Ira Lee Collings is the Oldest MAC Award Nominee in History

At age 82, singer-raconteur, Ira Lee Collings is thrilled to be nominated for a 2018 MAC Award in the "Musical Comedy Performer" category. The self-proclaimed "gay geezer" is over the moon; the only other performer to claim an "oldest" distinction is Marilyn Maye (she'll be 90 years old in April) who won her first MAC in 2010. And while it's true that Carol Shedlin has a few years on both Maye and Collings, she'll be receiving the non competitive Hanson Award this year, an honor given to a performer who has never received a MAC nomination, but who has, none the less, done excellent work over a sustained period of time. Last year's Hanson Award winner, by the way, was - Ira Lee Collings!

Collings is also delighted to be in the company of fellow performers Gretchen Reinhagen and Amy Wolk, whose combined ages might almost approach Ira Lee's. The show that clinched his nomination, Life Is a Song-So, Why Not Sing It! sums up Collings' approach to life. "I feel it is very important to be open as much as possible to all of life," he says. "I've met so many wonderful people doing cabaret. Everyone one of us has a story and if we can bring our stories to our shows it makes us all better for it." Audiences feel better for Collings' gambits on the stage. He's a spry, energetic wit, with plenty of tales to tell and comedy to be dispensed. In between numbers (some of which are "weed" songs as he gleefully points out), the patter and infectious enthusiasm never fails to deliver a "feel-good" experience.

Collings's story begins in the heartland. A child performer on radio with some of his seven siblings, Collings eventually landed in Chicago before moving to New York in early 1960s. He won a singing contest run by a gay bar, did some performing and worked in dinner theater, but decided to turn his back on entertainment for a steady paycheck as he approached midlife. He turned to the business world, where he stayed until hitting retirement age, deciding then to revisit his former career. With a phone call to the encouraging Sydney Meyer, legendary performer and booking agent at Don't Tell Mama, Collings need no further convincing. He returned to the stage in the new millennium, and eventually joined MAC, (the best thing he's ever done, he reports). Collings dove in, appearing at open mics, attending MACtoSchool classes and performing on stage. And whereas his homosexuality was a problem in achieving success before, in changed times he decided to embrace it and wear it proudly. "My art and passion come out of my 'Gay Experiences'," Collings ardently proclaims.

The octogenarian is full of vim and vigor, and is already planning his next cabaret show with his music director, John M. Cook. He's devising a set list of old and "older" love songs, ones that he says "have a great effect on me." Collings exudes gratitude. He's not only come to realize that singing "keeps me in the present," but says emphatically "I'm so grateful to have music in my life!"

The MAC Awards, established in 1986, are presented annually to honor achievements in cabaret, comedy and jazz, encompassing more than two dozen categories, including vocalists, piano bar performers, songwriters directors, musical directors, recordings and musical revues. MAC also bestows special awards, including Lifetime Achievement Awards.

This year's MAC Awards will take place on Tuesday, March 27, 2018 at 7pm at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill. For more information, see www. macnyc.com.