Feature: The Days Of Cabaret Gratitude - Day Nine - The Vaudevillian

The Days Of Cabaret Gratitude

Day Nine:  The Vaudevillian - Bryce Edwards

The world today is changed.  It's all social media, TikTok and Twitter, and digital downloads.  Cyberlebrities and Influencers rule the airwaves and a musical artist can become famous singing in the shower to a synthesized song they made on their computer, and more power to them.  Modern times are more modern than ever, and before you know it, we will be living in space with Stanley Kubrik, Captain Kirk, and Ripley & Jones.  The days of the flugelhorn, the kazoo, and the oud have been relegated to a nostalgic whimsy to be enjoyed on a Kinescope short shown on Turner Classic Movies, a faint memory of a growingly faint sound.  

Fortunately, Kinescopes, vintage black and white movies, and kazoos are all in Bryce Edwards’ wheelhouse.  Indeed, the mist surrounding the memory of music from the past is lifting, and where the mist once floated stands Bryce Edwards, one of the artists of the industry that is leading the charge back in time.

Bryce Edwards is a young man with an old soul… or, at least, an old-fashioned taste in music.  The one-time student of musical theater discovered, early in life, that the music that, most, captured his imagination was the music of the first part of the last century.  It wasn’t just the music, though, that excited the young actor - it was the entire era.  So, daring to differ, Bryce Edwards paved a path for himself as a man who wears a boater while walking down Ninth Avenue, who plays a plethora of instruments you never heard of, and who croons tunes in the style of Al Jolson, Jimmy Durante, and Whispering Jack Smith.  All of Bryce Edwards happens to harken back to an age that the world seems to have forgotten… but not the world of show business.  The people who stand on the stages and sit in the seats still have fond associations with and an appreciation for the likes of Rudy Vallée and “Shine On Harvest Moon,” for the compositions and performances that are part of the historical foundation of the music industry, and, so, from the moment Bryce Edwards appeared on the scene, the people could be seen tilting their head to one side, cocking an eyebrow, and saying, “Who IS this kid?”

Bryce Edwards had his first-ever solo show at Don’t Tell Mama on January 21st, 2023.  The Original Room of the fabled club was sold out.  Indeed, it was more than sold out, it was Standing Room Only.  Celebrated artists like Marilyn Maye, Susie Mosher, Jim Caruso, Nicolas King, and more were crammed into the club to watch the young man with the banjo and the wavy hair make his cabaret debut, and the cheers that filled the air throughout the entire evening were proof positive that Bryce Edwards had followed the right path.  From opening notes to final bow, Bryce was accepted, and not just by an audience - by an audience of professionals with discerning tastes regarding what's good and what goes: Bryce Edwards had their collective stamp of approval.  And even though the musical prodigy of multiple instruments is still auditioning for modern-day roles in the theater and on film and television, the fact that he is SRO at venues in and out of the city would indicate that the people want this music and the people want him.  His show at Birdland Theater the fall was SRO and in the new year he is being moved upstairs to the more capacious Birdland Main Room.  He is a welcome and exciting new member to the cabaret and concert industry and he is one of the artists who had a PERFECT DEBUT SHOW IN 2023.  He is a favorite of Broadway World Cabaret and he is one to watch.

Read a Broadway World Cabaret review of Bryce Edwards HERE

Bryce will appear on the Main Stage at Birdland on January 22nd at 7 pm.  Information and reservations can be accessed HERE.

Bryce will also appear in Hudson Valley at the Great Room Arts Salon in Garrison on February 3rd. 

Bryce’s pronouns are he/him/his.

Bryce can be found online at the following links:

Instagram:  HERE 

YouTube:  HERE

Photos by Stephen Mosher

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