30/11/13: Heaven last Saturday was very much consumed with a very gay and merry Christmas spirit, as Leona Lewis took to the stage in the twilight hours between the last day of November and the first day of the much loved December month; all knee high black suede boots and a mini-dress designed to outdo a Christmas bauble for sparkle!
Before her particular brand of Christmas cheer however, the boys bustling under the main floor’s mistletoe were roused by a recent ghost of X Factor past; the indomitable Hannah Barrett! Though looking a little more Halloween than ‘Deck-The-Halls-In-Holly’, slightly overwhelming her endearingly cute features in a fierce black rubber-like ensemble – chunky belt and combat trainers, Barrett’s belting numbers certainly would have echoed up around the North Pole; and her enthusiastic onlookers expected no less!
In true X(mas) Factor form, Barrett broke the sound barrier for her swan-song and was off-stage into the waiting arms of the Rough Copy boys before you could say ‘sleigh bells’! So we come back to Leona, who’s back herself with ‘Christmas, With Love’ a seasonal album with her spin on evergreen crimbo classics, with a few of her own presented for good measure.
In a set complete with two mini-dress sporting backing singers, and some chest-baring backing dancers for effect, Leona reminded us why 7 years ago already, no one was more deserving to join the roster of X Factor royalty! With an unforgettable hit like ‘Bleeding Love’ to kick off the set, Lewis continued to pull timeless tracks like ‘Well I Wish It Could Be Christmas’ and ‘Walking In A Winter Wonderland’ from her arsenal.
More recent dance anthems like ‘Collide’ went down amongst the boys as well as mince pies, too! So, like all good things, the show came to an end – and presented with her miniature soft toy reindeer by Jeremy Joseph, Leona rode off into the snow-dusted distance of stage right. Consider the season in full swing!
Heaven, under the Arches, Villiers Street, Charing Cross, WC2N 6NG
Words by Yaf Brown
