Bennett & Barton: We Know A Swing Or Two at Chelsea Table + Stage

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2. Bennett & Barton: We Know A Swing Or Two

Elena Bennett and Fred Barton will debut their new show, “We Know A Swing Or Two,” at Chelsea Table+Stage on Tuesday, February 7.  

Following their sensational appearance at the Mabel Mercer Cabaret Convention, and their critically lauded show, "Bennett & Barton Swing Out Under The Moon” last fall, the award-winning duo are back with a new song collection, mined from their formidable repertoire of Broadway, Hollywood, and Big Band gems.

"We Know a Swing or Two" will feature hits, rareties, and novelties by Jule Styne, Yip Harburg, Johnny Mercer, Jimmy McHugh, Jimmy Van Heusen, Bob Merrill, and many more American Songbook masters.

Elena's uniquely luxurious and expressive voice finds its perfect mate in pianist Fred's “ten-fingered orchestra” style on the keys. They will be joined by Kyle Colina on bass and Damon DueWhite on drums.

Elena Bennett and Fred Barton joined forces at the cabaret-and-piano-bar Eighty-Eights, and out of their weekly performances evolved the Bennett & Barton Song Salon – the first evening of its kind, with Bennett & Barton singing spontaneous sets drawn from the Great American Songbook and classic Broadway repertoire, with celebrity guest stars.

Elena's and Fred's act led to their CD "A Wrinkle in Swingtime,” still in print (and streaming) after 23 years – featuring Elena singing 14 classics and novelties with Fred's 27-piece orchestra. They were selected by Sydney's Ministry of Culture and Protocol to be the feature hosts of the Sydney Cabaret Convention, and have appeared at the New York Cabaret Convention and the Back Stage Bistro Awards.

Elena Bennett has performed in countless venues, specializing in creative renditions of classics and novelties drawn from the American Popular Songbook, as well as unique interpretations of Edith Piaf's songs. She starred in the acclaimed musical theatre piece "Erik and the Snow Maidens," and toured the country as the lead singer of the sell-out big-band revue "Forever Swing." She has sung with innumerable great musicians, including Les Paul, Murray Grand, Albert Hague, Billy Stritch, and Jason Robert Brown.  She was lead vocalist for the Charles Brown Band, as well as the 18-piece big band, "The Music Masters." She is the winner of a Manhattan Association of Cabaret’s (MAC) Hanson Award, and a BACK STAGE MAGAZINE BISTRO Outstanding Vocalist Award, and was named Best Piano Bar Entertainer of the Year by IN THEATRE MAGAZINE, and CABARET SCENES MAGAZINE selected her as one of the Top Acts of the Century in January 2000. She is currently working with her longtime collaborator on a follow-up big band album to "A Wrinkle in Swingtime.”

Fred Barton debuted as a co-creator of the original Forbidden Broadway - a two-night club act that ran for 27 years while winning the Tony Award and multiple Drama Desk and Critics' Circle Awards, and spawning numerous CD's and touring companies. He then wrote book, music and lyrics for Miss Gulch Returns! (Back Stage Bistro Award in Musical Comedy Performance), with the recording becoming a cult classic, still in print after 36 years; the show is regularly produced at theaters around the country. Fred's third off-Broadway venture, Whoop-Dee-Doo!, won two Drama Desk Awards, and resulted in a London production and an RCA cast album. He arranged and performed in Spamilton off-Broadway, and music-supervised numerous regional companies and the four-year national tour. For TV, Fred composed for The Magic Schoolbus, won an Emmy for his work on the hit Wonder Pets!, and music-supervised Olivia and HBO’s Cathouse: The Musical. On Broadway and on tour, Fred conducted Anthony Quinn in Zorba, Hal Prince's Cabaret revival, Cy Coleman's City Of Angels, and Robert Goulet in Camelot; he played in the Broadway pits of Grease (Tommy Tune production), Guys & Dolls (Nathan Lane revival), and The Will Rogers Follies. His Pops arrangements are regularly played at Carnegie Hall and by symphonies around the country and Canada. As a pianist, he's played for dozens of major stars; but by far his favorite is the incomparable Elena Bennett.