"Did you see Rebecca Luker perform? Better yet, did you ever meet her?" : A tribute
Rebecca Luker
As I’m writing this piece, some facts are being solidified.
It’s hard to type and form sentences when you’re a weeping mess.
Rebecca Luker was one of the best vocalists of our time.
Last month, we lost this incredible person. In February, Ms. Luker announced that she had been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as A.L.S. or Lou Gehrig’s disease. The disease may have taken hold of her body, but it never touched her soul nor her talent. We got a first-row seat to that in June when she gave an unbelievable performance at her ALS benefit, "At Home With Rebecca Luker.”
In all of the conversations I’ve had with various people about Rebecca Luker, two questions always come up because we couldn’t stop gushing when it came to the answers. Here are they are.
"Did you see Rebecca Luker perform?"
I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Ms. Luker perform on many occasions. Each time, she cemented the fact in my head that I was watching one of the finest vocalists of my lifetime. I know many others share that opinion.
I saw someone comment by describing her voice as “ethereal” which is defined as “extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world.” I couldn’t say it better myself.
My first Rebecca Luker experience was The Secret Garden. I went to see the show as part of a 4th-grade field trip. Needless to say, my class behaved the way a 4th-grade class would with minimal supervision. But I do remember a voice silencing the room completely. Years later, I saw that the voice was Ms. Luker’s.
In the years after, I saw more of her work. I caught her Marian Paroo in The Music Man, which changed my mind on how that character should be played from then on. I saw her Helen Bechdel in Fun Home which was an unexpected surprise. I even exclaimed with glee when I saw her on Law & Order: SVU.
Every time I saw Rebecca Luker in anything, I knew I was in for something good.
A voice teacher I know told me her voice is a textbook, required studying for any aspiring singer. Versatile, poised, pitch-perfect, powerful when needed. She was a pro’s pro.
If you saw her live, you were lucky. If you watch videos of her performances now, you’re just as lucky.
“Did you ever meet Rebecca Luker?”
I know many have, but I wish all of you could have met or worked with Rebecca Luker. There aren’t enough positive adjectives to describe her. I was fortunate to meet her and be in the same room on a couple of occasions. Each time was lovely. She didn’t care who you were or what publication you wrote for, if you were a fan or a colleague, she took time to talk to you. I can’t say the same for others who feel they were on her level of talent.
And when you saw her with Danny. My God, what a love story.
I can’t go into too much detail because of what I said earlier about trying to type while weeping. Let me just say that I hope we all can feel that type of love in our lifetime.
I was at a press event once and when they entered the room, the person next to me remarked, “those two deserve every great thing this world has to offer.” I couldn’t agree more.
She will be dearly missed but I hope every voice student around the world is taking a moment to listen or watch her work. If that doesn’t inspire you, nothing will.
Thank you, Rebecca Luker.