'Ella': Only the Patter Is Off-Key; Fitzgerald Bio-Play Truly Soars When Its Star Bursts Into Song From: The Washington Post | Date: January 7, 2008| Author: Peter Marks - Washington Post Staff Writer | Copyright 2008 The Washington Post. This material is published under license from the Washington Post.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post.Copyright information

Man, could that lady gussy up a B-flat.

You get a feel for the remarkable instrument of the great jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald in "Ella," a rousing act of vocal impersonation that proves far more effective as a cabaret performance than a dramatic one.

What this bio-play has going for it is the musical authority of Tina Fabrique, who croons a lively assortment of the standards Fitzgerald helped to popularize, from Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies" to Cole Porter's "Night and Day" to her...