The Cabaret Chronicles: Bway Jukebox, John Bucchino & More!
By: Jenna Esposito Mar. 13, 2009
Happy Friday, everyone! I can't believe another week has gone by - guess it really is true that time flies when you're having fun! So, let me tell you what I've been up to during the past 7 days...
On Friday, March 6th, I headed over to the Time Out New York Lounge for Lush and Lively with d.j. Dan Fortune and had a great time! I went with a few friends and we had so much fun trying to guess who was performing the lounge-i-fied retro tunes that Dan was spinning. My personal favorite was James Brown's funky "September Song," although there were a number of close contenders, such as Shirley Horn's "On The Street Where You Live" with a 60s go-go beat and Cy Coleman's disco version of "Speak Low"!
On Saturday, March 7th, I had the honor of hosting the MAC New Face Showcase Part 2, which featured the remaining 5 performers who appear as debut artists on the ballot for the 2009 MAC Awards (the first six were featured in the February 28th showcase). The performers this week were Deb Berman, Christina Bianco, Ben Cherry, Dawn Derow, and Dominic Sheahan-Stahl, and once again, I was amazed at the level of talent these debut cabaret artists brought to the stage! Each of the performers had something unique to offer and I truly look forward to seeing each of them in future performances! Kudos, too, to house musical director Mike Murray, who did a terrific job both weeks of the showcase! Also, as a special treat on this Saturday, cast members from Broadway's Next Hit Musical performed a 15 minute set, which was absolutely hilarious! The premise of the show is that the performers create songs based on phrases suggested by the audience members, and also build scenes to accompany the songs. The performers on Saturday afternoon were Deb Rabbai and Rob Schiffmann, who were accompanied by Andrew Resnick on the piano, and the songs they ended up performing were "Flush My Toilet" and "No, Draino, No!" (curiously, the audience seemed to have a plumbing fixation!). Not only were the songs witty, clever, and musically interesting, but they were performed beautifully - Deb and Rob were both excellent singers, and Andrew was nothing short of amazing on the piano. I can't wait to see a full version of the show (they play every other Thursday at Broadway Comedy Club.
After Broadway Jukebox, it was off to the Algonquin Hotel for the Algonquin Salon. Founded and hosted by pianist Mark Janas, the Salon has turned into one of the hottest Sunday evening destinations for singers, songwriters and musicians in the city. Each week features a different guest co-host, as well as a theme. This week's co-host was Broadway's Aaron Kaburick, and the theme was "Broadway Then and Now." Performers wanting to stick to the theme were encouraged to do showtunes from the 1950's OR the 2000's - very fun! We heard everything from "Glitter and Be Gay" and "Hello Young Lovers" to music from The Full Monty and Little Women. One of my favorite numbers came from the producer of the Salon, Peter Napolitano, who performed his own parody lyrics to Cole Porter's "You're The Top." In Peter's version, the songs was "You're A Flop," and it was a rundown of some of Broadway's biggest flops. It was very clever and VERY funny - looking around, it seemed that just about everyone was cracking up at the witty new lyrics! Other talented folks who performed that night included Gretchen Reinhagen, Rob Langeder, Maureen Taylor, and 2009 Bistro Award winners Susan Winter and Deb Berman.
On Monday night, I pulled another doubleheader, although this night BOTH shows were at Birdland! The first show was John Bucchino & Friends, and my oh my - what friends he has! Big-time Broadway star Brian Stokes Mitchell, diva-of-divas Ann Hampton Callaway, actor/singer/director Brian Lane Green, songwriting duo Justin Paul and Benj Pasek (who said they hadn't actually performed in years but did an amazing job with an extremely difficult song!), cellist Yair Evnine, and singer/actors Jessica Phillips, Lucas Steele, Jamison Stern, Joan Almedilla, Jacqueline Hester, and Zak Resnick (who hasn't yet graduated from Carnegie Mellon but did an incredible job filling in for Billy Porter!) all performed with John, delivering stellar performances of his beautiful, well-crafted music. I'd be hard-put to pick a favorite, but there were a couple of standout moments for me. The two group numbers in the show, "That Smile" and "Taking The Wheel" were both terrific - between the tight harmonies and the energy radiating from the performers, all of Birdland was rockin! Another special moment in the show was Ann Hampton Callaway's gorgeous "In A Restaurant By The Sea." She said before she started that she had never sung this song in public before; she was always afraid it would make her cry. She didn't cry, though, and the audience was absolutely enraptured by her performance. An especially fun treat was hearing Mr. Bucchino himself singing three of his own songs: "Puddle Of Love," I've Learned To Let Things Go," and "Learn How To Say Goodbye." The latter two were performed with cellist Yair Evnine, who, in addition to his beautiful, heartfelt solos, provided warm, mellow accompaniment while John was singing. From top to bottom, it was an outstanding show and I'm so happy I was there to witness it!
