Birdland Theater to Present Singer-Pianist Eric Comstock in New Weekly September Residency
Joining Comstock will be bassist/composer Sean Smith, whose pieces are frequently included in the sets, and award-winning vocalist Barbara Fasano.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Aug. 12, 2021
BIRDLAND THEATER will present Eric Comstock in his new fall residency for four Saturdays in September: September 4, 11, 18 and 25, at 5:00 PM. There is a $30 music charge. Birdland is located at 315 West 44th Street in New York.
An acknowledged expert and performer of the jazz and pop songbooks, including many rare gems, he has performed and recorded with some of the world's finest musicians, including Frank Wess, Wycliffe Gordon, Dena DeRose, Eric Reed, Matt Wilson, Peter Washington, and Ken Peplowski. Every bit as entertaining as he is musically savvy, his repertoire runs a wide gamut of material that brings the generations together, from Cole Porter to Paul Simon; Duke Ellington to Bob Dylan; Sinatra to Sondheim. It's a new set each week - Eric makes all of it fresh, new, spontaneous, and fun, and his audiences feel they've been to a terrific party where the music and the stories are equally great."I was raised in New Jersey - the Mayonnaise Belt, we called it - and began piano lessons at ten," Comstock recalls. "Once I heard Rodgers and Hart, Chopin and Mozart never had a chance!" Trips from his NYU dorm to Café Carlyle to hear Bobby Short showed him the way. "It's my life's passion to bring these songs & their creators to life, and I could not be more excited that Barbara, Sean & I are back at Birdland," Comstock says. "I know audiences will hear at least one song they didn't know they loved!"
During the pandemic, Comstock & Barbara Fasano's weekly series #72andsong has been streaming music from their New York apartment on social media. A co-creator of the Off Broadway hit revue Our Sinatra, Comstock has headlined at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center. A Harbinger Records artist, his most recent CD is Bitter/Sweet, a collaboration with guitarist Randy Napoleon. He has appeared as a performer and commentator on PBS, CNN, Sirius/XM's "Live from Jazz at Lincoln Center," BBC, Radio France, CBS's "Early Show," and NPR's "Morning Edition," "Fresh Air" and "JazzSet." www.ericcomstock.net
Sean Smith has been an integral part of the international jazz scene for over 25 years, and has performed with Gerry Mulligan, Phil Woods, Benny Carter, Art Farmer, Flip Phillips, Clark Terry and many others. Also, a prolific composer, his works have been played and recorded by Phil Woods, Mark Murphy, Bill Charlap, Gene Bertoncini, Leon Parker and Bill Mays. His music has also been featured in several films.
BIRDLAND THEATER will present Eric Comstock with bassist Sean Smith and special guest vocalist Barbara Fasano on Saturdays, September 4, 11, 18 and 25 at 5:00 PM. There is a $30 music charge and a $10 food and beverage minimum. Birdland Jazz Club is located at 315 West 44th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenues) in Manhattan. For reservations, please call (212) 581-3080 or visit www.BirdlandJazz.com. In compliance with New York City rules for indoor activities, Birdland requires proof of vaccination or a verified medical exemption from all customers, staff, and performers.
UPCOMING HIGHLIGHTS AT
THE BIRDLAND THEATER AND BIRDLAND JAZZ CLUB
September 6,13,20,27 (Mondays) 8:30 - Birdland Jazz Club
Jim Caruso's Cast Party
"Jim Caruso's Cast Party," a New York institution for almost two decades, is a wildly popular weekly open mic night/variety show that has brought a sprinkling of Broadway glitz and urbane wit to Birdland since 2004. Called "show-business heaven" by The New York Times and "the gold-standard of open mic nights" by The Wall Street Journal, "Cast Party" will take advantage of the city's post-pandemic nightlife renaissance to keep presenting a potent mix of Broadway stars, jazz swingers and cabaret legends, in addition to new faces and rising talent from every genre. The buoyant, sharp and charming Caruso guides the entire affair, while musical genius Billy Stritch (Liza Minnelli, Tony Bennett) holds court at the ivories and leads the Cast Party Symphony Orchestra (Steve Doyle on bass and Daniel Glass on drums).
