Vicki Von Tassel

Salon is a weekly open mic night where artists can try out new material in a judgment-free zone. I recently did some undercover reporting. It wasn't dangerous or glamorous, like Hunter S. Thompson or Nellie Bly, though it was both alluring and scary at times. I infiltrated the cabaret community to see what it's like being a nightclub singer - and I had a really good time, but I don't want to do it again. I don't know how cabaret performers do it. It's exhausting and it's expensive. You spend all your time promoting yourself, you pay musicians, press reps, photographers and dry cleaners, and every day you run the risk of waking up with a cold and no voice, and an obligation to sing. It's nerve-wracking. Still, these artists continue to produce art for a willing audience: they do it for love of the art and of the audience. It begs the question, though, when a cabaret performer doesn't have a show to do, how do they keep their skills up? How do they continue to grow without spending precious earned cash on an expensive master class?

On Monday evening April 13th, cast members from the Broadway National Tour of 'Mamma Mia' traded in their spandex and platform shoes for loofas and shower caps at 'Shower Songs - Guilty Pleasures from Bathrooms Across the Country' a one night only benefit concert for Broadway Cares / Equity Fights AIDS. This eclectic evening of songs with music directed by Bill Congdon took place at West Hollywood's iconic venue The Abbey (629 N Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, CA) at 8PM and featured a special performance by the legendary Candis Cayne (Dirty Sexy Money).