Singer/ actor Joshua Dixon, having received the Bistro Award for Debut, the Broadway World Cabaret Award for Best Male Debut, and the Theater Scenes Cabaret Honors List for Outstanding Male Debut, as well as a MAC(Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs) nomination in the same category, returns to the Duplex stage in his acclaimed triumph, FLY UP!, for two special performances on Sunday, March 8th at 7:00 PM and Saturday, March 14th at 9:30 PM. Here is a chance for those who haven't seen this delightful show to find out what they've been missing, and for those who have seen it to come again.
The Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs will present the 29th Annual MAC Awards on Thursday, March 26st, at 7:30pm, at B.B King Blues Club & Grill in New York City.
As the days dwindled down to a precious few in 2014, a few cabaret goers and performers in what is affectionately but also self-mockingly called the “cabaret community” would sidle up and ask if I was planning my annual end-of-the year “Best Of” column, similar to the “Top 20 Bests and Favorites” piece over the first half of the year I posted back in early July. I would respond in the negative with very reasonable and believable excuses, but the truth is I didn't want to reveal my “Bests” of the year until the voting for the 2014 BroadwayWorld New York Cabaret Awards had ended. There's enough baggage and backstage whispering that comes with administering the BWW Awards, so I wasn't about to publish any opinions that might influence the vote while it was in process. I may be crazy but I'm not masochistic. But now all bets are off. You want lists? I'll give you lists.
If you've been a regular reader of this particular reviewer's musings, you know that every year there are long stretches of time where I just haven't been able to critique all the shows I've seen that deserve commentary. So I end up playing what they call in sports, 'Catch-up ball,' and post a mash up of belated reviews from past shows. It's kind of like a critic's version of the song 'Six Months Out of Every Year,' from Damn Yankees. Give or take a month or two, that's usually the time period during which I store unpublished reviews in my fevered brain and then unload them all in one seemingly endless column-like this one is going to be. If my cabaret-show reviewing days will be over (as chronicled here), I might as well go out with a bang-and relieve my procrastination guilt during holiday season. Now I can scratch one New Year's resolution off the list.
The day is finally here! After one month of voting on preliminary nominees in 17 categories, the results of more than 5,000 ballots were considered along with the selections of BroadwayWorld's cabaret section editors to determine the final nominees for the 2014 BroadwayWorld.com New York Cabaret Awards. Joining cabaret icon Marilyn Maye with four nominations is budding star Carole J. Bufford, who made the final ballot for two different shows during 2014 and as 'Best Female Vocalist' and 'Performer of the Year.' Among Maye's nominations were 'Performer of the Year,' two shows in the 'Best Celebrity Show' category, and a 'Best Director' nomination for her work with jazz singer Gabrielle Stravelli (who received two nominations). In addition to her usual nod for 'Best Jazz Vocalist,' jazz star Jane Monheit received two other nominations as 'Performer of the Year,' and as 'Best Host' for her new variety show at Birdland, Jane Monheit's Jazz Party (Monheit also co-starred with Clint Holmes in another nominated show, Frank Wildhorn and Friends in the 'Best Revue' category.) Eric Michael Gillett also earned three nominations for 'Best Show, Male,' 'Best Male Vocalist,' and 'Best Director.'
One single most-telling elements of multi-award-nominated cabaret chanteuse Kim Grogg, and her latest show Go Where the Love Is (which makes further appearances at Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues on Tuesday, November 18th and Friday, December 5th at 7:00 PM, as well as Sunday, December 7th at 5:30 PM), is that she along with band and technical crew manage to create a seamlessly-fine line between casual presentation and sophisticated elegance; this show easily could have taken its place among the acts at the now-legendary downtown clubs Reno Sweeney and The Bottom Line in the 1970s. As if that wasn't enough, Grogg manages to spin a glorious yarn on the hazards of love and dating, and does so with absolutely top-notch song selections.
Singer/ actor Joshua Dixon follows his acclaimed cabaret debut with a return engagement of FLY UP! at The Duplex on Thursday, November 20th at 7:00PM and Thursday, December 18th at 7:00PM. Using an eclectic mix of songs from Broadway, The Great American Songbook and contemporary music, FLY UP! will give us a glimpse into Joshua's life so far - from his Mormon childhood to his college years to becoming a man in music and theater. Stephen Sondheim, Jimmy Webb, Andrew Lippa, Jerry Herman, Scott Evan Davis, Cole Porter, and Bastille, among others, provide a backdrop to his fascinating, funny and freeing tale of growing up and letting go.
