Review: Kevin Wood Is On Solid Ground While TAKING A CHANCE at Don't Tell Mama

Kevin Wood may have made the title (and opening song) of his show TAKING A CHANCE but he wasn't taking any chances when he put this act together. With Lennie Watts directing and Mark Hartman Musical Directing from the spot left empty by the untimely death of Rick Jensen, Mr. Wood returned to New York City and Don't Tell Mama with a freshened up version of his pre-pandemic success. One can assume that what has been given a 2.0 treatment is the script, one that goes into the pandemic experience, albeit blissful briefly. Nearly every cabaret and club artist who has returned to the stage after surviving the shutdown has something to say about the pandemic - and they are allowed to - but the nature of Wood's show is such that a great deal of time spent dwelling on the past two (ish) years would have, effectively, changed the story he had come to tell.

And this story needs no changing.

Wood, a popular cabaret artist out of Chicago, is a classic musical theater actor, with the classic musical theater abilities one might expect from a cherubic, rosy-cheeked, silver-haired charmer with eyes that sparkle like the sun off of the Mediterranean Sea and a smile as bright as the lights of Broadway. Tapping into that, Kevin has created a classic cabaret, filled with opportunities for him to "park and bark" his way through comedy numbers, and then break hearts through message-laden tender moments in song. It is obvious that Mr. Wood knows who he is, what he is about, and where his strengths lie, and he plays into those strengths to perfection, managing to make "He Touched Me" into a comedy number and a mash-up of songs by The Beatles and John Denver into a painful, angry, tearful musical monologue about breaking up. Superbly directed by Mr. Watts, Kevin presents this act without a theme as a series of vignettes, personal observations, and anecdotes, an act reminiscent of those created by the likes of Charles Nelson Reilley, Imogene Coca, and Comden and Green. He is a masterful storyteller able to remind one of the dread of being "Last One Picked" and how important it is to own, to be proud of, to celebrate who you are, in the most famous song to ever be originated by a a frog struggling with being green. The entire production and every aspect of it is an example of what the classic cabaret show formula is, and why it endures to this day.

Of particular note in an evening filled with highlights were Mr. Wood's simple and straightforward performance of Ford and Cryer's "Old Friend" (a song that has never especially appealed to this writer, until this performance) and a sincerely felt tribute to the late Rick Jensen, whose always inventive and imaginative arrangements make up the entire show. Jensen passed away during the pandemic (non COVID related) and the incomparable Mark Hartman has stepped in, preserving beautifully those arrangements in honor of the original TAKING A CHANCE Musical Director. Jensen's work is in hands here that are not only great, they are respectful and reverent, and, together, Mark and Kevin pay honest homage to a man and artist who was greatly loved.

Also worthy of mention regarding Kevin Wood, his team, and the presentation of this show is a special skill that some people working in cabaret have, some have honed, and others are still trying to hone, and that is the transition from dialogue into song. Critics over years have praised the moment in the film The Sound Of Music when Julie Andrews segues from speaking into singing at the beginning of "My Favorite Things" - many scholars of the art of musical filmmaking name this as the best example of that transition from dialogue into song ever put on film. Kevin Wood could teach a master class on how to make that same transition in a cabaret room, so seamless was each lead-in from line to lyric. Working with Watts and Hartman to perfect it, Mr. Wood makes each transition as natural as though he had lived his entire life in a musical movie. In a way, he kind of has, which shows in every moment of TAKING A CHANCE, and in as much as he took no chances when he sat down to create this show, his audiences don't need to worry about taking chances either. Kevin Wood is a good, solid, and wildly entertaining musical storyteller who has created a show guaranteed to check off every single cabaret box. One hopes he brings it back to New York for subsequent performances but, until then, the cabaret-going audiences of Chicago will be the lucky ones.

Find other great shows to see at Don't Tell Mama HERE.

Visit the Kevin Wood website HERE.

Kevin Wood gets a five out of five microphones rating for performing his entire show without the use of a lyric sheet, tablet, or music stand.

Photos by Stephen Mosher