Alex Rybeck News

1959 was a very good year for Jeff Harnar. It was the year the future cabaret star was born, but he couldn't know then that 1959 would also provide him with the material for what would eventually become one of his greatest cabaret performances. In 1991, for his second major engagement as a cabaret artist, Harnar made his debut at the famed Oak Room at the Algonquin with a show called THE 1959 BROADWAY SONGBOOK, featuring tunes from 21 musicals (including West Side Story, Gypsy, Fiorello, The Music Man, My Fair Lady, Li'l Abner, and Flower Drum Song), that either opened or were still running that year. Directed by Sara Louise Lazarus with musical direction from pianist Alex Rybeck, Harnar's show strung together iconic Broadway songs into an imaginary musical with commentaries on love, marriage and politics, complete with an overture, entr'acte, intermission, and curtain call. The show and Harnar's performance (which would be filmed for a PBS special in 1993) drew raves from the New York entertainment press.

Tony-nominee and Emmy Award-winning artist Liz Callaway will star in the inaugural cabaret of the Empire Arts Center's new program, The 1919 Lounge. This Broadway legend is best known for her starring roles in Baby, Miss Saigon, and Cats, in addition to being the singing voice of Anya in the animated feature film Anastasia.

LIZ CALLAWAY & JASON GRAAE IN HAPPILY EVER LAUGHTER! at The RRAZZ ROOM At The Prince

Tony-nominee and Emmy Award-winning artist Liz Callaway will star in the inaugural cabaret of the Empire Arts Center's new program, The 1919 Lounge. This Broadway legend is best known for her starring roles in Baby, Miss Saigon, and Cats, in addition to being the singing voice of Anya in the animated feature film Anastasia.

This June, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz and beyond. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.54Below.com/Feinsteins or call (646) 476-3551.

Karen Mason and Lee Roy Reams will be saluting Jerry Herman on Tuesday May 31st at the Iridium, in a show called 'IT'S TODAY' with Alex Rybeck at the piano. The show is at 8:30.

Next week, FEINSTEIN'S/54 BELOW, Broadway's Supper Club & Private Event Destination, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond. To purchase tickets or for more information, visit www.54Below.com/Feinsteins or call (646) 476-3551.

This May, Feinstein's/54 Below, Broadway's Supper Club, presents some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz and beyond. Scroll down for the full lineup!

Recently making her solo debut in The Appel Room, Jazz at Lincoln Center's Frederick P. Rose Hall, singer and actress, CORINNA SOWERS ADLER returns to the Metropolitan Room, 34 West 22nd Street, on Sunday, May 22 at 7pm for an encore performance of her highly acclaimed show 'High Standards'. The show is musically directed by legendary musical arranger, Alex Rybeck and will feature Broadway veteran Lawrence Yurman on piano.  The show is a musical journey through some of the best music ever written, reimagined by Mr. Rybeck including songs by Meredith Wilson, Leonard Bernstein/Betty Comden & Adolf Green, Leslie Bricusse/Cyril Ornadel, John Lennon and Joni Mitchell, to name a few.

Raising the bar ever higher, Celia Berk (who in the past year has won “Best Debut” Awards from BroadwayWorld and MAC and received a Bistro Award) celebrated the release of her new CD Manhattan Serenade with the first of four shows at The Metropolitan Room on Sunday night (others are April 10, 17, and 24). Her dream band, helmed by MD/arranger/pianist Alex Rybeck, featured Jered Egan on bass, Dan Gross on percussion, and Dan Willis with his invaluable woodwinds.

On the evening of March 21, veteran vocalist and stage actress Anna Bergman presented a program called Falling In Love With Love, featuring the romantic songs of Richard Rodgers to support the Actors' Temple (339 West 47th Street) at its 3rd Annual Fundraising Gala, one year shy of Congregation Ezrath Israel's centennial (that's the official name of the synagogue). Prior to Bergman's show (produced by recently elected Temple Board President Carol Ostrow), Rabbi Jill Hausman and outgoing Temple Board President Robert Reicher, both of whom received awards, gave warm and funny speeches, making eminently clear why the Actors' Temple is known as “the Cool Shul.”

Singer star Roslyn Kind will play the Catalina Jazz Club for two performances only - Thursday March 17th at 8:30pm, and Sunday, March 20th at 7:30pm. According to the venue's web site, it is 'an all-new show which she debuted at '54 Below' in New York. After a 4 year absence - Rozzie and her band will make a splashy return with her show which includes new material and vintage 'Rozzie' tunes featuring career highlights, pop songs, show tunes and personal favorites...She'll share some great stories, too'

When vocalist Todd Murray discovered several of the musicians for his excellent show Croon were unavailable for their scheduled Valentine's Day appearance last Sunday afternoon at the Metropolitan Room, he asked Sean Harkness (the guitarist in the show) to join him for a two-hander. The fortuitous accident yielded a terrific presentation of romantic material from sentimental to ardent, a pared down sharing of unadulterated heart and high musical craft that deserves wider audience. “It's our goal to put you in the mood,” Murray tells us. They do.

Cabaret on the Hudson Music Series Comes to the Irvington Town Hall Theater in February

After BroadwayWorld launched its New York Cabaret Awards in 2012, the cabaret section's editors realized that the selected categories and the popular vote nature of the election didn't adequately recognize some great performances and shows for that particular year. So in 2013, BWW added "Editor's Choice Awards" to the mix to not only reward special performances but also to acknowledge people who have helped grow cabaret and foster the spirit of the art form. This year, BWW New York Cabaret Editor Stephen Hanks and his reviewing staff-including Alix Cohen, David Clarke, Billie Roe, Rembert Block, and John Hoglund-selected seven stars of cabaret for this special honor. Now that the Awards for 2015 performances and shows are official, we wanted to tell you a bit about this year's "Editor's Choice Award" winners and offer them a chance to thank the New York cabaret community. Congratulations to all these worthy Award recipients.

Breaking News! The fourth annual BroadwayWorld New York Cabaret Awards results are official and for 2015 some bold-faced Broadway names, long-time cabaret stars, and some exciting newcomers were the people's choices this year. More than 32,000 votes were cast for performers and shows in 14 categories. 

With just two weeks remaining in the voting for the 2015 BroadwayWorld New York Cabaret Awards, three performers are leading in two different categories, while two Broadway stars--Alan Cumming and Betty Buckley-- are winning the vote in their respective "celebrity categories.' Voting for the awards ends on New Year's Eve, December 31.

THE HOPE OF CHRISTMAS is a new collection of Christmas songs interpreted by multiplatinum-selling singer, Tony nominated actress, pianist and leading champion of the American songbook, Ann Hampton Callaway, with lyrics by two-time Emmy® Award winner William Schermerhorn, and featuring twenty-nine of the world's best jazz musicians, including Five Play, New York Voices, Hubert Laws, Claudio Roditi, Gerald Albright, The Ted Rosenthal Trio and more. The recording will be released on Friday, October 9 by the MCG Jazz record label (Marty Ashby, producer).

Tonight, December 1st at 7 pm at at Barnes & Noble located at 150 East 86th Street, Ann Hampton Callaway will perform selections from THE HOPE OF CHRISTMAS, a new collection of Christmas songs interpreted by the multiplatinum-selling singer, Tony nominated actress, pianist and leading champion of the American songbook, with lyrics by two-time Emmy Award winner William Schermerhorn. Schermerhorn will join Callaway in the discussion, with Alex Rybeck on piano.