Feature: Stephen Mosher's Pandemic Playlist Number Twenty-Four - The Mother's Day Edition

It's Mother's Day and those lucky enough to still have the pleasure of calling their Mom will be doing so throughout the day. Even those whose Mothers are no longer with them will spend a part of the day thinking of them. It's a day to celebrate, to remember, to commune with others, all in the name of the Mothers, the ones we are born to and the women who mother others, in spite of not having children of their own.

Many songs have been written about the maternal figures in our lives, be it rock & roll, pop songs, show tunes, or country music (especially country music) and the boys and girls who sing in cabaret rooms love their Moms... or they love being Moms, so it is not unusual for Mama to be a topic exposed on the cabaret stage. For today's Pandemic Playlist we are looking at the subject of Motherhood as told by the ladies... and one man so special that, without him, this playlist would have been wrong.

1. Doris Dear, Meg Flather & Lina Koutrakos - Three of cabaret's best-loved treasures joined forces for a famous song about a famous Mama, which is not surprising since Doris Dear's entire act is built around paying tribute to her own mother, Taffy, Meg Flather's songwriting is greatly informed by her mother, and Lina Koutrakos acts as Mother to an entire community of artists. And, together, the three ladies make magic. Doris Dear's WEBSITE Meg Flather's WEBSITE Lina Koutrakos' WEBSITE

2. Errolyn Healy - This San Diego native has traveled around the country performing as an actor but maintains her home on the West Coast, flying into New York for occasional sold-out performances in clubs like 54 Below with her performing partner, Chris O'Bryon. The mother of 2 certainly knows what it's like to care for a little 'un, so when she chose to sing this song originally performed by a male character on stage, it didn't matter, because the story and the experience were all in the right place.

3. Meagan Michelson - The oft-working singer/actor/cabaret diva works around the country and around the city, bringing her fabulosity to every role she plays and in her one-woman show "Mother Mary Says To Me" she pays tribute to her own mother, Mary, in all her Bostonian, Irish-Catholic sensibilities. Find Meagan online HERE

4. Randy Graff - This Tony Award recipient is not on the cabaret stage nearly enough to please the masses, but there was no way this playlist would be complete without this performance from the birthday party for famed attorney (and best friend) to the stars, Mark Sendroff. The song "Mama A Rainbow" was originally sung by a relative of Ms. Graff's and best friend of Mr. Sendroff, it was only natural that Randy be the one to sing it, making something historic and memorable for all. Check out Randy's WEBSITE

5. Christina DeCicco & Denis Lambert - Hard-working Broadway actors and dedicated friends, DeCicco & Lambert lent their voices to a show at The Green Room 42 where they took on the roles of a mother and a father singing one of the most hauntingly significant duets about parenthood ever written. See Christina's website HERE and Denis' HERE

6. Barbara Walsh - There are few songs that sum up motherhood the way "Stop Time" does, making the song an essential for this list, and who better to perform it than the star for whom it was written? When Ms. Walsh performed the song on Broadway in the musical Big, mothers in the audience could be heard sighing and seen wiping away the tears. Audiences still do that, as this clip proves. THIS is Barbara Walsh's website.

7. Amy Justman - Crossover artist Amy Justman travels with ease between the opera world and the Broadway stage. One of her most recent jobs was covering Renee Fleming in Carousel. Interestingly, Ms. Fleming played Margaret in The Light In The Piazza, a play about a devoted and protective mother. With a child of her own, Ms. Justman knows exactly what Margaret Johnson is feeling when she sings her final aria in the show. Find Amy Justman online HERE

8. Lea Salonga - The Broadway song that every mother understands has opened hearts for decades, and the Tony Award winning icon who introduced the song to the world continues to sing the tune in her concert appearances, still touching hearts, three decades later. HERE is Lea Salonga's website

9. Carolee Carmello - No list of songs about motherhood would be complete without the Maltby & Shire song that defined a generation for Broadway ingenues. Introduced by Tony Award nominee Liz Callaway as a young woman during her first pregnancy, the song takes on additional layers when performed by another Tony Award nominee who has two children of her own. Follow Carolee Carmello on Instagram @caroleecarmello

10. Melissa Errico - An artist who has become known for many things like Michel Legrand, Stephen Sondheim, her own children, and her art, Ms. Errico recently performed this song from a play she acted in at The Kennedy Center. Her online version of the Sondheim number has had people buzzing ever since. Visit Melissa Errico's WEBSITE

11. Liz Callaway - One of the great voices in the industry, Liz Callaway continues to inspire people through her online work. Her auto-audios are building to an iconic status online and it is only natural that this artist who, often, speaks of her own mother should sing this song from a play that is ALL about motherhood. Liz Callaway can be found online HERE

12. Titus Burgess - The honorary male on today's playlist landed here because, even though there are ample videos online of women singing this song, it's a new world, one with blurred lines, gender fluidity, and women & men & non-binary people sharing the parenting duties and performing duties. It is only right that this breathtaking performance be the one to represent this (king of messed up but) heartfelt expression of a mother's wish to keep the children safe. Follow Tituss Burgess on Instagram @instatituss

We at Broadway World Cabaret would like to wish everyone a Happy Mother's Day, be they child, parent, or Mother Figure. These are difficult times and those are the people who gave and give us the strength to do what we need to do, every day.

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