BWW Reviews: Marieann Meringolo Is Solid But Over-'Orchestrated' at the Metropolitan Room

Cabaret Reviews and Commentary by Stephen Hanks

The first time I went to hear Marieann Meringolo sing was in December 2011 for what had become her annual holiday season show, "In the Spirit," and she was going to be facing quite a challenge. When it comes to most Christmas season music I am an unrepentant Scrooge. But somehow, with a combination of her strong yet sensitive vocals, nuanced song interpretations, and arrangements from her long-time Musical Director Doyle Newmyer that ranged from snappy to stirring, Meringolo transformed me into a giddy Ebenezer on Christmas morning. So as a big fan of cabaret shows that very effectively incorporate horn sections (as does Terese Genecco's monthly "Little Big Band" efforts at Iridium or Carole J. Bufford's terrific 2012 show, speakeasy., which featured Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks), I was more than a little jazzed to hear that this compelling Streisand sound-alike would be doing a package of her "greatest cabaret hits" from past shows, but this time supported by a 7-piece band (including three horns--Richie Vitale on trumpet, Jonathan Kantor on tenor sax, and Danny Hall on trombone) for a gig spanning three weekend nights (May 31-June 2) that she and her director Eric Michael Gillett called Orchestrated!

In this case, "orchestrated" unfortunately came across more like "engineered" or "manufactured." The re-casting of Meringolo's loveliest ballads and mid-tempo pop arrangements into big band numbers transformed her into, well, just another solid vocalist fronting a small orchestra in a dance hall where you're more interested in seducing your dance partner with your moves while the singer provides the pleasant seduction music. The good news is that Meringolo's vocals are as lovely and powerful as ever. She brought a nice comedic edge to a delicious rendition of "Hey There," from The Pajama Game, charmed the audience by interacting off stage on Nicole Panone's funny "Italian Menu," her sweet, languid delivery of Piaf's "La Vie En Rose" six songs in was one of the highlights of the set, and Meringolo can never go wrong when evoking Striesand, as she did on a medley of "Where Is It Written" (from Yentl) and "I'm the Greatest Star" (from Funny Girl).

The bad news is that the revised arrangements for the horn section were fairly banal and didn't add anything distinctive to her delivery of the songs in a show that was at least 15-20 minutes too long. In some cases, as during her second number, Peggy Lee's "I Love Being Here With You," and on her finale "I Am Blessed," the horns actually detracted by forcing her to compete in volume and lose some of the genuine emotion she often brings to lyric interpretation. Incorporating indistinctive horn arrangements into gentle, wistful Michel Legrand ballads like "I Will Wait For You" and "The Windmills of Your Mind" rendered them a bit bombastic and a tad overwrought. And you would think that in a show where you're touting an orchestra, the horn players (who are clearly fine musicians) would get to strut their stuff on some solos, but they were given only one very short riff apiece during band introductions more than halfway through the show. That was followed by Meringolo's overlong medley of what seemed like every Dionne Warwick song that ever made the pop charts (and what's up with singing "Alfie" without ever mentioning the subject's name when you sing the lyric?). By the time she got to the over-stylized arrangement on the ballad "Crazy Love" (which will be the theme of her next show), overkill had set in and, at least for this reviewer, less would have definitely been more.

Meringolo's loyal cadre of fans obviously loved the show (judging by the raucous response during and after on the Saturday night I attended), but in this corner Orchestrated! was more a good idea on paper than in execution and came across as something of a triumph of pretentious style over substance. Marieann Meringolo is one of New York cabaret's strongest vocalists. As exciting as singing with a horn section may be, she doesn't need it to get her over, especially when that conceit isn't maximized. Newmyer, Boots Maleson on bass, a cool guitar player and drummer (for this show it was Ayodele Maakheru and Sipho Kunene, respectively) is all Meringolo needs for me to get back in crazy love with her. Marieann Meringolo's run of Orchestrated! at the Metropolitan Room has been extended. She will return with the show on Sunday July 7 at 7pm and Friday August 2 at 7pm. Check www.metropolitanroom.com for reservation information.