Bobby Short News

John Pizzarelli returns to Cafe Carlyle with an all-new show celebrating 100 years of Nat King Cole, April 30 - May 11. The New York Times has described John Pizzarelli and his wife Jessica Molaskey as "the supreme nightclub act of our time." Jazz Weekly recently raved about his recently Johnny Mercer program: "A gig like this oozes with style, class and fun, with Pizzarelli being one of the best ambassadors for the Great American Songbook. One of his best." The John Pizzarelli Trio will release For Centennial Reasons: 100 Year Salute to Nat King Cole shortly.

The great Groundhog Jam has a long history of prying jazz fans out of their warm burrows and into the chill of February weather in order to welcome the advent of spring.  The Bickford Theatre at the Morris Museum continues a tradition of hosting this event on Monday, February 4, 2019 at 7:30 PM. Herb Gardner, who plays both trombone and piano, is assembling a stellar group of musicians from the New York, New Jersey, and New England areas including: Fred Vigorito on cornet, Joe Licari on clarinet, James Chirilloon guitar, Mike Weatherly on bass and Robbie Scott on drums.  Daughters Abbie and Sarah Gardner will be handling the vocals and guitar.

Two-time Tony-winning actress, singer and dancer Sutton Foster returns to Cafe Carlyle, June 11-22. At Cafe Carlyle, she'll perform Broadway favorites and original recordings, focusing on selections from her new album, Take Me to the World, and stories of how being a mother of a two-year-old has informed her work and changed her life.

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Hamilton Leithauser returns to Cafe Carlyle for his second annual residency, January 16-18. The native New Yorker's recently released single "Heartstruck (Wild Hunger) feat. Angel Olsen" was declared "a gorgeously surreal version of early-1960s baroque-pop" by Pitchfork. The release marked the first music from Leithauser since his 2016 collaboration with Rostam. The album, I Had A Dream That You Were Mine, debuted at #1 on Billboard's Heatseekers Chart, #1 New Artist Album, and was named one of the Year's Best by Pitchfork, Esquire, NPR, and more. A.V. Club recently raved: "It occurred to me after 2016's I Had A Dream That You Were Mine that the best years of Hamilton Leithauser's career may still be ahead of him." 

Singer Steve Ross has been knocking 'em dead on the cabaret circuit in New York and other theatre cities for many years. He has released several solo albums. His latest is It's Almost Christmas Eve but features an ensemble of singers. Ross took time from his busy touring schedule to talk to me from Boston about the album and his love of old music.

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Hamilton Leithauser returns to Cafe Carlyle for his second annual residency, January 16-18. The native New Yorker's recently released single "Heartstruck (Wild Hunger) feat. Angel Olsen" was declared "a gorgeously surreal version of early-1960s baroque-pop" by Pitchfork. The release marked the first music from Leithauser since his 2016 collaboration with Rostam. The album, I Had A Dream That You Were Mine, debuted at #1 on Billboard's Heatseekers Chart, #1 New Artist Album, and was named one of the Year's Best by Pitchfork, Esquire, NPR, and more. A.V. Club recently raved: "It occurred to me after 2016's I Had A Dream That You Were Mine that the best years of Hamilton Leithauser's career may still be ahead of him." 

Singer Steve Ross has been knocking 'em dead on the cabaret circuit in New York and other theatre cities for many years. He has released several solo albums. His latest is It's Almost Christmas Eve but features an ensemble of singers. Ross took time from his busy touring schedule to talk to me from Boston about the album and his love of old music.

Grammy Award-winner and two-time Emmy nominee Steve Tyrell returns to Cafe Carlyle, April 16-27. Steve Tyrell is currently celebrating his 14th anniversary performing in Cafe Carlyle's revered holiday slot, having taken over for Bobby Short in 2005 after the legend's passing. The New York Times has declared, "Mr. Tyrell is a terrific storyteller… his sizable voice filters Louis Armstrong through Ray Charles and Dr. John." Ten of his eleven albums have achieved Top 5 status on Billboard's Traditional Pop Charts, with his most recent, A Song For You, reaching #1 earlier this year. In October, Steve Tyrell released a 21-song extended edition of his 2008 chart-topper Back to Bacharach. The album, an homage to Tyrell's friend and mentor, Burt Bacharach, features seven additional Bacharach classics.

Acclaimed actress and singer Dianna Agron returns to Cafe Carlyle, January 22-February 2. From Marianne Faithfull and Nancy Sinatra to Nico and Peggy Lee, Dianna will be paying tribute to some of finest female-fronted acts of the '60s and '70s. By way of the hit TV show Glee, selling more than twelve million albums worldwide and tackling two major tours, she is no stranger to the stage. A resident of New York, she is thrilled to bring her voice back to Cafe Carlyle, something she feels cements her place in the city. She will be joined by talented friends and musicians, Gill Landry, Margot, and a few surprise guests.

