Review: Melodie Wolford's WAITING IN THE WINGS at The Triad Is Worth Waiting For

Being ever ready, willing, and able to step into a star’s role, even on a moment’s notice, is the way of life (and longing) for an understudy in the theater.  In many instances, it was indeed a way of life, job after job, for versatile and vivacious Melodie Wolford. In her charming and strong autobiographical cabaret Waiting in the Wings at the Triad on November 23, she spreads her own wings and sings some numbers she had learned just in case the star got a case of the flu or was injured or was fired or stuck in traffic. There were other numbers, too, such as “On the Other Side of the Tracks,” showing determination and pluck.  Her first New York City audition was back in the 1980s, a couple of weeks after this talent from Tennessee moved to town, with her eyes on Broadway.  She tried out for 42nd Street,  coincidentally about someone who suddenly inherits a show’s leading role.  While she didn’t get in right away, she eventually was cast in tours of that musical and La Cage aux Folles and sang, tap-danced, and acted through the years, through the highs and the lows.  (Speaking of “highs,” she unleashes startling stratospheric high notes at the finale.)

Melodie Wolford’s clear-voiced singing is as bright as her personality and her sparkly blue dress – which is to say: very bright indeed.  The colorful stories of a long career filled with oh-so-close-but-no-cigar moments emphasized the parts about the parts that she didn’t get to play, except at rehearsals.  The experiences weren’t melodramatic like the fictional tale of the deceptive understudy in All About Eve which became the musical Applause or “a star is born” moments as presented in 42nd Street or the real-life understudy career-changing triumphs by Shirley MacLaine (The Pajama Game), Judy Kaye (On the Twentieth Century), or Sutton Foster (Thoroughly Modern Millie).  But the stakes were high when Miss Wolford was dispatched to go on for a star before she’d had a single rehearsal!  Along the way, in regional theatre and on tours she understudied such performers as Rebecca Luker, Chita Rivera, and KT Sullivan (who was in the audience cheering her on; KT had urged her to do an autobiographical cabaret and had urged me to come review it). 

Modestly, or for the sake of emphasizing the “so-near-and-yet-so-far” experiences that are the thrust and theme of Waiting in the Wings, Melodie Wolford talks much less about other productions wherein she was in the main cast, often in main roles, or shows she has directed. Her storytelling did effectively lead up nicely to securing the leading role in a production of Ballroom, about a widow getting a second chance at love, and her dynamic sampling from that score was a highlight. Without naming names, she mentioned that other finalists for this part she’d coveted included actresses for whom she’d been an understudy.  A particularly touching tale concerned a backstage event with a woman who was her understudy, who was ready, willing, and able — and in costume when a snowstorm-delayed, wet Melodie arrived just minutes before curtain time. 

The upbeat, down-to-earth, sensible, sensitive Melodie Wolford had a great team aboard: The show was directed by Richard Sabellico and her supportive trio consisted of bassist Alden Terry, drummer Adam Wolfe, and, at the keyboard (and doing some spirited singing, plus the occasional quip), the enthused and entertaining Bill Zeffiro.  His game and gregarious nature is a plus, and I can imagine him taking on some of the lines of dialog that the vocalist did herself when recreating conversations between herself and male directors, stage managers, etc. so the anecdotes might become vignettes.  

A special treat was a terrific custom-made piece of special material: a song about the matter at hand, with a lot of points made about the lot in life when one is “always the standby, never the star.” Notably, the music and lyric are by Melodie Wolford’s own son, Alexander Craven.  Reaching back in my memory quite a few years, I remember that he and his mother were involved in Chip Deffaa’s musicals about the show biz Foy family (she was choreographer on one project  and he played the littlest of The Seven Little Foys) and, more recently, both made guest appearances on producer Deffaa’s series of CDs of old George M. Cohan and Irving Berlin material.       

I hope that Melodie Wolford will soon be back on stage – bringing back this special cabaret show… or another one… or in a theatre role…. Or all of the above.

Photo credit: Conor Weiss.   See more of his pics from the evening here: 

/cabaret/article/Photos-Highlights-from-Melodie-Wolfords-WAITING-IN-THE-WINGS-at-the-Triad-20241127  

The Triad is on West 72nd Street and its website is here:  www.triadnyc.com 

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