Kerry Ellis: “As Long As He Needs Me”

I thank my friend Alex for sharing this clip of Kerry Ellis (a wonderful actress and singer) as Nancy in Oliver!, singing “As Long As He Needs Me”. The song is so famous and it has been done by everyone. It’s hard to hear it fresh. But this performance is phenomenal because what she does is she turns the song into a full and intricate story: it’s a whole three-act play in three minutes. And where she starts out is not where she ends up. The performance starts out quiet and exhausted. Her body hurts. She has to sit down. She is beaten, devastated, but holding onto the hope that he needs her. Watch how she stands up, how she struggles to manage it, and then how she has to sit down again. Also listen to her gliding phrasing: the lines blend into one another, sounding almost like a series of exhausted sighs/prayers. This is a woman who is broken. It’s hard to imagine she will be able to pull off the final stunning notes of the song. Where will she find the strength?

But then watch where it goes, and watch where it ends. It seems to change, go to another level, at the line “If you are lonely, then you will know …” Suddenly, she has strength, she moves towards the audience, reaching out to the loneliness in all of us. That gives her the launch-pad for where she goes next. My entire body erupted in goosebumps the first time I watched it through. The audience starts clapping before she even finishes, and I am not surprised by that at all. The performance has been quiet and yearning and effective, and then suddenly – out of seemingly nowhere – the air is filled with electricity, and the power of what she brings explodes out of her, across the stage and into the audience. But that can only happen because of what she has been building upon. The journey happening in front of us is an organic one. She has to start in one place and end up in another, and it has to happen in real-time. She can’t “telegraph” the powerful ending of the song in its opening phrases. The only way to give a performance like this is to really go through the experience.

It’s one of those performances that keeps its calm, its quiet, its focus, with beautiful control, until – and you can almost see it happen – she opens the flood-gates.

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4 Responses to Kerry Ellis: “As Long As He Needs Me”

  1. HelenaG says:

    Amazing! Such an effortless voice. The strength and clarity of her instrument is incredible, but as you said, the control is part of what makes this performance so powerful. The middle section is crucial. She lets her voice open up a little, and one gets the sense of what she is capable of, so that the audience is held in suspense. When she finally releases those last powerful notes, it’s no wonder that the audience responds as they do. It’s a release for everyone.

    • sheila says:

      HelenaG –

      // She lets her voice open up a little, and one gets the sense of what she is capable of, so that the audience is held in suspense. //

      Yes, you’re so right. We get a glimpse of the power behind that quiet exhaustion – and it makes us want her to let loose. Amazing control!

  2. Lizzie says:

    Thank you so much for highlighting this performance! I directed Oliver this year at a middle school, and I found this version when was looking for a video of this song to show our Nancy (who was struggling to understand/convey the emotional depth of the character) to give her a sense of what this song can DO. I absolutely love this interpretation, and it still gives me chills.
    The things I love the most: how clearly Kerry Ellis, the actress, has thought about each moment, making specific choices of what words to emphasize, where to hold her back or fiddle with her hair, but it’s NANCY, the character, who spontaneously gestures and articulates second by second; her engagement with the audience–by pleading with them to understand, justifying, convincing, commiserating, and ultimately (she feels) DEFYING their expectations, it’s so much more powerful than if it’s a purely internal struggle; and the anger that she brings in the last chorus (anger with the world? Bill? herself?), especially her gestures and how they move from open arms to closed fists. And, perhaps most importantly, her complete willingness to sacrifice the “prettiness” and, at times, the power of her voice in service of the story. You know that she could just belt her way through this whole thing and it would be an impressive display, but every weakness–each waver, growl, “pushed” sound, and cut-off note–is so much more moving and meaningful.

    • sheila says:

      Lizzie – what a wonderful analysis of ths performance. Your students/actors are so lucky to have you!! I am curious if the student “got” it. I’m sure she did!!

      The gestures, yes: That one gesture near the end, when she blames everyone – all of the nay-sayers – gesturing behind her – It’s SO angry, and SO good.

      // You know that she could just belt her way through this whole thing and it would be an impressive display, but every weakness–each waver, growl, “pushed” sound, and cut-off note–is so much more moving and meaningful. //

      Yes, I think that is one of the most striking things about it. She holds back her power. Other singers would not be able to resist showing off their pipes throughout. She knows that the story is more important – and if she holds it back – we will be that much more moved when she lets loose.

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