This reviewer first discovered the glory of Jacob Storms in 2012 as an Off-Off-Broadway actor in Richard Geha's play Satan's Whore: Victoria Woodhull at Theater for the New City. While portraying the prosecuting attorney, the very young Storms displayed such a nearly-incomparable grace and elegance that one absolutely knew for certain they were looking at a star in the making. Now, as it turns out, he's not merely an impeccable singer but also a cabaret artist with which to be fully reckoned.
In his new show at the Metropolitan Room, Give My Regards to Broadway (which opened on July 18), Storms wholeheartedly disproves the perception that a singer making their debut in the cabaret arena need a director or more than just a pianist to prove their greatness. Even though his repertoire is largely comprised of what some might consider a very run-of-the mill showcase of the classic Broadway songbook, the audience is treated to a young man who not only communicates with his glorious voice, but also with his expressive eyes and incredible body movement. Storms breathes utterly new life into numbers usually performed by others without such careful nurturing.
Aided by the superb Alex Leonard at the piano, Storms delights with flawless phrasing on such chestnuts as "Lullaby of Broadway" and Cole Porter's "Anything Goes." He emerges a natural crooner with "Blue Skies" (upon which technical director Jean-Pierre Perreaux's lighting is divine as always), but also brings faultless comedy to the stage as with "On the Street Where You Live," sung as "the love child of Vic Damone and Dean Martin." "Nice Work If You Can Get It" begins as a ballad and then smoothly transitions into swing. And his deliciously trill on "All I Care About Is Love" by Kander and Ebb proves an audience-pleaser. It should be noted that in one of his non-Broadway moments, Storms stuns the crowd with "North Star," with lyrics by his late lamented friend and mentor Taylor Negron and music by Logan Neftel.
Jacob Storms may well be one of the finds of this cabaret season. He'll return to Metropolitan Room (34 West 22nd Street) on Saturday, August 1 at 9:30 PM and Saturday, August 15 at 1 PM.
Meanwhile, just a few blocks northwest on Restaurant Row, one can discover
Pompie's Place at Don't Tell Mama. This is unique for two reasons; the first is that it makes the most of what has become known of late as the "pop-up club," where an outside producer takes over an establishment for a special recurring show, in this case Don't Tell Mama is transformed into a blues/jazz supper club. The second, and perhaps more important, is that the "Pompie" in question is
Arthur Pomposello (center in photo left), who was the driving force of the now-defunct and legendary Oak Room at the Algonquin Hotel. Pomposello once helped nurture the cabaret careers of such artists as Steve Ross, KT Sullivan, Andrea Marcovicci, Jeff Harnar, Tovah Feldshuh, Karen Akers, Julie Budd, Lainie Kazan, and many other bold faced names. What he's created at Don't Tell Mama is nothing less than a spectacular dining experience and an incredible evening of live entertainment.
Though Pompie is clearly the host--and a generous one as always--his three headling singers are Lezlie Harrison, Brianna Thomas and Hilary Gardner (left to right around Pompie in photo above). Each gets a chance to shine on such numbers as "St. Louis Blues" (and Harrison certainly knows how to shimmy her way through the song midway through), and Gardner's marvelous rendering of "Ten Cents a Dance." Band members include: Music Director Ehud Ahserie on piano, Jackie Williams on drums, Jon-Erik Kellso on trumpet, Ken Peplowski on reeds, and David Wong on bass. And the food is for the most part absolutely delicious, especially the butternut squash soup. But the most delicious part of Pompie's Place is the music. By all means, pop in and pop up!
Pompie's Place will once again "pop up" at Dont Tell Mama (343 West 46th Street, Restaurant Row) on Wednesday, July 29 and Thursday, July 30, as well as Friday, August 7 and Friday, August 21, all shows at 7 pm. www.pompiesplace.com
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