2:12pm Thursday 18th February 2010
THE belief that life begins at 40 is certainly no myth when talking to Claudia Morris who has taken up jazz singing. This 43-year-old from Finchley found her true calling after analysing a dream.
“My life had reached a crisis point in 2000,” states Claudia. “My marriage had ended, so I sought comfort in therapy; and after five years of intense training, I became a qualified psychotherapist.
“Two years ago I was encouraged to explore the dreams, I had recorded in my journals and I discovered one particularly poignant dream from back in 2002. In it, I was given the task of drawing myself and I questioned whether I should draw myself as sad, or as a singer. This dream was a clear indication to me that I would not feel fulfiled until I sang again.”
An unusual decision maybe, but for Claudia, who is not a stranger to singing, it was a natural destiny.
At 16, she was chasing a career on the West End stage. Celebrated vocal coach Ian Adams took a shine to her talents and helped her hone her skills. After this she played Marsinah in Kismet and then went on to play Maria Elena (Buddy’s wife) on the original cast of Buddy in the West End. But it was not the dream she was looking for and she found the life of performing within a show quite lonely.
“In a theatre show you’re told what to do, where to stand,” says Claudia, who is a mum of three. “After 18 years my dream was the catalyst to get me singing again.”
Claudia was so determined that she searched her address book for old contacts. Janet Edwards sprung out.
“She was my accompanist when I was 19, now she’s a vocal coach in the music industry teaching people like Leona Lewis.
“It was a really emotional meeting. I sang for her and she said, ‘My god, your voice is even better! You’ve matured, you’ve got to sing again’.”
From that meeting in January last year, Claudia surrounded herself with top musicians – jazz vocal coach Iain MacKenzie, hot reality television pianist Simon Colam and West End composer Michael Bruce.
In six months she wrote – and recorded in “two weeks” – the material for Love & Demons.
“It’s about the difficulties of life,” says Claudia. “I’m an emotional singer and I’ve often been told I sound a little like Barbara Streisand. But like her, I live through my songs and like to get people to think about their emotions. I suppose there’s a link between my work as a psychotherapist.”
Does Claudia feel fulfiled now? “Applause used to be the prize for me,” she says. “Now I don’t feed off it. I’m just happy singing.”
Claudia Morris, Love & Demons, at 8pm, New End Theatre, Sunday, February 28. Box office: 0870 033 2733
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