Review: HALEY SWINDAL: BACK IN BUSINESS Is How It's Done at 54 Below
Haley Swindal Celebrates Her Return to 54 Below
A really great entertainer can turn your day around. I'll start with a confession. Yesterday I was having a really irritating day. Nothing tragic, but one of those days when nothing goes according to plan and every appointment is about 10 minutes behind schedule and the MTA is making things difficult. My mood by the time I arrived at 54 Below was, how shall I say, less than sunny. Thankfully the performer I had come to see was Haley Swindal, and her show BACK IN BUSINESS was exactly the tonic I needed to remove the dark clouds and bring back the sun.
Haley Swindal (Chicago, Jekyll & Hyde, White Christmas) is a performer in the old sense, the kind who would have been right at home in the age of television variety shows. Her engaging personality is big, but not intimidating. She commands attention without being consciously flashy about it. She has what used to be called in the old days "stage presence." Before the pandemic, she impressed Broadway audiences as one of the youngest women to play Matron Mama Morton in Chicago. She definitely has some of the swagger and chutzpah of that "Countess of the Clink." But underneath it lies a sensitive, nurturing, sexy woman who is completely comfortable downstage center. In short, Haley Swindal is the life of the party.
And the party she throws is pretty awesome. Her show is a celebration of the return of hope and fun and good times. In fact, her first two numbers feature the phrase "Let the good times roll" in the lyrics. She opened with Sondheim's "Back in Business" from Dick Tracy dressed in head-to-toe sequin pinstripes. It was as smart an opening as I've seen in a long time. She followed this up with "Let the Good Times Roll" with some additional lyrics by director, Barry Kleinbort tailored to the present situation. She took a moment to gently welcome her audience with Bob Dylan's gentle "Make You Feel My Love." She put a spin on Mama Morton with new lyrics to "When You're Good to Mama" sung from her point of view as a mother dealing with a child in quarantine in Ocala, Florida.
Haley Swindal knows her musical theatre. She proved that by choosing two deliciously obscure songs, "I'm in a Tree" from the musical Prettybelle which closed out of town and "Come Down from the Tree" which was originally cut from the score of Once on This Island. She is particularly good at this sort of introspective musical monologue. She gave us Peggy Lee's great "I Love Being Here with You" and two great moments for Jekyll & Hyde with "A New Life" and "Someone Like You". My favorite moment of her concert was a great arrangement of "I Won't Send Roses" combined with "I Have Dreamed."
She gave a great performance of Sara Bareilles' "Gravity" and of Burt Bacharach's "Knowing When to Leave." She gave us a wonderfully stylized version of "Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries" which she matched up with "When You're Smiling." I was especially fond of her reading of Nancy Ford and Gretchen Cryer's "Old Friend."
She used a story about her very famous grandfather producing the musical Seesaw to talk about her new venture as a fledgling producer herself. She sang the big hit from that show, one the best of all production numbers, "It's Not Where You Start, It's Where You Finish." She wrapped up her concert with a very moving performance of Frank Wildhorn's "Finding Wonderland." It was really quite remarkable.
Haley Swindal had some first-class support on stage with her. Chicago music director, Scott Cady provided the wonderful and inventive arrangements and tickled the ivories with great panache. Dick Sarpola on bass and Dan Gross on drums rounded out the best band any performer could ask for. They all sounded amazing on Ms. Swindal's encore, "You and I," Leslie Bricusse's beautiful tune from Goodbye, Mr. Chips. It was the wonderful cherry on top of this delightful sundae of a show. Kudos to all involved. Thanks for turning my day around.
To learn more about Haley Swindal follow her @haleyswindah on Instagram or @swindah on Twitter. For more terrific acts at 54 below, visit 54below.com.
From This Author - Ricky Pope
Ricky Pope is a very busy actor/musical director/vocal coach who has toured the country with the national tours of ANNIE, ALL SHOOK UP AND TITANIC. He has worked in regional theatres in 49 states i... (read more about this author)

November 15, 2022
We all love to reminisce. A trip down memory lane is highly satisfying. In fact, for those of us who are devotees of The American Songbook, reminiscing is sort of our gig. Susan Mack has made it the theme of her evening, SUSAN MACK: YESTERDAYS, which opened yesterday at Birdland. And Ms. Mack is, indeed a singer worth remembering. She has a voice as full-bodied as honey, with impeccable pitch and delicious taste in music. She put together a program of classy, often rueful tunes about days gone by, both hers and ours. As she points out, the beauty of calling a show YESTERDAYS is that you can sing anything written before today.

November 10, 2022
There is one place on the modern East Side where that world of NY cognoscenti is as alive and vibrant as it ever was. Café Carlyle is the perfect setting for John Pizzarelli and Jessica Molaskey’s show EAST SIDE AFTER DARK. They serve up tune after tune from that 50s and 60s scene where life didn’t begin until after sunset and jazz was the currency of the smart set. Pizzarelli, son of jazz great Bucky Pizzarelli, is a world-class guitarist who has worked with a long list of luminaries including Rosemary Clooney, James Taylor, and Paul McCartney. He has recorded 20 solo albums and has appeared on at least twice that number for other artists. Jessica Molaskey, a Broadway baby if ever there was one, has appeared in a dozen or more hit shows including Sunday in the Park With George, Cats, Crazy For You, Chess, Oklahoma!, City of Angels, Parade, A Man of No Importance, and Songs For a New World to name only a few.

November 7, 2022
Ms. Dver looks great, sounds, great, and breezes through her treatise on gratitude with a light and confident touch. She is, as Cole Porter would say The Hostess With the Mostess’ on the Ball.

October 29, 2022
Roberta Donnay has turned her attention to the legacy of Blossom Dearie for her 10th studio album BLOSSOM-ING!, subtitled 'Celebrating the Music of Blossom Dearie.' And it is a celebration indeed. Throughout her 3 decade career, Donnay has explored the many sounds and genres of the 20th century. She is a stylistic shape-shifter who is equally at home in rock, folk, and jazz. For this album, she accentuates the wispy quality of her instrument to match the ethereal nature of Dearie. She has captured Blossom Dearie's gift for playful storytelling and interplay between vocalist and instrumentalist. Her album is a joy to listen to from start to finish.

October 27, 2022
Ricky reviews Rian's JACQUES BREL night at Don't tell Mama.