Charlotte Libov Will Perform I WROTE THE BOOK, Streaming Next Month

Author Charlotte Libov was pursuing her dream becoming a cabaret singer when the pandemic shut down all of her singing venues, including one where she had just landed a regular gig. Ironically, though, the pandemic turned out to be the reason why she'll soon be heading to New York to perform her debut show.

Libov will perform "I Wrote the Book," on Friday, Aug. 6 at 7 p.m. at MetropolitanZoom's Studio A in New York City, from where it will be live streamed. The title of the show is a nod to Libov's career as a writer, which has included regular bylines in the New York Times, as well as multiple award-winning books, and a professional speaking career.

She won the full production costs for the show in a giveaway contest sponsored by MetropolitanZoom, a studio specially created for streaming as a means to help performers say in touch with their audiences before, and after the pandemic.

"This is a dream come true for me," says Libov. "I never would have had the means to go to create a show otherwise, so I decided to go all out and produce a really good show."

A former daily newspaper reporter who worked at newspapers throughout New England, Libov was getting regular bylines in the New York Times before she was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect necessitating open heart surgery.

While recuperating, she learned of studies showing that heart disease in women had been overlooked for some 50 years, and, along with a cardiologist, published one of the first books on the topic, which garnered several awards.

That opened the way for Libov to become a professional speaker, and she traveled around the U.S., giving talks to hospitals, corporations, and even to military officers at the U.S. Army War College.

"I was on a mission. I loved speaking on women and heart disease; I didn't want any women to be taken unaware as I had been. But still, every time was handed a mic, I also had to bit my lip from breaking out in song, because I always wanted to do that song, "You Gotta Have Heart," from 'Damn Yankees,' recalls Libov.

After moving to South Beach from Connecticut, Libov began to explore her passion for song. Before long, she was singing at many local venues, where she amassed a local following. " Much to my surprise, sometimes people would tell me they'd seen me on Broadway years ago but I always told them, " No, that wasn't me, I've never been a professional singer." Then, on e day, a man shook his head and said, "That's too bad, you missed your calling." "I was crushed," recalls Libov, I always knew it was unlikely I'd ever be a professional singer, but, in my mind, I figured there was always a chance."

Libov brushed off the comment and went back to her open mics, including her favorite at the National Hotel in South Beach, where she was offered a job hosting the open mic she loved. "I was to start March 25, 2020, but we all know what happened," says Libov. That, of course, was the pandemic shutdown, an, like many performers, she pivoted onto Zoom, where she met many people in the New York cabaret scene, including Bernie Furshpan, CEO and executive producer at MetropolitanZoom, who had decided to hold a contest with the full production costs of a show as the grand prize. The day she saw it on Facebook, she ended, and was stunned when she learned she had one. "You could enter multiple times; I had only entered once."

"To qualify for the contest, you had to be willing to perform your show in the New York studio, so before I entered, I asked myself if I would do that, and of course my answer was 'Yes,' because you have to say 'yes' to your dreams," says Libov, adding, "So in my show, I'm doing a great song by that title."

"I still consider health writing my mission, and I also love it when I get the opporunity to do newspaper stories. But I also have a dream too be a singer -I don't think it's necessary to stick to one calling, and I certainly don't think there should be an expiration date on dreams," she says.

Charlotte Libov will perform "I Wrote the Book," livestreamed from MetropolitanZoom's Studio A in New York City at 7 p.m. on Aug. 6. For tickets and a link to the show, go to www.metropolitanzoom.com.

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