The Cabaret Chronicles: Sharon McNight, Cast Party and More!

Happy Saturday, everyone!  Hope everyone's weekends are off to terrific starts - I know mine is!  I had a great time at Sharon McNight's show last night, and a fantastic time sharing the stage with a bunch of amazing performers at a benefit at the Metropolitan Room tonight!  Before I get too ahead of myself, though, let me backtrack and start at the beginning of the week!

Monday evening found me, as usual, at Birdland for Jim Caruso's Cast Party.  The room was packed with all kinds of talented entertainers who got up to share their talents, including singer/songwriter Victoria Shaw (who has written all kinds of hits, including "The River" for Garth Brooks), Klea Blackhurst (whose Ethel Merman tribute, Everything The Traffic Will Allow, is currently playing at the Snapple Theater Center), Broadway vet Susie Mosher, LA-based singer/songwriter Wayne Moore, and another terrific singer/songwriter, Jason Maniscalco (who treated us to an original tune on his ukulele)!  Jim was his usual fabulous self as host, and David Budway and Steve Doyle provided top-notch accompaniment on piano and bass, respectively.

On Thursday evening, July 23^rd, it was off to the Algonquin Hotel for the Summer Oak Room Salon.  Created by the same team behind The Algonquin Salon (which takes place on Sunday evenings in the lobby of the Algonquin Hotel), the Summer Oak Room Salon is another great opportunity for singers, songwriters, and musicians to share their talents and network with each other - and, with the illustrious history of the Oak Room, it's even more special!  This was the second week of the Summer Oak Room Salon, and I had the honor of co-hosting, along with Mac-Award winner Rob Langeder.  The turnout was terrific  - loads of terrifically talented folks showed up and took the mic, including Maureen Taylor, Julie Reyburn, Kathleen France, and Jan Brennan (who also served as the "Oakette" of the night, helping to keep the evening running smoothly).  A feature of the Summer Oak Room Salon is a weekly special guest star, who performs a 3-song set.  This week, the special guest star was the incredible Scott Coulter, who brought the house down with his renditions of "I Honestly Love You," "Drop Me Off In Harlem" and "For Good."  Another Oak Room Salon feature, which was just added this week, is the "Advisor's Spotlight" - a performer selected by the Oak Room Salon's Artistic Advisor, Roy Sander, to perform a 2-song set.  Roy's selection this week was Broadway veteran and talented singer/songwriter Lee Summers, who, along with his accompanist, Timoty Graphenreed, wowed the Oak Room crowd and kicked off this new feature with a bang!  Kudos to founder/host Mark Janas, executive producer Peter Napolitano, and associate producer Tanya Moberly for creating such a wonderful experience!

Friday evening found me at the Metropolitan Room to catch Sharon McNight's show, Ladies Compose Yourselves: The Sequel, a follow-up to her wildly successful show a few years back, Ladies Compose Yourselves.  Like its predecessor, this show was a celebration of female songwriters - and what a celebration it was!  From well known songwriters such as Annie Lennox and Janis Ian to lesser known writers like April Winchell and Marilyn Harris, Ms McNight's well-constructed show was a wonderful showcase of the plethora of great material by female composers.  And in addition to being female, all of the composers had to meet one additional requirement:  "All these women had to be alive - it's a new concept in cabaret," Ms. McNight wryly remarked.  Top to bottom, it was a thoroughly enjoyable show -  the combination of terrific songs, wonderful accompaniment by pianist Ian Herman, and Ms. McNight's larger-than-life personality (a perfect combination of brassiness, intelligence and charm) really made for a terrific hour of entertainment!

Tonight, it was back to the Metropolitan Room again, this time for a benefit for Help Is On The Way Today.  I was honored to be part of a wonderful lineup for the show, including Mary Foster Conklin, David Gurland, Julie Reyburn, Terese Genecco, Sidney Myer, Lina Koutrakos, Lennie Watts, Karen Mason, and KT Sullivan!  The show was called Broadway Our Way, and all of the songs were Broadway showtunes that had been given new arrangements by the performers (and, of course, their musical directors!).  It was a really fun show to be a part of, and I so enjoyed listening to each performer's treatments of the Broadway material - some ended up being jazzy, some were lounge-y, some were introspective, and some were just utterly unique!  Steven Ray Watkins served as musical director for the show and did a truly remarkable job of providing terrific accompaniment to such a wide variety of singers.  Thanks to co-directors Lennie Watts and Lina Koutrakos for putting together such a wonderful show!

Where I'm going this week...

Sunday, July 26^th: Tony DeSare at Bemelmans Bar.  Singer/composer/pianist Tony DeSare is, hands down, one of my favorite entertainers.  I wrote about him in my first Broadway World article, when he was doing his show at the Oak Room.  This time, it's a more relaxed atmosphere as he plays a 3-hour gig at the classy Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle Hotel.  I can't wait!

Monday, July 27^th: Well, if it's Monday, you can almost always find me at Jim Caruso's Cast Party at Birdland.  This fantastic open mic runs from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. - make sure you get there early to sign up if you want to sing!

Tuesday, July 28^th: Marilyn Maye at Birdland!  I wrote about the incomparable Miss Maye just last month when she did her Mercer tribute at the Metropolitan Room.  This time, she's doing a one-night-only appearance with her show "Something Cool" at the famed jazz club - should be a very special show!    

Thursday, July 23^rd:  Connie Francis AND Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons at the Seaside Summer Concert Series at Coney Island!  Well, anybody who knows me knows that I've been thoroughly obsessed with Connie Francis of late (especially since I just did a tribute show to her!) and who doesn't love Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons?!  All I can say is, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for good weather that night! 

Pictured:  Sharon McNight