Phillip Officer to Pay Tribute to Mabel Mercer in YOU FASCINATE ME SO at Birdland Theater

BIRDLAND THEATER will present the return of acclaimed vocalist Phillip Officer in his new show “You Fascinate Me So” – an homage to cabaret legend Mabel Mercer – on Tuesday, September 24 at 8:30 PM. “You Fascinate Me So” explores the evolution of American popular music, and a creative coterie of songwriters crafting a contemporary style of song in the early 20th Century. Phillip will be joined by Mark Hartman on piano, Jonathan Michel on bass, Kevin Kuhn on guitar, and Molly Rose on violin. There is a $30 music charge. Birdland is located at 315 West 44th Street in New York.

No understanding of the American popular song is complete without the knowledge of Mabel Mercer and her influence on lyric interpretation. Her perfect diction and honest interpretation of lyrics attracted many of America's rising singers to learn her style: Frank Sinatra, Lena Horne, Tony Bennett, Johnny Mathis, Peggy Lee, and Bobby Short. What they learned from Mercer transformed American culture. Tin Pan Alley was expanding its trunk of tunesmiths to include Broadway's brightest composing stars: Cole Porter, George & Ira Gershwin, Richard Rodgers & Oscar Hammerstein, Cy Coleman & Carolyn Leigh. The chic supper clubs and smokey saloons were a perfect playground for the intimate art of cabaret, while the current musical jazz age was in full swing.

Phillip Officer, no stranger to great concert halls or smokey saloons, has sung in myriad venues ranging from the Broadway stage, world famous Carnegie Hall, and legendary Oak Room at the Algonquin Hotel. Phillip originated the role of the "Geek" in the Broadway Tony-nominated musical Side Show, in addition to creating a leading role in the musical Starcrossed at the Goodspeed Opera House-At-Chester (directed by Tony Award winner Martin Charnin and music by Tony Award winner Jeanine Tesori). He also made a cameo appearance in the Off-Broadway world premiere of Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens.

Phillip made guest appearances with Michael Feinstein in Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall. As a featured soloist, other New York credits: Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Symphony Space, Kaufman Theatre at 92 St Y, Russian Tea Room, and Rainbow & Stars. Regional theatre appearances: Bay Street Theatre, Berkshire Theatre Festival, and Bucks County Playhouse. Serving as an ambassador in song for the Mabel Mercer Foundation, Phillip has traveled across the United States, in concert, to San Francisco, Chicago, Philadelphia, Palm Springs, East Hampton and Rose Hall in New York City. Officer's recording, Heart and Soul: The Musical World of Hoagy Carmichael, features octogenarian jazz violinist legend Johnny Frigo. Officer's debut songbook, Fancy Meeting You: The Lyrics of E.Y. “Yip” Harburg, was bestowed a Backstage Bistro Award. His second album, Many A New Day: The Lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II, was declared “a shining example of cabaret art"” by Billboard. 

BIRDLAND THEATER will present Phillip Officer in “You Fascinate Me So” on Tuesday, September 24 at 8:30 PM. There is a $30 music charge and a $20 food and beverage minimum. Birdland 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. 

Photo credit: Gene Reed

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