After John Bucchino & Friends, I stayed at Birdland for Cast Party (it's actually a very rare Monday when I DON'T go to Cast Party!) and had a terrific time, as usual. Jim Caruso was his usual host-with-the-most self, and there were some fantastic performances! The amazingly talented Hilary Kole (who has just released her debut CD!) treated us to a gorgeous, moody "Midnight Sun;" Forbidden Broadway diva Christine Pedi brought down the house with an "I Will Survive" sung in the voices of Eartha Kitt, Bette Davis, Joan Rivers, Carol Channing, and Ethel Merman; and 17-year-old Jennifer Hoyt, visiting from Seattle, blew everyone away with her jazzy "Mojo!" Cast Party regulars Christine Lavin (who was sitting with famous singer/songwriter Jonathan Edwards!), Joan Crowe, and Steve Sorokoff kept things moving merrily along, and the Cast Party Symphony Orchestra (Tedd Firth on piano, Steve Doyle on bass and Steve Bakunas on drums) was phenomenal!
On Tuesday, March 10th, I headed to Cabaret Hotline's March Is Cabaret Month Gala. Hosted by Brandon Cutrell with musical direction by Tracy Stark, this 90-minute show featured appearances by seven-time MAC Award winner Natalie Douglas, Metro Star Talent Challenge winner Anne Steele, Chicago-based chanteuse Joan Curto, Broadway's Kristy Cates, MAC Award winner Jack Donahue, soulful singer Antonio Edwards, London-based Barb Jungr (who just opened at the Carlyle!), Broadway diva Sarah Rice and debut artist Ben Cherry. The show was filled with great performances and marked by an overwhelming sense of warmth and generosity. All of the performers truly seemed to relish sharing the stage with each other and enjoy the reason we were all in the room together - to celebrate the art form of cabaret! Hearty congratulations to Stu Hamstra, who founded Cabaret Hotline and continues to serve the cabaret community wholeheartedly; Tom Stajmiger, the producer of the show; Brandon Cutrell, who was a charming and witty host, and ALL of the performers who shared their time and talent!
Last night, I headed over to Metrojam, which is the monthly open mic at the Metropolitan Room. Usually, Metrojam is on the first Friday of the month, but this month, it happened to fall on the second Thursday, which was a fun little change of pace! I had a great time, as usual - how could I not? With talented songbirds like Susan Winter, Rob Langeder, Maureen Taylor, Dawn Derow and Cynthia Crane taking the mic, songwriter Richie Eisenberg treating us to a catchy new tune, host Joe Bachana delivering two swingin' songs, and the spectacular band (John DiPinto on piano, Ritt Henn on bass and Bobby Sher on drums), it was a really fun night!
Where I'm going this week...
Friday, March 13th: Cait Doyle in Hot Mess In Manhattan at the Duplex. I'm so excited to see this show! I've seen Cait perform a few numbers from it before (including her catchy title song!) and I really can't wait to see this talented singing comedienne in a full-length show! The show begins at 9:30 p.m.
Monday, March 9th: Christine Pedi in Winging It at Birdland at (of course!) Birdland! One of the original members of Forbidden Broadway, Christine is an amazingly talented performer. Whether she's doing an impression of any one of a number of divas (Bette Davis, Bernadette Peters, Liza Minnelli, Elaine Stritch, and...well, you get the picture) or singing in her own voice, she's a witty and captivating performer. I haven't seen a full show of hers in quite some time, so I'm very much looking forward to this! The show starts at 7 p.m.
Cast Party at Birdland! Hosted by Jim Caruso, this fantastic open mic runs from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. but make sure you get there early to sign up if you want to sing!
Thursday, March 19th: Grace Notes at the Don't Tell Mama. This monthly "Singers' Soiree" is produced and hosted by singer Grace Cosgrove and is always a fun night. Each show has a theme (this month, it's "Flower Power - Music of the 60s") and a lineup of singers that mixes seasoned professionals with new faces. This month, I'm very pleased to be joining the lineup of singers, and I'll be in terrific company! The other performers scheduled to sing are Julie Reyburn, Lennie Watts (who also directs the show), Steven Ray Watkins, Stearns Matthews, Stefanie Rose, Billie Roe, and Grace herself! Show is at 6:30 p.m.
Julian Yeo and his retro-jazz band at the Time Out NY Lounge. I always enjoy hearing Julian and his awesome band, and the TONY Lounge is such a cool place to catch them - low key, mellow, and a definite retro-vibe going on! They start at 7:00 and go until about 9:30, so I'm going to run over and catch their last set after Grace Notes!
Enjoy your week and check back for another update next Friday!
Pictured (l-r) Brian Stokes Mitchell, John Bucchino, and Ann Hampton Callaway
Photo by Stephen Sorokoff
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