Grammy Award-winner and two-time Emmy nominee Steve Tyrell celebrates his 14th anniversary performing in the Cafe Carlyle's revered holiday slot with an all-new show, Holidays at the Carlyle, November 27-December 31. Holidays at the Carlyle will feature selections from Steve Tyrell's newly expanded Back to Bacharach album, his 2018 #1 album, A Song For You, as well as various favorites from the Great American Songbook including songs he has performed in major motion pictures, and of course, holiday classics.

One of contemporary music's most seminal singer/songwriters, Suzanne Vega, returns to Cafe Carlyle with Suzanne Vega Sings Her New York Songs at the Carlyle, March 5 - 16. Widely regarded as one of the most brilliant songwriters of her generation, Suzanne Vega emerged as a leading figure of the folk-music revival of the early 1980s when, accompanying herself on acoustic guitar, she sang what has been labeled contemporary folk or neo-folk songs of her own creation in Greenwich Village clubs.

The Eighth Annual Bickford Benefit Concert featuring an all-star ensemble of outstanding jazz artists from the Tri-State area comes to the Bickford Theatre at the Morris Museum for one night only on Monday, November 12, 2018 at 7:30 PM. The ensemble includes trumpeter/vocalist Bria Skonberg, cornetist Warren Vache, trombonist Mariel Bildsten, clarinetist Dan Levinson, pianist Rossano Sportiello, guitarist/vocalist Molly Ryan, bassist Rob Adkins, and drummer Mark McLean.  All of the ticket sales from this concert will go to support programming at the Bickford Theatre.

It's an evening of cabaret at The Never Get! The York Theatre Company will present An Intimate Night at The York, celebrating the lush history of New York City cabaret with a special 'intimate' evening with commentary by special guest James Gavin (Intimate Nights: The Golden Age of New York Cabaret), interspersed with performances by award-winning cabaret artists including Natalie Douglas, Shana Farr, Marissa Mulder, T. Oliver Reid, Steve Ross, KT Sullivan, Bill Zeffiro, and more! 

Singer-songwriter, actress and producer Rita Wilson makes her return to Cafe Carlyle, October 16-20 with Rita Wilson: Liner Notes. Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote of her debut residency: '[If you] closed your eyes at certain moments you could imagine you were cruising down a Southern California highway in the early 1970s. Sandwiched between the music of Joni Mitchell and Jackson Browne on the car radio was a promising new voice whose sound fit right in with theirs.' Rita Wilson's forthcoming residency will go 'behind the music' to discover stories leading to songs that have become the soundtrack to so many lives. The performances will include friends who just happen to have written some of the most memorable songs of this century and last - for fascinating revelations about how their creations came to be.

Isaac Mizrahi returns to Cafe Carlyle with an all-new show, Isaac Mizrahi: Queen Size, February 5 - 16. His previous two residencies in the room were sellouts, receiving widespread critical acclaim. Mizrahi will perform classics by Leonard Bernstein, Cat Stevens, Jimmy Webb, John Kander, Cole Porter, James Taylor and Jerome Kern. Once again, he'll be joined by his band of (handsome, thin, single) (maybe not single) jazz musicians, led by Ben Waltzer. With all-new stories and observations, Mizrahi will also have a fresh stock of swag items to re-gift to audience members. No topics will be off-limits: politics, sex, prescription drugs, millennials. In a review of his Cafe debut, The New York Times noted "he is determined to challenge the cultural status quo and help blaze a path into a more liberated future… his Cafe Carlyle engagement is a big deal." Vogue called his previous Cafe residency, "the hottest ticket at New York Fashion Week."

The Mabel Mercer Foundation put itself in a tricky spot to start this year's New York Cabaret Convention: how do you define what cabaret today looks like?

Amas Musical Theatre (Donna Trinkoff, Artistic Producer) in celebration of its 50thseason, will present The Algonquin Kid, a musical revue about growing up in the Algonquin Hotel, written by Michael Colby.

Nathan Lee Graham returns to the cabaret setting with his newest show ALL THINGS BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL at The Green Room 42. This world premiere concert will feature many of the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer's most beloved compositions, including 'Loving You,' 'Bounce,' and 'Being Alive.' We sat down and chatted with Graham to get the inside scoop on the show.

Birdland will kick-off their great week of programming with week one of the "Second Annual Celebration of Ron Carter" with Ron Carter's Great Big Band, Billy Stritch 'Autumn in the City,' Pasquale Grasso Trio, and more!

Town Hall announces that this year's FRIEND OF THE ARTS AWARD - it's 97th annual - will honor Multimedia Performance Artist, LAURIE ANDERSON; TheaterWorksUSA Co-Founder, CHARLES HULL; and Nonesuch Records' Long-Time President, ROBERT HURWITZ.