Feature: The Best of Cabaret and Concert For 2025

Well, that went by fast, didn’t it?  At least, it did for me… except when it didn’t.  But, for the most part, 2025 skipped right along, and we all did, with it, and I’m happy to report that I skipped into the clubs quite a bit this year.  Hopefully, 2026 will see me in more clubs enjoying more shows, because 2025 was a great year for cabaret.  I got to see (and photograph!) some wonderful shows put on by gifted artists who put their whole heart into their work.  Their dedication and determination yielded rewards in the form of shows that will live in this cabaret devotee’s memory for a long time to come.

And as the days wind down to last one of the year, these are the productions that played the Cabaret and Concert circuit that I list as my favorites of 2025.

Emmet Cohen Presents Miles and Trane Centennial - Birdland - January 13, 2025.  This evening celebrating two legends of jazz was musicianship at its very best.  In a mind-altering performance, Emmet Cohen and all of the musical artists involved showed artistry of the highest level, smarts, humor, and humanity.  It was a great way to start the year.  Read the review HERE.

An Intimate Evening With David Marino - Pangea - February 12, 2025.  David Marino has taken the industry and New York City by storm, performing sold-out shows at Birdland, appearing as a guest in other artists’ shows, and flying out of town to do gig work in other venues around the world.  For one night only, a lucky crowd of people got to see Mr. Marino in the coziest of settings at Pangea, and it was a love fest, just in time for Valentine’s Day.  Read the review HERE.

Ashley Brown - The Green Room 42 - March 7, 2025.  One of Disney’s brightest lights, Broadway’s OG Mary Poppins was meant to play a duo show with Ryan Silverman, who came down with something the day before, leaving Ms. Brown to make up a solo show on the spot.  Which she did.  It was more than practically perfect: it WAS perfect.  Read the review HERE.

Indulgence with Lucy Darling - The Triad - April 17. 2025.  I was not the reviewer of record for this spectacular show - for this blended night of comedy and magic, Bobby Patrick came back to BroadwayWorld Cabaret, they who adore magic and fabulosity.  Lucy Darling is fabulous, and so is her magic act, and her comedy, and her royal blue gown right out of Gilda.  I was pleased and proud to be Bobby’s photographer for this one, grabbing some of the best shots I’ve ever done.  Read the review HERE.

Tracie Thoms - 54 Below - June 6, 2025.  One of the stars of RENT and 9-1-1, Tracie Thoms brought her show to 54 Below after many years away.  During this evening, she remarked that this isn’t the kind of work she does well, and she could not have been more wrong.  Tracie Thoms should be a rock star, playing the biggest venues in the world.  She burns as bright as a fire on her hit TV show.  Read the review HERE.

Dorian Woodruff - Forever Me With Love - Chelsea Table + Stage - June 5, 2025.  I was not the reviewer on this show, Andrew Poretz was, but I was Andrew’s photographer, and, from behind the lens, what I saw was Dorian Woodruff at his most comfortable, his most relatable, and his most entertaining.  Had I written the review, it would have been a rave; Andrew wrote it, though, and it was a rave anyway.  Read the review HERE.

Sean Harkness - Just Me - Don't Tell Mama - July 2025.  Sean Harkness is most often seen behind a guitar, his fingers doing the talking in support of another artist.  But when he decided to do a series of solo shows in which he spoke, sang, and played, it was an embarrassment of riches.  Audiences flocked to see this supporting player become a leading man, and he transitioned into the light seamlessly.  Read the review HERE.

Carole Demas - Firefly - 54 Below - September 6. 2025.  A steadfast member of the clubs that are the history of American Musical Theater and the history of television, Ms. Demas presented a luminous program of music and storytelling that covered not only her place in those histories, but her ongoing presence in the industry as it now stands.  May this firefly burn bright and burn for years to come.  Read the review HERE.

Theater Adult with Gianmarco Soresi - Joe's Pub - July 29, 2025.  One of the funniest and most versatile men in the business, Gianmarco Soresi’s Joe’s Pub show (which transitioned to a residency at The Green Room 42), is equal parts stand-up comedy, interview program, and variety show.  Able to ask the good questions, tell the funny stories, and hit the high notes, the viral superstar also knows how to book a guest.  He’s the one to watch.  Read the review HERE.

David Archuleta - Earthly Delights Tour- Gramercy Theater - October 16, 2025.  The American Idol is now a flat-out idol, be it American, International, teen, grown-up, or otherwise.  His re-invention as a grown man, a sex symbol, and a musical storyteller supreme has been rewarding to watch, but the biggest reward is seeing him live his best life in live performance.  This was, for me, the show of the year.  Read the review HERE.

Beat of a Wandering Heart - Laurie Beechman - November 12, 2025.  The Silvestri and Higgins revue, this creation by Mark Nadler magnificently melded impeccable talent, a bountiful body of work, and right proper storytelling into one of the most elegant productions to land on the cabaret stage this or any other year.  The revue is alive and well, and it exists in this new production that will, hopefully, have more life moving forward.  Read the review HERE.

Corinna Sowers Adler - All That Matters - Don’t Tell Mama - December 6, 2025.  An educator of young people who wish to perform, Corinna Sowers Adler has crafted a musical cabaret that proves that those who teach, also can.  From script to marriage of said script to musical material, from Shane Turner’s arrangements to Sowers Adler’s performance, every single aspect of All That Matters is like a perfect facet making a glorious gemstone of cabaret.  Read the review HERE.

Songbook Sundays - Let’s Call The Whole Thing Gershwin - Dizzy’s Club - December 21, 2025.  The elegant and erudite series is still going strong, but when Linda Purl, Nicolas King, Imani Rousselle, Ted Rosenthal, Tim Horner, Noriko Ueda, and Erena Terakubo joined Deborah Grace Winer for an evening of Gershwin, there was a chemical reaction, the results being magic, magnificent, and majestic.  Remember the Wall To Wall series?  Would that this had been one of those days.  What a way to end the year!  Read the review HERE.