BWW Reviews: Carolyn Montgomery-Forant Triumphantly Rises Again in Cabaret With Life-Affirming Show VISIBLE PHOENIX at the Beechman

According to mythology, the "Phoenix" was a bird of great beauty, said to have lived 1,000 years in the Arabian wilderness. The Phoenix burns itself to ashes on an ancient funeral pyre, only to rise again from those ashes with the renewed exuberance of youth. Its renewed life cycle symbolizes the immortality of the spirit, the rebirth of idealism, the essence of creativity, and the aura of eternal hope. With her new show at the Laurie Beechman, Visible Phoenix (which opened October 17 and returned last Friday night), multi-award winner Carolyn Montgomery-Forant has returned to the cabaret stage (after a 14-year hiatus to raise her son and run a café business) as the very personification of that rare beautiful bird.

With white Calla lilies (yet another symbol of resurrection) perched atop the baby grand, a bejeweled Forant gracefully takes to the stage wearing a sapphire blue gown and a contagious smile. Singing a seamless mash up of "Dogs in the Yard" (Dominic Bugatti/Frank Musker) and the wistful "Make Me A Kite" (Amanda McBroom/Michele Brourman), Forant's opener firmly establishes her lifelong desire to achieve freedom from a hectic life, as well as the fulfillment of self-expression. These longings provide a perfect lead-in to her second number, a beautifully written and sung original titled "Visible Phoenix" (Forant and Jeff Cubeta, who also a cabaret musical director), foreshadowing the theme of her show.

I checked out of my nine to nine
Punched out of the grind, walked away, stepped out of line
I turned my eyes to the sun
And I wondered what's left of my run?
Well, there's an old bird who defies the odds
She leaps up from the flames with the passion of the Gods
And from that smoldering fire
The Lady Phoenix cannot expire

As mother, wife, naturalist, traveler, community leader, feminist, LGBT warrior, and even organic gardener, this is a woman who knows her mind and expresses it in an ambitious set of classic American songs ranging from Cole Porter's "Night and Day", ( beautifully sung in tres gentile Francais), and Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner's "If Ever I Would Leave You" (sung adorningly to her young son), to more contemporary songs like the empowering "Roar" by Katy Perry, and "Hot In Here" (Amanda McBroom/Michele Brourman) sung in a sultry steaming legato. Yikes.

The real treat of the evening is four of her excellent original songs peppered throughout the set, including "The Mermaid and the Whale", a hilarious social commentary on the perception of women and their size during which Forant comically declares her preference to be-at least in current society--the whale. Another favorite is "The Lebanese Lament" (Forant/Cubeta), a clever comic commentary on the thought that any "third wave feminist" is but three cocktails away from being tres gay. But the best is saved for last with the acerbically delicious "Mean Girls," where Forant employs an apt quote from former US Secretary of State Madeline Albright to drive home her point: "There's a special place in hell for women who do not help other women."

Forant has assembled a top-notch team to support her comeback show. Musical director and pianist Don Rebic has created subtle and sophisticated arrangements to support the class and style of the effervescent Forant. A vocal backup trio of Forant's friends she affectionately refers to as "The Fine Whine" (Rebecca Kendall, Margaret Kelly, and Stephanie Thomas) provided wonderful vocal variation to the evening (although at times it was difficult to hear the trio as the mic system did not properly support their sound). Jonathan Kantor on saxophone excels on "You Fascinate Me So" (Cy Coleman and Carolyn Leight) and "Lunch Hour" (Rupert Holmes), as does guitarist Sean Harkness on "Danny's Song" (Kenny Loggins). The terrific Tom Hubbard on bass and Richard Huntley on percussion keeps the show on a steady course as does the show's creative consultant, Jay Rogers. Kudos should also go to Forant's wonderful director and friend Eric Michael Gillett for helping to bring this life affirming show to life. Visible Phoenix will take flight again on December 22 at 7PM, and three more performances are scheduled in the spring of 2015, all at the Laurie Beechman Theatre.

Photo top by Russ Weatherford.

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