Peggy Lee News

When the orchestra began to play the opening number - Leigh Harline and Ned Washington's Disney signature song, 'When You Wish Upon A Star' - the music began to swell and swirl around the space of the Actors' Church in a way that clearly promised that this was going to be an evening of musical magic. And the entire concert that followed never failed to live up to that promise.

The Ziegfeld Society will present Tony Award winning Broadway Conductor Donald Pippin in A MAESTRO'S MEMOIRS today, May 17th, a multi-media presentation of his life in the theatre.

The Ziegfeld Society will present Tony Award winning Broadway Conductor Donald Pippin in A MAESTRO'S MEMOIRS tonight, May 17th, a multi-media presentation of his life in the theatre.

Harold Arlen wrote over 400 songs from 1926 - 1974. His music was made famous by Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, and the iconic Judy Garland. Vocal powerhouse Johanna Allen showcases a catalogue of his most well known music: The Man that got Away, Blues in the Night, Get Happy, One for my baby, The Old Black Magic, Down With Love, Paper Moon, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, and entwines stories from the women who loved him and the words of his other great musical work 'The Wizard of Oz'.

In June and July, a colourful line-up of international and local jazz, cabaret and Broadway stars perform musical standards, sparkling cabaret numbers, soulful jazz songs and touching torch songs from the Golden Age of American song as part of Melbourne Recital Centre's 2014 American Songbook Festival.

It's been rumored, talked about, discussed and we've been reporting on it for what feels like forever -- and now, it's official! Roundabout Theatre Company has announced that it will present Tony & Emmy Award winner Kristin Chenoweth as 'Lily Garland' and Golden Globe & SAG Award winner & Tony nominee Peter Gallagher as 'Oscar Jaffe' in a new Broadway production of the classic musical ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, directed by Scott Ellis and choreographed by Warren Carlyle. ON THE TWENTIETH CENTURY features music by Cy Coleman and book & lyrics by Betty Comden & Adolph Green.

The Ziegfeld Society will present Tony Award winning Broadway Conductor Donald Pippin in A MAESTRO'S MEMOIRS on Saturday, May 17th, a multi-media presentation of his life in the theatre.

Michael Feinstein and the Pasadena POPS kick off their one of a kind, simply cannot miss popular outdoor summer concert series at the Los Angeles County Arboretum on Saturday, June 7th with 'Feinstein's Favorites.' A POPS trademark, Feinstein brings a wealth of rare musical gems and premieres from his personal treasure hunts from archives found in basements in Brooklyn, garages in Hollywood and the personal family collections of Peggy Lee, Leo Arnaud, Henry Mancini, Nelson Riddle and more. Audiences of all ages will indulge in a priceless opportunity to hear these definitive performances of great songs in classic arrangements that carry a freshness and excitement in a one of a kind setting.

I was just a little more than a year into my new side career as a cabaret show reviewer when I first saw a Karen Oberlin show. It was Valentine's Day night 2012 and Oberlin—with guitarist Sean Harkness and guest violinist Aaron Weinstein—would be performing her romance-laced set, Stringing Along With Love, at the Metropolitan Room. At the time, all I knew about Oberlin was that she was considered among New York's best female cabaret singers, and I hadn't researched her performing history pre-show. About a third of the way into her set I leaned over to my wife (it was Valentine's Day after all) and whispered, “You know, she has a real Doris Day quality in her voice and in the way she delivers some lyrics.” This immediately ratcheted up my appreciation for Oberlin since there are four passions I inherited from my Dad—baseball, reading the morning papers, sports writing and Doris Day (well, also Sophia Loren, but that's for another column). Since Dad had grown up during the prime of the Big Band Era of the 1940s, I heard the sultry sounds of a young Doris Day singing songs like “Sentimental Journey” on the family stereo more than a few times. Once I saw Day's strikingly adorable blondness on a record cover and her rocking body in one of her films, I knew what Dad was talking about. As popular, famous, and near iconic as Doris Day became, in my book, as a singer and screen beauty she's always been vastly underrated. Little did I know that Karen Oberlin had been doing a Doris Day tribute show so since 2001 at places like Firebird, Iridium, and the late Danny's Skylight Room, and produced a CD, Secret Love: The Music of Doris Day, in 2002. Karen Oberlin had instantly become my secret love.

May and June sees some new artists and some returns at The Crazy Coqs, including: Harold Sanditen (May 2-3); Simon Green with David Shrubsole (May 6-10); Lauren Fox with Jon Weber (May 13 - 17); Gary Williams (May 20 -24); KT Sullivan and Mark Nadler (May 26-28); Opera Tottie (May 29 - 31); Bryan Batt (June 3 - 7); Judy Carmichael with Colin Oxley (June 10 -14); Elaine Delmar (June 17 - 21) and more. Details below!

