BIOGRAPHY
Award winning, multi-lingual, music comedian Rebecca Carrington and Joe her 18th century cello, must be one of the world’s most unusual double-acts. Together they perform spoofs of everything from Pop to Opera and Jazz to Bollywood. She has been described as a Victor Borge of the 21st Century! Performing her show in English, French, German and Italian has also led to comparisons with Eddie Izzard!
A classically trained cellist, Rebecca won a scholarship to study at The Royal Northern College of Music and completed a Masters of Music at Rice University in Houston, USA. She has performed with many leading orchestras including the London Symphony, London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Philharmonia , the BBC Symphony Orchestras and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra. It was whilst studying music in the U.S. that Rebecca first became involved in the comedy/cabaret scene. She soon began performing in comedy clubs across the U.S., including The New York Comedy Club and The Comedy Store, LA. In 1996 she won the university MASTERCARD TALENT SEARCH. She went on to perform her comedy act on CBS and NBC television and performed her own Solo Show on NPR (National Public) Radio.
In the UK Rebecca was featured on the TV comedy show, "DOUBLE TAKE," on BBC2 and on Channel 4's "100 GREATEST CARTOONS" and BBC 4 "10 BEST CHORAL CLASSICS & 10 BEST ELGAR." Radio appearances in the UK include MID-WEEK, LOOSE ENDS & WOMANS HOUR (BBC Radio 4), IN TUNE (BBC Radio 3), JAMMIN' & EDDIE IZZARD'S CHRISTMAS CABARET (BBC Radio 2), FRED MACAULAY (BBC SCOTLAND), LONDON LIVE (BBC) and LBC.
In 2004 she won a South East Music Scheme Award, which has led to performances and bookings for Music and Comedy Festivals around the UK. She has performed at numerous festivals, including the Manchester International Cello Festival, Guildford, Cambridge, Canterbury, Chichester and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival where she was a semi-finalist in the Channel 4 "So you think you’re funny" competition. The success of her critically acclaimed Edinburgh Fringe solo shows in 2004 and 2005, both of which were total sell outs, led to a UK tour and an appearance on ITV (UK) and PARAMOUNT, "LIVE AT THE FRINGE." In London she has performed in the West End at The Playhouse, The Royal Court, Soho Theatre and has appeared in numerous comedy clubs including the Comedy Store, The Comedy Cafe and the Banana Cabaret. She is now, also, very much in demand in the corporate world.
Rebecca is also a talented voice-over artist, session player, singer and backing vocalist having sung with a variety of jazz bands and pop artists. She has recorded and performed with such artists as Aretha Franklin, Paul Macartney, Randy Newman, 4 Hero, Jill Scott and at THE BRITS 2006 with Kanye West. In 2001 she toured in Europe as a cellist and backing vocalist with David Byrne (ex-Talking Heads). She has also recorded on such Hollywood film soundtracks as "Lord of the Rings", "Harry Potter", "Hanninbal", "Gangs of New York" and "Bless the child".
Her show, "Me and My Cello" has been featured on Austrian, German, French, Swiss, and Canadian TV and Radio. In 2002 and 2004, she performed at the "Maulhelden, Festival," in Berlin to 3000 people, which was televised and now makes regular appearances at The Quatsch Comedy Club in Hamburg and Berlin. In 2006, she performed at the biggest comedy festival in Germany, in Koln (Cologne), to great critical acclaim and has since been nominated and won the audience prize for Germany’s most prestigious cabaret prize, the PRIX PANTHEON 2007. She has been invited to appear on numerous German TV shows including a 45 minute solo show on 3Sat TV Festival in Mainz. In April this year she was featured on ARTE TV (a German and French production) on their METROPOLIS Kultur magazine show. This has been bought by other TV Channels and is being shown on Lufthansa’s Inflight Video Programme. In December 2006 she performed at the Arosa Humour Festival in Switzerland, where she won the prestigious "SCHNEE STERN" (Snow Star) prize for the audiences favourite show, this is the Swiss equivalent to the Perrier award. In Austria she has performed her One Woman show at the Konzerthaus, Musikferein, and other top venues in Vienna, as well as touring all over Austria. She also released her solo album "Me & My Cello" with an independent Austrian record label, Extraplatte.
In March 2005 she performed at a comedy festival in Bolzano, Italy and in France she has appeared in numerous festivals and theatres including the Theatre du Rond Point in Paris, performing in french as part of the "Grand Mezze" show. That led to invitations to perform at the "Festival du Rire" in Montreux, Switzerland and the "Festival du Grand Rire" in Quebec City, Canada, both of which were televised in all french speaking countries around the world.
In 2007 she created the double act, CARRINGTON-BROWN, with her partner Colin Brown. As an actor and singer he has previously performed in plays and musicals in London’s West End and on tour and with the Royal Shakespeare Company. He was a member of the UK A Cappella Group, "The Magnets" for 10 years and last year became a backing singer for Robbie Williams on his 2006 Close Encounters World Tour. He is also a talented voice over artist and most recently was the voice for the TV advertising campaign celebrating the 30 year anniversary of the Bob Marley album "Exodus"
Together they have won numerous prizes in Europe. In Germany: The Schwerter Kleinkunstpreis, Zeck Internet Prize, The Golden Rose Audience Prize, Rosenau, Stuttgart, Best Musical Comedy Act, Lindener Special Club Hannover. 4 prizes in France: Prix du Public, Prix d'un Sponsor & Prix Special du Jury, Festival de Rocquencourt, Prix du Public, Festival de Versaille.
"The gorgeous, talented and very funny Rebecca Carrington is a tour-de-force...deserves a place in musical history" **** The Scotsman
"Rebecca Carrington is that oddity, a populist cellist. Think Victor Borge on a different instrument"
The British Theatre Guide
"Jaw droppingly impressive"
**** Chortle
"The most sublime music....Her show is a real treat."
The Daily Mail
"A magnificent show that is in addition long-overdue to a comedy scene swamped with uniformity"
The Stage
"Classy musical comedy...there can't be many entertainers versatile enough to appear on BBC Radio 2,3&4!"
The Guardian Guide
"Elegant musical stand-up"
"She plays her instrument and her audience like a virtuoso"
"Her natural gift for mimickry led Carrington out of the orchestra pit and into the spotlight"
"Carrington uses her knack for accents and musical abilities to their full advantage"
The Sunday Times
"Consistently Brilliant"
"Elegant Rising Star"
The Evening Standard
"Sharply observed music spoof"
"This accomplished performer does a mean impression of just about anything from New York Jazz to the unmistakeable soundtrack of an indian restaurant"
"Carrington is an act to tune into...."
The Independent
"Talented and so versatile"
NBC Television
"Sensational, I am your biggest Fan"
Eric Sykes
"She should have been nominated for a Perrier Award!"
Nicholas Parsons
"Absolute genius.....she is a real entertainer and sparkles like a bottle of champagne!!"
Vladimir Ashkenazy
"Wow, I can play the cello, Bobby Mcferrin can sing but you do both at the same time, can I be your manager?!!"
Yo Yo Ma
"Can I have your autograph?!"
Claudio Abbado