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
August 31, September 7,14,21,28 (Tuesdays) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
The Lineup with Susie Mosher
"The Lineup with Susie Mosher" is a wild, anything-goes variety show featuring entertainers from the Broadway, cabaret and comedy scenes, ranging from today's hottest headliners to the best up-and-coming stars of tomorrow. Mosher - the noted actress and singer from Broadway and beyond, called "one of those talents you need to see to believe" by Time Out New York - hosts the spontaneous extravaganza every Tuesday, and each Lineup is unique and promises to deliver an unforgettable night of quintessential New York City entertainment.
$20 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 5 (Sunday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Sean Harkness & The Unusual Suspects
Long before Harkness made his commercial debut on the legacy Acoustic New Age label Windham Hill Records and even longer before he became the go-to guitarist for vocalists from Broadway, film, and TV, Sean played electric guitar in bands that range from rock, blues, and dance rock, to funk, R&B, and reggae. Harkness's personal choice of songs are all classic rock/pop from the '60s, '70s, and '80s, given fresh arrangements that blend psychedelic jams, jazz, rock & roll, and unexpected world rhythms.
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 10-11 (Friday-Saturday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Nellie McKay, the award-winning singer and songwriter, will present songs from her seventh album, Sister Orchid, and more. She has won a Theatre World Award for her portrayal of Polly Peachum on Broadway in The Threepenny Opera, performed onscreen in the films PS I Love You and Downtown Express, and her music was used in Rumor Has It, Monster-in-Law, and others. Nellie's music has been heard on "Mad Men," "Boardwalk Empire," "Weeds," "Grey's Anatomy," and she has appeared on TV shows including "The Late Show with David Letterman," "Conan," and "The Vie
September 12 (Sunday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Cady Huffman and Mary Ann McSweeney
a??a??Old friends Cady Huffman (Tony winner for The Producers) and Mary Ann McSweeney (award-winning jazz bassist, Girl From the North Country) come together to investigate music during the pandemic. Combining voice with bass, and whatever else strikes their fancy, the duo will pirouette from Peggy Lee to Jimi Hendrix, with a promise that nothing is off-limits. Huffman won the 2001 Tony Award for playing "Ulla" in The Producers. She was nominated for an Outer Critics' Circle Award for The Nance, and nominated for a Tony Award for The Will Rogers Follies. McSweeney has played with jazz legends Dizzy Gillespie, Joanne Brackeen, Lee Konitz, Gil Goldstein, and Bucky Pizzarelli, and for famous conductors Leonard Bernstein, Lalo Schifrin, and John Williams.
$40 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 13 (Monday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Carole J. Bufford - "Poets and Pickers"
Bufford's new show "Poets and Pickers," features songs that transcend the genres they were eventually slotted into whether pop, jazz, country, rock, blues, or Broadway. Stripping these tunes down to the bare essence and building them anew, her unique takes and inimitable style will make you hear some of the world's most beloved tunes with fresh ears. Featuring Peter Calo on guitar, expect to hear songs by Paul Simon, Randy Newman, Irving Berlin, Bobbie Gentry, Cole Porter, Johnny Cash, John Prine, Kris Kristofferson, Colin Meloy, Leon Russell, Sara Bareilles, Kander & Ebb, & more. A recipient of the Nightlife, Bistro, and BroadwayWorld Awards for "Outstanding Vocalist," Carole has become one of the most sought-after performers on the American vintage pop, cabaret and jazz scene.
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 16 (Thursday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Ronny Whyte - "Whyte Witchcraft: Songs of Cy Coleman"
Whyte - a premiere interpreter of Classic American Popular Song, an outstanding jazz pianist, and a successful songwriter - returns to Birdland to celebrate his recent album Whyte Witchcraft - Songs of Cy Coleman. In addition to Whyte on piano and vocals, the show features Cecilia Coleman on piano, Scott Hardy on bass, Ray Marchica on drums, and Ron Horton on flugelhorn. Whyte has been featured on Marian McPartland's "Piano Jazz" on NPR. An ASCAP Award-winning songwriter, his lyric "Forget the Woman" was recorded by Tony Bennett and his music for "The Party Upstairs" won the MAC Award for Best Song of 2006. He produces and hosts the weekly concert series "Midday Jazz Midtown" at Saint Peter's in Manhattan.
