Photo Coverage: Carole J. Bufford Brings SHADES OF BLUE to the Metropolitan Room

"Shades of Blue" is another first-class invitation for the versatile Bufford to show her many sides. The material -- an odyssey of blues made famous by the likes of Bessie Smith, Johnny Cash, Janis Joplin, Dinah Washington, John Legend, and The Animals -- reels from deep in its southern roots to its far-flung northern heights. Shadowing Bufford on this kaleidoscopic journey is her music director Ian Herman on piano.

The show is co-created by Carole J. Bufford and Scott Siegel, who is the producer.

The pair teamed up on Bufford's previous Met Room run, "Carole J. Bufford: Body and Soul," which was one of the best-reviewed nightclub shows of 2013. Will Friedwald of The Wall Street Journal called it "red hot." The show extended its world premiere engagement, playing eight sold-out performances from January 16 through March 15. About Bufford Stephen Holden has said, "The way her voice, with its blues inflections, cut a swath, leaving nothing standing, tempts me to describe her with groveling hyperbole as an earthier, more acerbic 21st-century Barbra Streisand."

Bufford first hit the scene when she was a 2009 MetroStar Talent Challenge runner-up. After tapping her to appear in several of his "Broadway by the Year" concerts, Siegel cast her in his long-running "11 O'Clock Numbers at 11 O'Clock" at Feinstein's at Loew's Regency. Commenting on her 2012 show "Speak Easy," Holden called Bufford "a sizzling cabaret performer... She can be dangerous, but she is also funny."

The next performance of Shades of Blue will be on Thursday June 26th at 9:30. There is a $20 music charge and a two-drink minimum. For reservations call the Metropolitan Room, 34 West 22nd Street (between 5th & 6th Avenues), at 212/206-0440 or to order online visit www.metropolitanroom.com

Photo Credit: Stephen Sorokoff

Carole J. Bufford

Carole J. Bufford

Carole J. Bufford

Carole J. Bufford

Ian Herman, musical director

Carole J. Bufford

Carole J. Bufford

Carole J. Bufford

The Metropolitan Room

Ian Herman

Barbara Siegel & Scott Siegel, Producer Co-Creator

Ian Herman

The Metropolitan Room