FAMILY MATTERS: Deborah Zecher & Joshua Zecher-Ross a Delight At Don't Tell Mama

Deborah Zecher and son Joshua Zecher-Ross were scheduled to perform their show FAMILY MATTERS: A Celebration of All Things Rodgers, Rodgers and Guettel in the smaller of the two cabaret rooms at Don’t Tell Mama, but demand was so high that they were moved to the bigger Original Room at the last minute - and it wasn’t hard to see why!

Zecher is a much-loved member of New York’s cabaret community, and the community came out in droves to show their support for her latest cabaret – this time sharing the stage with her handsome musical director son, Joshua!

Directed by cabaret extraordinaire Lennie Watts, Zecher and Zecher-Ross have carved out a beautiful show, sharing both personal anecdotes and those of the lives of Richard Rodgers (father/grandfather), Mary Rodgers (daughter/mother), and Adam Guettel (grandson/son).

Dressed in a gorgeous pantsuit, Zecher surprised the audience at the start by taking a seat at the piano as son Zecher-Ross perched on a stool. Zecher began playing simple chords as the two began singing “Do-Re-Mi” before Zecher paused and said, “I’ve got a better idea..." The mother and son then switched places, the audience chuckling with delight, as Zecher-Ross took on his musical director duties.

The utterly delightful Opening Medley was a mix of Rodgers & Hammerstein and Rodgers & Hart, with Zecher and Zecher-Ross sharing the singing of beautiful melodies from the aforementioned “Do-Re-Mi” from The Sound of Music, “The Sweetest Sounds” from No Strings (which Rodgers also wrote the lyrics for), “With a Song in My Heart” from Spring is Here, and the glorious “It’s a Grand Night for Singing” from State Fair.

In an homage to their shared love of Broadway and the isle of Manhattan, the formidable storyteller Zecher and silken-voiced Zecher-Ross charmed the audience with a grand rendition of Lorenz & Hart’s “Manhattan”, complete with interesting anecdotes woven between the lyrics.

Following this was a song this reviewer hadn’t heard before. Written by Mary Rodgers & Sheldon Harnick for Free to Be... You and Me, “William’s Doll” was a witty take on a book of the same name from 1972 which explored nontraditional gender roles and was performed with charisma!

Following this, Zecher-Ross warmed the crowd with his smooth vocals at the start of what they called the “Once Upon a Mattress Suite,” and together, the mother and son shared entertaining patter about Zecher-Ross’ high school days. 

Next up was Adam Guettel’s “Baby Moon." Believed to have been written for Audra McDonald, Zecher gave it a wonderful treatment, followed by a delightful rendition of Rodgers and Sondheim’s “Do I Hear a Waltz?”

Mounting the piano with heart-shaped sunglasses, Zecher then had the audience in stitches with her gorgeous, entertaining rendition of Mary Rodgers & Sondheim’s “The Boy From…” as Zecher-Ross provided the back-up vocals with panache.

There are so many more highlights to share, including (spoiler alert) a Sound of Music singalong, and "I Whistle A Happy Tune" performed partially in Hebrew, but you shall have to book for their next performance on Tuesday, April 16 to see for yourself!

Book tickets for this show and find more shows to see at Don't Tell Mama on their website.

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