BWW: For those folks in our audience who don't know you both,
tell us where you came from and what your performing history is!Brian:
Debra and I began working together when our director, Elfin Frederick, asked us
to do a sketch at a birthday party. He always invites people to perform at his
parties, usually classical music and singing. Elfin directed me in several
Off-Off Broadway productions of Shakespeare and Chekhov, and he directed Debra
in several plays and in her solo cabaret shows.Debra: We decided to do
one of Mike Nichols and Elaine May's comedy routines, called "Adultery." We
enjoyed working together so much, that we decided to do it again the following
year, but this time with songs. We asked my musical director, Darryl Curry to
join us.Brian: The chemistry among the three of us was so good, and the
audience response was so positive that we decided to put together an evening's
worth of songs, with Elfin directing and co-writing the dialogue. And that's
how our first show "O'Connor and Vogel: Guy & Doll" was born.
BWW:
This new show, "How To Be Perfect," is called a Musical Comedy Cabaret Revue.
Tell us about that concept!Brian: Most of our songs are comic duets
from musical theatre, and, with Elfin, we write dialogue around them so that
each song becomes a sketch between different characters. For this show Nora
Brown has created some wonderful musical staging (if we were dancers, we might
call it "choreography"--but we're not...!) And since we perform in intimate
spaces like Don't Tell Mama, we call it a Musical Comedy Cabaret Revue. You
could also call it a "Miniature Musical Comedy."Elfin: In "How To Be
Perfect" our theme is a seminar...each song is a "case study" of a different
couple, demonstrating the "how to" and the "how not to" of being a
couple.BWW: What kind of material have you chosen for the piece?
Brian: We search far and wide through the history of musical theatre
for that special "O'Connor & Vogel" song. We look for three things: An
infectious melody, a clever and imaginative lyric, and an actable relationship.
A lot of our songs are from lesser-known but terrific scores like "Tovarich" (by
Lee Pockriss & Anne Croswell), "So Long, 174th Street" (by Stan Daniels),
and "It's A Bird, It's A Plane, It's Superman" (by Charles Strouse & Lee
Adams). It's also generously sprinkled with songs and medleys by Cole Porter,
Irving Berlin, and Johnny Mercer. The most recent song, "Therapy," is from
Jonathan Larson's "tick, tick... Boom!" and there's even a song from John
Forster's comedy album, "Entering Marion."Debra: Mixed in with the
humorous material are some beautiful ballads, including "Here's To Your
Illusions" by Sammy Fain & E. Y. Harburg, from "Flahooley," and a medley of
Kander and Ebb's "Sometimes A Day Goes By" and "Isn't This Better."
BWW:
Being a performing duo can be hard. Isn't it a bit like being
married?Debra: Yes, but you get to go home separately after
rehearsals. It has all the joys and pitfalls of a real marriage, just not
24/7. Brian: In our case, for some reason, Debra and I really
click--we enjoy each other's company so much, but we also leave a lot of leeway
for each other's neuroses...we even enjoy them.Debra: Also, we made a
rule early on, that we each had veto power over any song or any idea. If one
person thought it wouldn't work, we looked for a better idea, and always found
it, too.BWW: What have you learned from your show that you can put into
use with your own relationships?Brian: Assume the other person is
fabulous and they will be! Cut each other a lot of slack. Put a lot of work
into it. Don't take yourself too seriously.
Debra: Going home and
screaming into a pillow also helps!BWW: So tell us! Is there such a
thing as a perfect relationship??Debra: You'll have to come to see
our show and see!Brian: Do you know of any? The title of one of our
songs, "Nobody's Perfect" (from Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt's "I Do, I Do")
says it all. In fact, the only thing that stands in the way of being perfect
is thinking you can be! The show lampoons the whole idea of self-improvement,
and "making it work." The funny thing is, some relationships work anyway, in
spite of all the struggle. I wonder if love has anything to do with
it?BWW: The show is a satirical take on those contemporary "self-help
gurus." Who would win in a mud-wrestling match? Dr. Phil or Deepak
Chopra?
Brian: Dr. Phil has the edge, being a big, strapping Southern
guy. But, as you can see from the cover of his book, he places a lot of
importance on his expensive watch, so that may prevent him from getting down and
dirty enough for rolling around in mud.Elfin: Although, as you will see
in the show, Suze Ormand was also of some help. And she would give the
mud-wrestling a whole different spin.
What: How To Be Perfect
Where: Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street
Reservations: 212-757-0788
Cover: $15 cover plus 2 drink minimum
When:
Sunday, October 31, 5:30 PM
Saturday, November 6, 6:00 PM
Tuesday, November 9, 9:00 PM
Sunday, November 14, 5:30 PM
Tuesday, November 16, 9:00 PM
Tuesday, November 23, 6:30 PM
Tuesday, November 30, 9:00 PM
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