Feature: Eight Days Of Jewish Artists In Cabaret And Concert - Day Five

In her youth, Helane Blumfield had a vivid imagination. Just see her show Me And Bobby Peaco to hear about Gina, a character that teenage Helane invented to make trips from Long Island into Manhattan more fun. Throughout her life, that imagination has served Helane in her personal adventures and in her work, whether that work was in the field of advertising, in the photography studio, or in the rooms of the cabaret and concert industry.

Helane spent much of her life working as an art director and a creative director in the fashion industry, helping to create some of the most famous advertising campaigns of all time. From her seat in the studios of the fashion world, Helane observed the industry's most renowned photographers at their craft and developed an interest in art born out of the lens. Those photographers became teachers and mentors for Blumfield, who is now one of the best photographers working in cabaret today (also in fashion, where she continues to be an in-demand commodity). In mere years Helane has gone from Singnasium student, learning to perform cabaret, to in-house photographer at the Laurie Beechman (pre-pandemic), Cabaret Convention documentarian, and personal photographer to many cabaret performers, capturing their artistry in the act, creating album covers and publicity cards (Helane does graphic design, too), and assisting in their social media needs. Helane is also the resident photographer of Broadway World Cabaret, providing our readers with photo essays of all the artists, from the established and famous, like Vanessa Williams and Jackie Evancho, to those making their debuts, like Shannon Daley and Roberta Feldhusen. Helane's contribution to the cabaret community has raised the bar of excellence, making the industry more glamorous and more personally informed, as she renders possible the visual dreams of the artists, of which she, herself, is one.

Cabaret performing is not Helane's main hustle, photography is, but she has always had an interest in performing, and she has a warm, smoky singing voice, and a palatable, playful presence on the stage. So, for fun and for artistic fulfillment, Helane appears in a show about once a year. Sometimes it's a group show like the lauded 4 Women 4 Songs, sometimes it's one song in a special event like the award-winning Meg Flather Songs: A Cabaret Sisterhood, sometimes it's a show of her own like Tight Pants And Tears Of Joy, My love affair with Tom Jones and Neil Diamond! or her recent duo show with best pal Bobby Peaco. Whatever the offering, Helane is on the stage to entertain and to tell stories, and the members of the community always turn up to watch because Helane Blumfield is a ball of positive energy, joy, and vivid imagination, which is precisely what she brings to her photoshoots, and her life: positive energy, joy, and vivid imagination.

Vivid imagination is Helane Blumfield's specialty.

Our Judaism-themed question with Helane Blumfield:

Ste: Helane, you have worked as a creative in two different corridors of the arts - in magazine advertising and in the performing arts. Have you found that Jewish peoples' faith plays an equally strong role in the communities of both these industries, or is there a discernible difference between the two worlds you have inhabited as an artist?

Helane: First, thank you for asking me to participate in this series. I am honored. For me, faith is very personal. Therefore, I wouldn't necessarily know how faith plays a part in people in either community. However, I think sharing Jewish traditions is celebrated in both communities. I think the following quote by Eve Ensler says it perfectly. "I grew up in a tradition where having ideas and contributing to the community and creating art that had an impact on the world mattered. That's part of the Jewish tradition."

Read the Broadway World Cabaret interview with Helane Blumfield HERE.

Helane's online presence is as follows:

Website: Click HERE and HERE.

Instagram: Click HERE.

Facebook: Click HERE.

Twitter: Click HERE.

Helane's pronouns are She/Her/Hers

Helane's future projects include:

2022 was a terrific year, and I look forward to an even more terrific year in 2023. I love taking photos and love taking photos of the cabaret community, and it fills my heart and creative soul. Simply put, more of everything is what is coming up! Stay tuned!

Photos by Stephen Mosher; Visit the Stephen Mosher website HERE.

To post a comment, you must register and login.