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 17-18 (Friday-Saturday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Jason Kravits - "Off the Top!"
Whether you recognize him from Broadway (The Drowsy Chaperone, Relatively Speaking) or TV ("Halston," "The Undoing," "Dr. Death," "B Positive," "Search Party"), you've never seen Jason Kravits quite like this. In a performance London's Reviewsgate calls "a five-star masterclass in the art of improv," Jason invents an entire cabaret, from scratch, right before your eyes. Every song, every lyric, every show-biz anecdote, humblebrag and overshare... made up, on the spot, based on your suggestions. Backed by the most daring band in the business, and featuring very special guests, Jason creates a solo, improvised musical-comedy high wire act you've got to see to believe.
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 19 (Sunday) 8:30 - Birdland Theater
Susan Mack - "Music in the Air"
Susan Mack's "Music in the Air" celebrates the profound power and magic of music in our lives. Through jazz standards of composers including Cole Porter, Antônio Carlos Jobim, Irving Berlin and Chick Corea, the show rejoices in their "forever music" - bringing a contemporary spin to the dancing, romancing and loving that music inspires in all of us. Mack's 2018 debut show "Nobody Else But Me," directed by the legendary Marilyn Maye, was nominated for a MAC Award for Best Female Debut. "Music in the Air" features musical director Tedd Firth on piano, David Fink on bass, Eric Halvorson on drums, and is directed by Lina Koutrakos.
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 20 (Monday) 7:00 - Birdland Jazz Club
The Broadway Cast of "Company" - A Benefit Concert for "Darkness RISING"
The Broadway cast of Company is proud to present a benefit concert at Birdland to support "Darkness RISING Project," which provides therapy and mental health resources for Broadway show company members. Scheduled to appear are Darkness RISING Project's Carlita Victoria and Khalifa White, along with Company cast members Kathryn Allison, Terence Archie, Etai Benson, Britney Coleman, Nikki Renée Daniels, Matt Doyle, Javier Ignacio, Christopher Sieber, Jennifer Simard, and Bobby Conte Thornton, with Paul Staroba on piano. The cast of Company is so inspired by "The Darkness RISING Project," its workshops, toolkits and de-stigmatization of the importance of mental health in the community. Support, in collaboration with Adrienne Warren, provides therapy and mental health resources for returning Broadway company members with contributions made by producers.
$40/75 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 24-25 (Friday-Saturday) 8:30 PM - Birdland Theater
Jeremy Stolle - "No More Talk of Darkness"
Jeremy Stolle is a current member of Broadway's Phantom of the Opera with over a decade of experience wearing the mask. In his show at Birdland, you will hear Phantom like you have never heard it before, and so much more beyond the darkness of the Phantom's lair. The night is packed with show-stopping Broadway songs, soaring high notes, classic music, and hilarious stories of the great white way. Jeremy has enchanted audiences worldwide with his approachable, energetic demeanor and comedic charm. This heartfelt concert about life, love, and the perseverance it takes to make it on Broadway is perfect for all ages.
$30 + $10 food/drink minimum
September 27 (Monday) 7:00 PM - Birdland Jazz Club
Clint Holmes - "Possibilities" - featuring the Christian Tamburr Trio
Clint Holmes is a consummate Grammy Award-nominated entertainer, writer, performer and recording artist. Whether he is singing selections from contemporary classics or stirring original pieces, every performance is a one-of-a-kind, mesmerizing, and unforgettable experience. His 40-plus year career has taken him from the top of the charts, to concert halls, on TV screens, and cemented his legacy as a veritable Las Vegas institution. His big break came in 1972 when he released "Playground In My Mind," which topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In addition to hosting his own Emmy Award-winning talk/variety show, Clint served as Joan Rivers' sidekick and announcer on Fox TV's "The Late Show."
$40 + $10 food/drink minimum
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