When Tim Minchin sat at his piano, fans might have expected another comedy piece in keeping with Tim’s usual style of performance. However, this time he was joined by four other performers. One of Tim’s major projects outside of his comedy was writing the music and lyrics for Matilda The Musical and, for this 2015 collaboration, he was joined by four young actors who shared the role of Matilda in the Australian production. When Music Man readers see their collaboration, their hearts will melt.
The young Matildas started singing one by one as Tim played the piano. The song they performed together was ‘Naughty’, a song that captures Matilda’s resilience in the face of adversity. The spirit of the cheeky song was perfectly captured by one of the Matildas sitting on Tim’s piano as she sang. The interactions between all of the singers involved were very touching.
I was absolutely astonished by the power behind the young singers’ voices when I listened to their collaboration with Tim. Of course, musical theatre performers have to be able to sing out and project their voices with maximum power, but I never believed such young girls could produce such a strong sound. I was amazed to see that when all four Matildas began to sing along with Tim, they almost completely drowned him out, despite appearing as though they weren’t trying at all.
Music Man readers who have followed Matilda The Musical over the years may know that this 2015 collaboration was one of several television performances from that period. Another memorable appearance came in June 2015, when Tim Minchin and three touring Matildas sang ‘When I Grow Up’ on Conan. The collaborative performance perfectly captures the moving message behind the lyrics of the song.
Hearing talented young singers is always a special experience, but seeing them perform with the songwriter himself makes this an especially precious performance. It manages to put their levels of talent into perspective. Despite the fact that Tim Minchin is an incredibly seasoned and confident performer, these young singers were able to keep up with him stride for stride. Seeing them sing together allows their talent to shine even more and is sure to leave viewers eager to see Matilda The Musical for themselves.