After her passionate, pulsating and highly praised Spring 2013 show The Sound of Blue, at Iridium Jazz Club, a prominent cabaret critic called Billie Williams, "An emotionally resonant vocalist . . . pithy, powerful, and sure of the terrain. She GIVES a performance." Now a year later--on May 25 at 7:30 pm--Billie Williams makes her debut at New York City's Joe's Pub in a show celebrating the release of her new original single Lonely Night in Harlem, a song inspired by life in her long-time Harlem neighborhood. Billie's concert will also feature other new original songs and she'll be supported by an amazing group of seasoned Blues and R&B professionals, including Stew Cutler: guitar; Double-Z: bass; Tony Allen: drums; Ron Thompson: keyboards; Birch Johnson: trombone; Charlie Lagond: sax; and Marty Bound: trumpet.

“We've Only Just Begun: Carpenters Remembered,” a tribute to popular 70s music group The Carpenters, is returning to the Suncoast Showroom May 31 and June 1.

Smokey Joe's Cafe: The Songs of Leiber and Stoller comes to Arena Stage April 25 to June 8, 2014. Part 1 of our interview with director Randy Johnson and choreographer Parker Esse looks at the legacy of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller's collaboration and impact on the rock and roll era.

In what can only be called a drive-by performance, the indomitable Baby Jane Dexter is bringing 'More Rules of the Road' for two-night special engagement this month. The critically acclaimed traffic-stopper plays two Fridays -- April 18 and 25 -- both at 7pm. Her back-seat driver is Ian Herman, her music director at the piano.

Penguin Rep Theatre, under the direction of Artistic Director Joe Brancato and Executive Director Andrew M. Horn, announces the slate of plays and special events for its 37th season.

San Francisco-based jazz and cabaret vocalist Veronica Klaus will bring her new show, Lee a la V - A Peggy Lee Songbook, to Feinstein's at the Nikko for one performance only - Sunday, May 18 at 7 p.m. Featuring a collection of personal favorites written, co-written or recorded by the one-and-only Peggy Lee, Veronica will be joined by her pianist and musical director Tammy L. Hall along with her quartet. This performance serves as the official CD release for her new album of the same name.

In the late '70s, Vivian Reed captured a Tony Award nomination and won a Drama Desk Award for her work in the Broadway musical Bubbling Brown Sugar, and although Reed has delivered some critically-acclaimed work in the many years since (a Tony nomination for the 1992 musical The High Rollers Social and Pleasure Club and a star turn in the revue Three Mo' Divas), during the last decade she had gone and stayed away too long, mainly to take care of her ailing mother. Last November, she dipped a toe in the New York nightclub waters, producing a one-night show at 54 Below that was highly praised and offered hints of great things to come. But this past Monday night—the first of what will ultimately be a four-show run of “An Evening With Vivian Reed” (the next three dates are April 14, May 20 and June 19)—this performing powerhouse established her return in earnest. With Reed's still expressive voice tackling musical genres ranging from R & B to Jazz to Great American Songbook standards to Gospel (even a dash of Opera), her electric and passionate show was cabaret/nightclub performing as revival meeting in more ways than one. Reed is not only reviving her singing career, she is inspiring impassioned converts at the same time.

Hotel Nikko San Francisco and Michael Feinstein are thrilled to announce the one-year anniversary of Feinstein's at the Nikko with a lineup of stars from stage and screen, along with local luminaries, during the month of May. Since opening its doors in May 2013, Feinstein's at the Nikko has quickly been embraced by locals and tourists alike and was recently named one of the 'Top 10 Best Music Venues in San Francisco' (SFist). Located within Hotel Nikko (222 Mason Street, San Francisco), Feinstein's at the Nikko has played host to a wide variety of entertainers, including Sutton Foster, Tommy Tune, Paula West, Linda Eder, Steve Tyrell, Mitzi Gaynor, and Cheyenne Jackson to name a few! Tickets for all upcoming performers are available by calling 866.663.1063 or visiting www.ticketweb.com.

In what can only be called a drive-by performance, the indomitable Baby Jane Dexter is bringing 'More Rules of the Road' for two-night special engagement this month. The critically acclaimed traffic-stopper plays two Fridays -- April 18 and 25 -- both at 7pm. Her back-seat driver is Ian Herman, her music director at the piano.

Bay Area Cabaret concludes its Tenth Anniversary Season by presenting the award winning Karen Mason in her new show, 'SECRET OF THE ANCIENT DIVAS.' A performer who has mastered both playing starring roles on the Broadway stage as well as projecting her own presence in intimate cabaret settings, Ms. Mason now comes to San Francisco for a performance in homage to her personal idols, including iconic singers Judy Garland, Barbara Streisand, and Peggy Lee. Ms. Mason will perform at the historic Venetian Room of The Fairmont San Francisco, 5pm, Sunday, May 18, 2014.