It was certainly a wonderful time at Port Washington's Landmark On Main Street as Broadway vet and television star Megan Hilty took the stage. The hour long set consisted of songs from the Seattle native's career, some she just felt like singing, and, most importantly, from her wonderful album It Happens All The Time which is available now.
Indeed, Ms. Hilty's voice was stunning and donned a casual chic look in black skinny jeans, sparkly blouse, and black, strappy heels.
To the delight of the sold out audience, Ms. Hilty, accompanied by Matt Cusson on piano, kicked off the show with "Movin' The Line" from her time on Smash. Additionally from Smash, Ms. Hilty performed "That's Life" with Mr. Cusson also on vocals. This performance from the TV show was a duet between Ms. Hilty and co-star Katherine McPhee, so Mr. Cusson, of course, took Ms. McPhee's part. And to finish her Smash theme, Ms. Hilty performed the beautiful "Second Hand White Baby Grand" that didn't leave a dry eye in the house.
Also beautiful were her songs from her aforementioned album. It was a treat to hear her sing "Be A Man" (one of my personal favorites) and her toned down cover of "Heart Of The Matter". For the latter, she explained she loved the lyrics and wanted her rendition to focus on them.
Ms. Hilty also chose to perform several numbers from her time in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, the production she starred in last year. First she performed "Bye Bye Baby" and then the "Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend".
In a comical turn, Ms. Hilty also chose to sing "Alto's Lament", a song about someone who sings alto who typically sings harmony, but longs to sing melody. Additionally, a well received performance was her rendition of the Frank Sinatra standard "The Best Is Yet To Come" to celebrate her debut at Carnegie Hall this past Spring. Ms. Hilty's performance of "Suddenly Seymore" was also top notch. She brought out Brian Gallagher to accompany her and Mr. Cusson on guitar. Mr. Gallagher went on to accompany them on several numbers.
To end the fun show, Ms. Hilty performed two encores. The first of which was a "Popular" decision to sing as she selected the familiar song from Wicked, her Broadway debut. And as a pleasantly surprising ending, she selected "Rainbow Connection". Yes, the iconic song from the Muppet movies. I think this sort of threw everyone for a loop, but it was a beautiful rendition.
And so a wonderful performance tops off a great season for Landmark On Main Street. The Long Island venue will be announcing their next season soon and if this is any indication, there is much to look forward to.
Set List
Movin' The Line
Bye Bye Baby
Alto's Lament
The Best Is Yet To Come
Be A Man
Suddenly Seymour
Heart Of The Matter
You Don't Know Me
Someone to Watch Over Me
Autumn Leaves/When October Goes
That's Life
Second Hand White Baby Grand
The Man That Got Away
Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend
Encore:
Popular
Rainbow Connection
Videos