Karis Rogerson - Page 2

In a dark, mauve-curtained room, on the fourth floor of a hotel, around 7:15 p.m. on August 26th, the lights began to dim, and a scattered audience of socially distanced cabaret goers erupted into cheers and applause as Ellen Marlow bounded onto the stage. Marlow was at The Green Room 42 performing 'Silver Linings'.

Robyn Adele Anderson, who makes her debut at The Green Room 42 this Saturday, is a performer who takes modern songs and covers them in a jazz style. Her YouTube channel, where she posts videos like her swing cover of a?oeSweetnessa?? by Jimmy Eat World, has more than 59 million views and 569,000 subscribers. 

Wendy Scherl's TOWN AND COUNTRY continues to wow audiences around the New York City area, as she brings her unique and lovely style to this much-praised cabaret show.

Watching Gloria Swansong lip-sync Judy Garland's Carnegie Hall was like performance-inception: somehow, we were experiencing Judy Garland's 1961 performance in most of its glory (recordings are not the same as being there in the flesh, after all), while also delighting in Gloria's impeccable artistry as well.

When Darrian Ford performs, it's a party. He's a great performer who plays to the crowd, capitalizing on what they enjoy and delivering song after song that are just pure enjoyment.

Bufford is a natural performer, confident and comfortable on stage in a way that makes it seem like she was born to entertain; when she speaks, it feels like she's speaking directly to you, and only you, even though the very vocal crowd would beg to burst that illusion.

This is the 12th year Sullivan has held a celebration of artists born in a 20th century year, 100 years after their birth; many of the songs were originally composed by Ervin Drake, though the show also hosted tributes to Liberace, Nat King Cole, and Tennessee Ernie Ford.

At the very back of a dimly lit dinner club with live music, is a little brick room. It's in this intimate space that Julie Reyburn alternately amazed the audience with her singing prowess and entertained them, thanks to her sharp wit and incisive social commentary.

Vivian Reed is a performer, through and through, a fact clear from the moment her feet hit the stage (and even before that if she has to saunter through the room first to get there). Even over the phone, her voice brims with confidence and joy as she talks about her current series at Feinstein's/54 Below called VIVIAN REED SINGS LENA HORNE, a tribute she began in honor of Horne's centennial birthday last June.

Life on the road can be grueling, especially if you're a performer belting "Defying Gravity" several times a week for over a year, as actor/singer Jessica Vosk did from September 2016 to 2017. Now that she has her feet planted firmly back in New York, she's detailing her experience with BEING GREEN, her new show at Feinstein's/54 Below premiering this week.

Natalie Douglas returns to Birdland Jazz with her current TRIBUTES series, a four-show residency in which Douglas pays homage to influential artists, the idea being to embrace an artist, as opposed to a writer.

If you're not already familiar with Antonia Bennett, her current Cafe Carlyle run and venue debut are quite the introduction. As the daughter of a famous father, Bennett grew up surrounded by quality music and performers, and it was at an early age that she began adding her own voice to the mix. For 10 years she performed with Tony Bennett as his opening act, and she is featured on his album A SWINGIN' CHRISTMAS in a duet between the father and daughter. But the truth is that the name Antonia Bennett rings familiar with fewer people than her father's. The concrete reason for this has some room for debate--- perhaps it's just that music-listening culture has changed, or maybe it's because she's younger and hasn't performed as much in a solo setting. The reason doesn't matter so much as the fact that Antonia Bennett is a performer to watch, and her Cafe Carlyle performances are proof of that.

Antonia Bennett, daughter of Tony Bennett and accomplished vocalist in her own right, is a lifelong performer. Since she "could walk and talk," according to her bio, Bennett has been performing with artists of legendary status: Rosemary Clooney, Regis Philbin, and, of course, her father. For the last 10 years, she has served as Tony's opening act in live shows and, in addition, has performed duets with him, including on his holiday album, A SWINGIN' CHRISTMAS. On May 23, Bennett will make her Cafe Carlyle debut in New York with a set comprised of selections from the American Songbook, a perfect fit for her inherited charm and too-cool demeanor, paired with her uniquely coy voice.

Cafe Carlyle is a low-ceilinged room with walls covered in paintings that lend credence to the illusion of being locked in another world, a jazzy rendition of 80 years ago that's all glitz and glam. It is in this room that Ana Gasteyer performed, making her debut at the venue. There was an immediate clash between the buttoned-up atmosphere and the by-no-means-buttoned-up performance Gasteyer gave. The SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE alum's show, directed by Julian Fleisher, is, at its heart, a comedy show, sometimes irreverent, sometimes touching, and always laugh-inducing.

In his new solo show at Joe's Pub, John Epperson, the adored drag artist widely known as his character Lypsinka, sits at the piano dressed conservatively in a green blazer, a rarity for him--- no flashy dresses, wigs, or makeup. For this show, he's performing not as Lypsinka but as himself. But the performance itself is far from conservative. John Epperson: The Artist Principally Known As Lypsinka, which debuted on August 15, is billed as a 'personal musical memoir,' but in many ways it's a tribute show--- specifically, a tribute to the women who shaped his life.