Avigail Herman Fingerprints

Avigail Herman is a figurehead of Australian showbiz and although you may not know her face or name, you certainly know her voice. In her one-woman cabaret show Fingerprints, Avigail takes a look at her very long and illustrious career and tries to figure out her own fingerprint, or identity. Accompanied on guitar and piano by her fabulous musical director Peter Bailey, this show takes audiences on a trip down memory lane, but more on that in a moment.

As well as being a performer Avigail is also one of the country’s most respected teachers of musical theatre. While watching her perform you can tell that the next generation of performers are in good hands. Avigail has an amazing ability to interpret a song, turning it inside out and discovering the inner meaning, allowing her to really sell it. Her transformation from song to song is quite remarkable and she makes you believe that the song she is singing was really written for or about her and her life.

The show contained quite a few new or seldom heard numbers rather than old cabaret favourites. In her recent StageCast interview Avigail revealed that this was due in part to her support of new songwriters, a fact that keeps her show fresh and interesting.

The highlight of the evening was a rather lengthy medley of jingles that Avigail has recorded over her career. In case you didn’t know, Avigail Herman is one of Australia’s top voice-over artists and her voice is attached to just about any product you care to think of.

It was a true trip down memory lane as Avigail sang through these jingles and although I can’t remember them all (there were so many!) some more familiar ones were Tip Top Bread, WeetBix, Qantas, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Aeroplane Jelly, PRAISE Mayonnaise, the NRMA and Toyota.

This show offered audiences an insight into Avigail’s extensive career and allowed them to gain an insight into what makes this performer tick.