Review: Donna McKechnie Continues To Make Theatre History with TAKE ME TO THE WORLD – THE SONGS OF STEPHEN SONDHEIM At 54 Below

Heigh Ho my merry rainbow readers, it is I, Bobby Patrick, your rainbow reviewer here to put the silent T in cabareT and bring you ALL the Tea...

Everyone who was at the Thursday night, 7 PM show at 54 Below was treated to the work of two, count them, two legends, as Broadway's Donna McKechnie presented her very personal musical diary all about her good friend, Steve. With TAKE ME TO THE WORLD - THE SONGS OF Stephen Sondheim Diva Donna walked the crowd through the years of their association and friendship, sharing with all present the touching and funny anecdotes, as well as the comfort and life lessons she found in the great man's words and music. Backed by some of the best in the business - Ian Herman (Keys/Musical Director), Ray Kilday (Bass), and Ray Marchica (Drums) - the lady held forth on a set list of 15 songs from the great man's canon, kicking off with three in a row from his golden flop ANYONE CAN WHISTLE. The last song of this triptych, THERE WON'T BE TRUMPETS (which was cut out of town but still made it onto the cast album), showed Ms. Mckechnie's range and power as a vocalist who can park and bark with the best of them. With Bobby's anthem, BEING ALIVE, from Company, she demonstrated the perfect longing in her acting and the perfect lilt in her voice leading up to the power notes at the end of the piece which she tackled with a pro's aplomb. Another trilogy of tunes, this time from FOLLIES, told the tale of Sally Durrant Plummer's journey from giddy excitement at joining the Follies reunion, DON'T LOOK AT ME, through her painting of a too pretty picture of her life, PLEASANT LITTLE KINGDOM (also cut Out Of Town) through the bitter regret of TOO MANY MORNINGS, a duet that she knocked out of the park all by herself.

These are just little tidbits, a lookeeloo, if you will, into an evening that was FAB indeed but also meaningful for her and for those of us lucky enough to be there with her. You see, my dear ones, Donna McKechnie may have a monolith at the center of her resume that has stood the test of time, but these moments she spoke of, working with Sondheim, the touching and funny encounters they had as friends and colleagues, the work that they generated between them, are some of the most beautiful flowers around her A CHORUS LINE tower. Ms. McKechnie's voice is, without a doubt, one that echoes down the hallways of theatre history and deserves to be heard in the here and now. Taking on songs written for both female and male-identifying characters, she so skillfully fit her voice and her acting to the moments in their lives, conveying their layers with a floated vocal lift and touch to quieter notes or a solid belt to others. Then there was the moment she took roughly 24 bars to show us that the dancer still lived within her, as she floated across the stage, ballet arms in perfect synch with her feet as her blue silk gown fluttered about on the winds of her twists and turns.

Though there are only two Sondheim shows on her Broadway resume, COMPANY and the first national tour of A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM (her first ever Broadway touring show), the lady's life and career crossed the paths of Mr. Sondheim many times in other venues of NYC and out there in the hinterlands. This rainbow writer had the distinct pleasure of seeing the Papermill Playhouse production of FOLLIES, where DM played the aforementioned Sally in the 90s, after assuming that her name on the cast list meant she would be playing the other female lead of Phyllis. That's what everyone thought, including the producers of the show until Sondheim intervened and said, "Donna's not Phyllis. Donna IS Sally." This was a declaration that gave McKechnie one of her finest roles AND a still devastating number to end her show on. The chills elicited by her rendition of LOSING MY MIND, her acting of the words, and the emotion in the music were as palpable to yours truly on Thursday as they were all those years ago, out there somewhere in the wilds of New Jersey - worth the ticket price and then some.

And therein lies Little Bobby's biggest compliment to any performer. Donna McKechnie TAKE ME TO THE WORLD - THE SONGS OF Stephen Sondheim is absolutely worth the time AND the money and fully receives our hearty...

5 Out Of 5 Rainbows

One More Chance To Catch This One Tonight At 7 PM. Get Your Tickets: HERE

Keep Up With All Things Donna On Her Webbysite: HERE

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