Newark's Susie Chambers to perform The Greatest Showman songs in new business venture

By Charlotte Longstaff

It took just one light-bulb moment for Susie Chambers to realise what her next, theatrical adventure would be.

Susie, 40, of Newark, has been gigging for 25 years now, and recently decided to shake things up a little bit.

On December 26, 2017, cinemas all around the world were heaving with musical lovers wanting to watch the sing-along film The Greatest Showman.

The Greatest Showman epic, starring Hugh Jackman, celebrates the birth of show business and tells of a visionary who rose from nothing to create a spectacle that became a worldwide sensation.

It was a box office smash.

Susie went to see the film at the request of one of her daughters.

Little did she know then this one cinema trip would have such an impact on her career and she would go on to perform songs from the film as a business venture.

"The film was mind-blowing, it actually inspired me to do a photo-shoot," Susie said.

"Im bold and out-there with my sense of style, so modelling in this photo-shoot was great for me."

"I though 'wow, I can really show my character like this,'" she said.

Susie, who uses the stage name Zuzka, came to the realisation that throughout her years as a performer she had learnt that people love to join in with songs that they know and love.

She said it was her purpose in life is to bring joy and happiness to people through music.

She hopes that this new venture will appeal to many different people and age ranges and bring joy to all those watching.

A huge part of Susie's career, which is still ongoing, is as the lead vocalist and double bass player in the duo Swing Nouveau.

Swing Nouveau is a duo who perform well-known songs from the golden age of jazz and swing.

Susie performs in Swing Nouveau with Andrew Coe, who has toured extensively with soul and swing bands as well as working as a solo performer.

Alongside this, their sets also include contemporary songs with a vintage twist.

They are still performing, and have multiple bookings up until Christmas.

Susie, who studied classical guitar before moving on to perform as a big band singer, will continue with Swing Nouveau alongside her her newest venture, which is a solo act she has called The Greatest Showgirl.

Her new act will include her performing songs from the film, as s well as several other classical music songs.

Susie is excited for both her debut and the fact that she can now move about and dance throughout her performances with a hand-held microphone, rather than being in one place as she usually is whilst playing the double bass.

Susie said that her daughter is her "little teacher", who has helped her tremendously with learning all of the songs and dances.

Her debut performance will be tomorrow, at 7pm at The Full Moon Inn, Morton.

Susie will also be doing festive performances as Zuzka as The Christmas Showgirl, which will include a variety of festive songs too.

Email enquiries@zuzkamusic.com or go to www.zuzkamusic.com