Chicago's Cabaret Queen Denise Tomasello Headlines Little Italy Festa-Taylor Street With Her 16-Piece Orchetsra

Hailed as "Chicago's Cabaret Queen" by the Chicago Tribune, Sun-Times, WGN Radio, Daily Herald and Skyline Newspapers, the legendary Denise Tomasello returns to headline the Little Italy Festa-Taylor Street with the 16-piece Denise Tomasello Orchestra in her Vegas-style show. Denise will take the Arcada Stage, Saturday, August 17, at 5:15pm. The Festa is located at 1300 W. Taylor Street, Chicago. There is a suggested $8 entrance fee (age 12 and under free. There is no extra charge to view concerts). Back by popular demand, Denise will be performing her fan-favorite, signature songs, classics from the great American songbook and show-stopping Broadway numbers, that have made her, as the Chicago Sun-Times said, "a Chicago musical institution."

The recipient of Chicago Cabaret Professional Gold Coast Award and winner of the After Dark Award for "Outstanding Cabaret Performer," Denise Tomasello is, without a doubt, Chicago's most exciting and in demand entertainer. This performance follows her 4th consecutive sold out concerts at the Gold Coast's Drake Hotel Grand Ballroom, where she has the honor of being the first and only entertainer to ever give a concert at the legendary hotel and her two acclaimed Mister Kelly's tribute performances. She has headlined with show biz icons Don Rickles, Alan King, and Jackie Mason. Mason was so impressed by Tomasello's talent, he demanded that Denise have equal billing alongside his name at The Tropicana/Atlantic City. Mason went on to say "She is an amazing singer and a brilliant comedian. She is so natural onstage. She is the female Dean Martin." Denise became a favorite of the Chicago's nightclub scene after she got her big break at Sages, a landmark hotel located in the gold coast, at the time the city's most prestigious cabaret. What was only supposed to be a very limited engagement, turned into an unprecedented six-year run - the longest run ever for a female nightclub singer in Chicago history. Denise Tomasello was THE must-see performer in Chicago and became a celebrity among celebrities entertaining VIPs Elizabeth Taylor, Mary Tyler Moore, Tom Dreeson, Denis Farina, Mayor Daley, Irv Kupcinet, Harry Carey, Jack Brickhouse who flocked to see her. She received accolades from every major newspaper in town including an iconic photo cover on the Tribune's Sunday Arts Magazine and Tribune calling her "an entertainer of stirring voice and show biz pizzazz." And Rick Kogan of the Tribune saying "wildly glamorous and wickedly amusing, when she sinks into a belters delight the room sizzles." She went onto headlining and selling out in the city's most prestigious nightclubs and concert halls: The Chicago Theatre, Park West, the Empire Room, The Pump Room, George's, Davenport's and an unprecedented, record-breaking six-year engagement at Sage's. Denise followed that with an unprecedented, two-year run at The Fairmont's Metropole Room that was greeted by audiences and the press with the excitement of Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall. The Sun Times raved "with a voice that rivals Liza Minnelli in scope... those that have heard her once can't wait to hear her again." The Tribune was equally ebullient saying "a nightclub dream....so firmly has she stamped the room her own she should stay there forever." Her record-breaking reigns at Sages and The Metropole have been compared to Bobby Short's run at The Café Carlyle in New York. Her dazzling, renowned Chicago performances brought Denise her national recognition performers dream of and resulted in sold-out shows at the country's top nightspots and stages: New York's Town Hall and Eights Eights in Manhatten; Michael Feinstein's Cinegrill in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, The Four Seasons in Beverly Hills, and The Gardenia and Rose Tatoo in Los Angeles. She also became the first Chicago performer invited to sing at the New York Cabaret Convention. These high-profile performances, along with the national recognition Denise was achieving prompted her to make a move to California. While L.A. had its appeal, Denise missed the warm relationship she had with Chicago and its audiences. So, she returned home to her beloved Windy City, where she currently lives with her husband Don Conover. And now 40 years after embarking on her music career, Chicago's love affair with Denise Tomasello continues, proving she is the one and only Cabaret Queen of Chicago. In the past two years Denise has performed triumphant SRO concerts at The Auditorium, The Metropolis Performing Arts Center, Empire Room, The Drake Hotel's Grand Ballroom, two sold out shows at The Skokie Theatre, and memorable concerts at Festa Italiana. From belting a Broadway show-stopper, to her spine-tingling delivery of an emotional ballad, or her sultry way with a jazz standard, Denise possesses a rare and unique musical versatility, putting her indelible stamp on every song she sings. And the way she engages the audiences with her spontaneous, sharp, quick-witted repartee, Denise makes every performance a unique and special experience. A true original, nothing compares to a performance by the exhilarating Tomasello, who is one of the most talked about and exciting performers around with the Chicago Tribune exclaiming "let's make one thing clear about Densie Tomasello: "She was cabaret before cabaret was cool." Denise Tomasello is a must-see, one of a kind, special performer. Witness first-hand why California's Orange County Register calls Denise and her one-woman concerts "the best show of its kind in the country!" For further information and upcoming solo concerts, please visit DeniseTomasello.com, friend on Facebook or follow on Twitter @CabaretQueen. Little Italy Festa-Taylor Street is produced by Ron Onesti Entertainment, owner of the Arcada Theatre in St. Charles, and sponsored by Little Italy Chicago Neighborhood Association.