Review: Betsy Wolfe Drops In For THE NEW YORK POPS UNDERGROUND At 54 Below

Heigh-Ho, My Merry Rainbow Tribe! Bobby Patrick your RAINBOW Reviewer here. Grabbing that silent T in cabareT to bring you all the Tea!

Well, my dearlings, Monday night’s fundraiser, THE NEW YORK POPS UNDERGROUND, was oh-so-much more than your dry, not-for-profit, rubber chicken affair because it was held at the elegant basement called 54 Below and featured Tony® Nominated Broadway STAR Betsy Wolfe.  A benefit raising funds for the New York Pops PopsEd programs, POPS UNDERGROUND kicked off with a champagne reception done up in the fashion of a 1920s Manhattan “supper club” (read: Speakeasy). The always spiffy and dapper Steven Reineke, Music Director and Conductor for the Pops, was MC for the night and brought along some very special guests - alumni of the organization's music education programs. These young musicians of the PopsEd Alumni Ensemble…

Ekaterina Chizhova (Alto Saxophone)
Law Watford (Alto Saxophone)
Christopher LeDoux (Trumpet)
Olivia Busiri Vici (Trombone)
Liana Logan (Bass)
Chase Haimoff (Drums)

accompanied by Kevin Winebold

All provided lovely music for the first part of the evening, and then it was time for the Wolfe attack! Taking the stage with Andrew Resnick (Music Director) and her band - Rob Jost, Jamie Eblen, and Justin Goldner, whom she dubbed the Dear Evan Hanson Band because all played the pit for that show at one time or another, BW offered up a fab 57 minutes of Broadway and The American Songbook, and her quirky humor, basically knocking the socks off all in attendance, at every turn. Still going strong 365 Performances in on her hit show & JULIET, the originator of the role of Anne Hathaway (not THAT Anne Hathaway... The other one... Mrs. Shakespeare) showed no signs of being fatigued from her 8-show week prior to spending her one day off singing her chops out to an appreciative audience under the street. The first highlight of this performance (if you ask little Bobby) was her rendition of Rodgers & Hart’s BEWITCHED, BOTHERED, AND BEWILDERED with every word and note acted superbly in her powerful voice, under complete control from whispers to belts and back again. Truly, we found ourselves wishing for an entire Rodgers & Hart evening from the lady (hint, HINT Betsy!). Her stage presence was delightful and her act was so light and so funny that she just seemed to be having a grand time. And speaking of funny, BW is one of those gifted performers who can make up jokes on the fly, especially about herself, carrying the audience along with laughter through her entire set. Her insistence that she must still be in her 20s, that her hair HAD to be in a “top-knot”, and the fact that the lovely yellow & blue polka-dotted pants she sported precluded her being able to sit on a stool for any of her numbers, were fodder for her comedy canon. She made a great comic meal out of reading love letters she had received in her life, from adolescence through high school, paired with laugh-out-loud excerpts from her teen diaries, all of which led into the funny novelty number I LOVE BETSY from HONEYMOON IN VEGAS. Of course, she did not disappoint on the & JULIET front, making sure she brought it on THAT’S THE WAY IT IS, her dazzling 11:00 number from that show (Note: since curtain times are earlier than in years past, this number most likely takes place around 10:00 PM these days). 
 

Wrapping her set with Curtis Mayfield’s PEOPLE GET READY, a song she insisted was her encore, despite the fact she did not do that "leave the stage and return fake exit" bit, La Wolfe left everyone wanting more, for sure. In all, Betsy Wolfe showed this writer why she has been a staple on the big street for the past 15 or so years and solidified this reviewer's growing fandom. She was just so darn good, we could hardly STAND IT! Every story song, like I CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT from THE LAST FIVE YEARS, was so well acted and in a voice that wailed like a rain storm when called upon to do so took us from touching to thrilling and back again.

 

As for the reason everyone was there…Proceeds from The New York Pops Underground cabaret went to support PopsEd programs, which provide music education, arts access, and performance opportunities for New Yorkers of all ages and backgrounds. Since 1991, PopsEd has impacted over 100,000 New York City students and what could be better than that, my angels? PopsEd makes music open to all and uses tools like composition, lyric writing, performance, and mentorship to foster learning and unbridled creativity. In doing so, these programs excite students and give them skills they can apply to all areas of their lives. The New York Pops’ innovative PopsEd music education programming allows its learners to participate in fully customizable music programs that blend traditional education with pure fun, and for all of that, and Betsy Wolfe to boot, we give THE NEW YORK POPS UNDERGROUND At 54 Below our hearty…

5 Out Of 5 Rainbows

Featuring Betsy Wolfe
Hosted by Steven Reineke
Event Chairs: David Blakelock, Andrea Reiser, and Hillary Weldon
With opening act The PopsEd Alumni Ensemble

Learn All About The New York Pops POPSEd programs: HERE

Betsy Wolfe Has Her WebbySite: HERE

See More Photos From This Fab Fundraiser: HERE

Photos By: Genevieve Rafter Keddy

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