Aaron Weinstein News

Returning Favorites Include Billy Stritch & Jim Caruso, Nicole Henry, Nicolas King, Aaron Weinstein & Bucky Pizzarelli, The Four Freshmen and Tommy Tune

Linda Lavin and musician/director/actor/painter/writer husband Steve Bakunas walked the Red Carpet a few days ago at the Broadway Opening of Hamilton and then drove up the carpet of Green to their home in the Berkshires to perform at Lee Tannen's Helsinki on Broadway and of course BroadwayWorld was at both events. This summer the East Coast is getting treated to Linda Lavin and Billy Stritch as Linda has brought her show titled Starting Over and her swinging band to PTown, the Hudson Valley, and on September 16th to Guild Hall in East Hampton. At Helsinki on Broadway last night Linda was the star of the show, but the food at Helsinki Hudson definitely also gets top billing.

Rick Murray and The Crown & Anchor presented Tony and Golden Globe winner Linda Lavin to a wildly enthusiastic Provincetown audience last night and Broadwayworld's Stephen Sorokoff was there. In her cabaret show titled Starting Over, Linda with her musical directer Billy Stritch (who also supplied vocals) brought the packed Crown and Anchor Cabaret Room to it's feet many times during their exciting performance.  Also receiving a standing ovation was Jazz Violinist Aaron Weinstein who is a mainstay in Linda's act.  Jazz guitarist Ron Affif, bassist Steve Doyle and husband Steve Bakunas on drums and vocals executed Billy Stritch's magical arrangements perfectly.  

The Morris Museum kicks off the summer with a series of entertaining and educational public programs for adults. Highlights include a performance by jazz violinist Aaron Weinstein; a lecture exploring the complexity of the Indian American experience with professor Diditi Mitra; a tour of 'Musically, Made in New Jersey' with the exhibition curator, and more.

The 2015 'MetroStar Talent Challenge' is extending its deadline for applications to July 4 and adding new mentoring to help competitors up their games during the 7-week contest. The eighth annual edition of the summer tradition runs for seven consecutive Mondays, from July 6 through August 17.  All contestants must certify that they will be available to compete throughout the jury-and audience-voted, elimination-round competition.

This year is the centennial of entertainment legends such as vocalists Billie Holliday and Edith Piaf, singer-actors Frank Sinatra and Alice Faye, composers Billy Strayhorn and Bart Howard, and pianist Cy Walter. In its annual tribute concert, The Mabel Mercer Foundation celebrated all these artists in 1915: It Was a Very Good Year at Carnegie Hall's Weill Recital Hall, presenting a great variety of musical talent, each with a personal take.

Seven outstanding vocalists, songwriters, and musicians born in 1915 were honored at Weill Recital Hall on Tuesday, June 9th, at 7:30 p.m., when The Mabel Mercer Foundation presented their  annual concert, "It Was A Very Good Year." Cohosted by the Foundation's artistic director KT Sullivan and the distinguished critic Rex Reed, the one-night-only event celebrated the centennial birthdays of (alphabetically) Alice Faye, Billie Holiday, Bart Howard, Edith Piaf, Frank Sinatra, Billy Strayhorn, and Cy Walter.

Linda Lavin's most recent show at 54 Below (which had a three-night run between June 4-6), Starting Over--"Because that's what I've done all my life"--illuminates a succession of chapters in her career. The show bears more than a little resemblance to a 2012 appearance at the same venue. There are repeated numbers, excessive, though entertaining anecdotes, and a feel I now find formulaic.

Seven outstanding vocalists, songwriters, and musicians born in 1915 will be honored at Weill Recital Hall tonight, June 9th, at 7:30 p.m., when The Mabel Mercer Foundation presents the annual concert, 'It Was A Very Good Year.' Cohosted by the Foundation's artistic director KT Sullivan and the distinguished critic Rex Reed, the one-night-only event celebrates the centennial birthdays of (alphabetically) Alice Faye, Billie Holiday, Bart Howard, Edith Piaf, Frank Sinatra, Billy Strayhorn, and Cy Walter.

Tony and Golden Globe winner Linda Lavin takes the 54 Below stage this week, performing Broadway favorites, standards, jazz, and even some songs she learned from the great girl singers. Check out a look back at her first performance this week at 54 Below!

This week at 54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz and beyond. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.54Below.com or call (646) 476-3551.

Broadway's 40 theatres aren't the only places to catch performances from your favorite stars! Well after Broadway orchestras begin their overtures, ensemble members take their dance breaks, and performers belt out their eleven o'clock numbers, the party continues at various cabaret venues throughout New York City. Below, BroadwayWorld brings you some cabaret highlights for this week as picked by our theatre editors, including: Chris McCarrell at 54 Below; Linda Lavin: Starting Over; Tony Battles: The Lion King vs. Ragtime Edition; John & Jen Album Release Concert; and Lindsay Mendez and Marco Paguia.

Seven outstanding vocalists, songwriters, and musicians born in 1915 will be honored at Weill Recital Hall on Tuesday, June 9th, at 7:30 p.m., when The Mabel Mercer Foundation presents the annual concert, "It Was A Very Good Year." Cohosted by the Foundation's artistic director KT Sullivan and the distinguished critic Rex Reed, the one-night-only event celebrates the centennial birthdays of (alphabetically) Alice Faye, Billie Holiday, Bart Howard, Edith Piaf, Frank Sinatra, Billy Strayhorn, and Cy Walter.

For 60 continuous hours, from 7pm on Thursday January 1 to 7am on Sunday January 4, New York's Metropolitan Room is staging what it is billing as "The Longest Variety Show Ever." Featuring approximately 160 performers and 15 emcees, the entertainment will span music, burlesque, comedy, drag, theatre/opera, magic and puppetry.

If you've been a regular reader of this particular reviewer's musings, you know that every year there are long stretches of time where I just haven't been able to critique all the shows I've seen that deserve commentary. So I end up playing what they call in sports, 'Catch-up ball,' and post a mash up of belated reviews from past shows. It's kind of like a critic's version of the song 'Six Months Out of Every Year,' from Damn Yankees. Give or take a month or two, that's usually the time period during which I store unpublished reviews in my fevered brain and then unload them all in one seemingly endless column-like this one is going to be. If my cabaret-show reviewing days will be over (as chronicled here), I might as well go out with a bang-and relieve my procrastination guilt during holiday season. Now I can scratch one New Year's resolution off the list.

It's your last week to vote for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Cabaret Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 26th. Voting closes at the end of the year, in under one week!

With the end of the voting period for the 2014 BroadwayWorld New York Cabaret Awards just eight days away (voting will close at Noon on December 31, 2014), BroadwayWorld.com is pleased to announce that the 3rd Annual BWW NY Cabaret Awards Show will take place for the second successive year at Joe's Pub (The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street, NYC) at 6:30 pm. Once again, this Award presenting extravaganza will feature performances by the Award winners (whose schedules make them available), and BWW's New York Cabaret Editor Stephen Hanks will once again host the festivities.

Time is ticking on your last chance to vote for the 2014 BroadwayWorld Cabaret Regional Awards! Check out the latest live stats as of December 19th. Voting closes at the end of the year!