Wait"
by Nick Dussault

“What the Hell Are You Doing in the Waiting Room for Heaven??” is one of the quirkiest, most delightful performance pieces this side of limbo.

The premise of Grammy-Nominated harpist Deborah Henson-Conant’s one-woman show is that the audience is on a call-back audition for Heaven’s Celestial Choir. As the audition coach, it’s the job of Henson-Conant to prepare the talent for a process that is “more diabolical than American Idol” and “more satanic than Miss Universe.” It’s also far more fun than either of these contests.

Strapped to her harp and clad in typical angel fare (except for the fishnet stockings and gold cowboy boots), Henson-Conant tries to be the aspiring choir members’ greatest cheerleader. In “Never Say Die,” the harp-playing vocalist encourages her charges with inspiring lyrics like “until you are in the choir, don’t say die” while sharing inside tips about auditioning.

One of the judges proves to be especially influential on the coach as she launches into a blues number that will make you feel like you’re already in heaven.

Henson-Conant is also an engaging storyteller with an off-beat optimism that leads her to ponder oddities like why a dimple is good and a pimple is bad. She has depth, inner-wisdom and the ability to share her own demons. Along the way, Henson-Conant recalls her grandmother and sadly reveals her own mother’s failure to try anything because she “never had the courage to prove she was a failure.”

As she encourages the audience to make music as long as their alive, she devises a plan for the crowd to ace the audition - a big “Production Number.”

Be forewarned that if you’re sitting up front, you could become an integral part of this finish. It may not be enough to get you into heaven, but you’ll laugh so hard you won’t care.