Review: ASHLEY BROWN Shocks With Surprise Solo Show at The Green Room 42

There’s a story that gets circulated from time to time in show business circles about a night at the Cafe Carlyle when Barbara Cook walked out to an unusually small house of patrons, the result of a snowstorm taking place on top of Manhattan.  The legendary singer is said to have instructed all audience members to move down to ringside seating, so that she could give them a truly intimate cabaret experience, a Barbara Cook living room concert, in the middle of a blizzard.  This is what an artist and a professional does:  roll with the flow when something unexpected happens.  

Last night at The Green Room 42, something unexpected led way to something special.

In 2024, it was announced that Broadway’s original Mary Poppins would appear in a duo show with fellow thespian Ryan Silverman.  That show, My Funny Valentine, was slated for November but then rescheduled to March 7th and 8th, due to calendar conflicts.  It was determined, on March 7th around noon o’clock, that Mr. Silverman was under the weather and unable to raise his voice in song.  At two pm, Ashley Brown met pianist Josh Kight, and the two of them spent the afternoon putting together an impromptu solo show.  Come seven pm, looking every bit the MGM technicolor movie star with her Hedy Lamarr looks and spring pink pantsuit, Ashley Brown presented that solo show, her first solo cabaret in some time, she told the rapt audience.  Well, if there was rust on Ashley Brown, cabaret artist, it didn’t show.  What everyone got last night (in-person audience and live stream) was not a practically perfect night of musical storytelling: it was plain-old perfect.  In every way.

For one solid hour, Ashley Brown performed songs with which she has worked over the years, though she confessed that doing some of this material was going to be a bit of a risk for her, given the spontaneous nature of the program.  “Go hard, AB!” her inner voice told her, so she did.  And even though some of the arrangements were numbers she hadn’t "touched in a very long time," even though some of the songs were particularly wordy, Ashley Brown nailed every number (huge kudos to Mr. Kight, who had her back the entire ride).  One by one, the classically trained soprano hit it out of the park… although, not every number was one made for a soprano.  It turns out that Ashley Brown has two things in real life that the role of Mary Poppins did not put center stage: range and diversity.  When she opened her act with an appropriate “With a Song In My Heart,” it was easy to sit back and relax to the sounds of the soprano that all came to hear.  But, two numbers later, there was some bona fide Broadway belting happening on the stage, as Brown served up some Nellie Forbush.  Who knew?  Certainly not this writer or his companion, a longtime musical theater actress.  Well, the surprises didn’t stop there.  One thrill followed another as Ms. Brown wowed the crowd with a stunning (underline it, bold it, and italicize it) treatment of “I Happen To Like New York,” created by her friend and colleague, the late Marvin Hamlisch.  Then the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music graduate hypnotized and mesmerized with one of the best “So In Love”s this writer (and Cole Porter devotee) has ever had the privilege to hear.  And what could be more natural than going from Jane Froman to Judy Garland?  That’s right.  In the classic tradition of concert divas, Ashley Brown performed the Carnegie Hall arrangement of “Almost Like Being In Love/This Can’t Be Love” with all of the belting bravado and exciting exaltation of the beloved entertainer who, first, introduced it to the world.  It was a highlight in this perfect evening of highlights.

And on the topic of highlights, the last-minute solo show included a medley of romance songs that included the show’s title song, “My Funny Valentine” (again, one of the best I’ve heard), and a breathtaking “Little Girl Blue” that would make anyone a fan of the Rodgers and Hart ballad.  Truly special, though, was the densely worded Flaherty and Ahrens song “The Streets of Dublin,” complete with Irish accent and fully emotional storytelling.  Indeed, Brown brings her acting skills to all of her musical monologues, which is what one hopes for in a cabaret performance.  It is the combination of those acting skills and the unfathomable vocal gifts (and very clear training) of Ashley Brown that made this pop-up solo show a night of great entertainment.  Oh, and star quality.  Without having had time to compose a script or story arc for the program, Miss Brown had to speak relatively extemporaneously, so she relied on two secret weapons: honesty and humor.  She didn’t mind telling the crowd that doing an intimate solo show errs on the side of daunting, or that she felt like she was conquering a fear.  She also didn’t mind making fun of anything, anything at all.  My friend calls this “taking the piss out” and that’s what this very funny lady did last night.  With mere hours to prepare, Ashley Brown served up one of the most enjoyable cabaret performances ever, simply by using the tools and the charm that she carries with her, every day.  It seems strange to say that the people at our table were shocked by it all, but it’s true.  Of course, nobody was surprised that Ashley Brown has talent - anyone who has seen her on Broadway on television or on YouTube knows that this is a gifted actress and singer.  But until you’re in a room with Ashley Brown hearing back-to-back performances of songs originally performed by Julie Andrews and Frank Sinatra in their keys, you don’t have the full scope of her range, both vocally and stylistically.  It was impressive, to say the least, so impressive, in fact, that there is now a Google alert on my computer, set to point me toward any and every future Ashley Brown concert appearance.  And when the lights dim at 7 pm tonight at The Green Room 42, there is no predicting (at this moment) whether the show will be Ashley Brown and Ryan Silverman's MY FUNNY VALENTINE or the Ashley Brown show (and, ps, best wishes to Mr. Silverman for a speedy recovery).  Whatever the billing and program, though, with Ashley Brown on the stage tonight, this writer guarantees a great evening of entertainment.  Underline it: great.  It would not make this writer sad, mad, or remotely disappointed to see Amazing Ashley Brown back in the New York City cabaret rooms on a regular basis.  Take my word for it, dear readers, follow THIS link, and get to The Green Room 42 for 7 pm tonight, March 8th, 2025, and get shocked, surprised, and satisfied by Ashley Brown.  

Tonight's performance will live stream.  HERE is the link for tickets. 

THIS is the Green Room 42 homepage.

Visit the Ashley Brown website HERE.

Photos by Stephen Mosher