It was the 1980's. The time of ray bans, head bands, and the start of cable television, where music videos on MTV would skyrocket to stardom future pop icons Madonna, Michael Jackson, and, of course, The Artist Formerly Known as . . . Prince. Celebrated early on for his sexually charged lyrics and for experimentally combining various genres of music (funk, R&B, new wave to pop and pop rock), Prince was and still is a one-man musical revolution. He has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best selling artists of all time. For a cabaret performer to take on Prince's challenging discography is not only ambitious, it's extremely BOLD. It would require a singer to have amazing vocal flexibility and power, smoldering sensuality, and strong emotional connections to the lyrics. Rain Collazo displayed all those qualities--and more--in her performance this past Saturday night at Don't Tell Mama.
Feinstein's at the Nikko is proud to announce the upcoming lineup for November 2014. Performers include Tony Award winning actress and singer Betty Buckley; Tony Award winner Laura Benanti; jazz legend Freddy Cole; acclaimed performance artist Jeffrey Johnson; star of stage and screen Telly Leung; Award-winning cabaret singer -- and Bay Area native -- Carly Ozard. Additional performers for November 2014 will be announced at a later date.
MAC nominee Jim Speake brings back his acclaimed show celebrating the music of Broadway composer Cy Coleman for two more performances. 'I'm A Brass Band, Jim Speake Sings Cy Coleman at the Duplex' will play tonight 11 October at 4:30pm and Sunday 19 October at 4:30pm. The show is in the Cabaret Room of The Duplex, 61 Christopher Street at 7th Ave. NY, NY 10014.
Feinstein's at the Nikko is proud to announce the upcoming lineup for November 2014. Performers include Tony Award winning actress and singer Betty Buckley; Tony Award winner Laura Benanti; jazz legend Freddy Cole; acclaimed performance artist Jeffrey Johnson; star of stage and screen Telly Leung; Award-winning cabaret singer -- and Bay Area native -- Carly Ozard. Additional performers for November 2014 will be announced at a later date.
MAC (Manhattan Association of Cabarets and Clubs) nominee Jim Speake, the loveable actor-singer who hails from Alabama, has a certain charm that has his audiences wanting to see him more than they already do! And they will very soon, when Jim brings back the acclaimed show "I'm a Brass Band, Jim Speake Sings Cy Coleman at the Duplex" for two more performances.
Bistro and MAC Award winning popular cabaret artist and comedienne Georga Osborne returns to the stage after a 10-year hiatus in a brand new one-woman show, 'back' at Don't Tell Mama, September 19-October 10. Featuring an eclectic mix of music from Aretha to Winwood and Ahrens & Flaherty to Rodgers & Hammerstein, 'back' is about being back on the cabaret stage, looking back, realizing we can't go back, and 'Oh! My back!'
Bistro and MAC Award winning popular cabaret artist and comedienne Georga Osborne returns to the stage after a 10-year hiatus in a brand new one-woman show, 'back' at Don't Tell Mama, September 19-October 10. Featuring an eclectic mix of music from Aretha to Winwood and Ahrens & Flaherty to Rodgers & Hammerstein, 'back' is about being back on the cabaret stage, looking back, realizing we can't go back, and 'Oh! My back!'
The 7th Season of The Parks Concert Series, (formerly The Concerts for City Greens), a free outdoor concert series, continues tonight, August 13th at 6:30 pm (Rain date: Thursday, August 14th at 6:30pm.) at Tudor City Greens, and will feature professional performers from Broadway and the New York City cabaret, jazz, classical and opera scene. All performers donate their time and talent for these concerts. The concert will be hosted by Tudor City resident, Broadway and cabaret veteran Raissa Katona Bennett.
The 7th Season of The Parks Concert Series, (formerly The Concerts for City Greens), a free outdoor concert series, continues on Wednesday, August 13th at 6:30 pm (Rain date: Thursday, August 14th at 6:30pm.) at Tudor City Greens, and will feature professional performers from Broadway and the New York City cabaret, jazz, classical and opera scene. All performers donate their time and talent for these concerts. The concert will be hosted by Tudor City resident, Broadway and cabaret veteran Raissa Katona Bennett.
MAC nominee Jim Speake brings back his acclaimed show celebrating the music of Broadway composer Cy Coleman for two more performances. 'I'm A Brass Band, Jim Speake Sings Cy Coleman at the Duplex' will play Saturday 11 October at 4:30pm and Sunday 19 October at 4:30pm. The show is in the Cabaret Room of The Duplex, 61 Christopher Street at 7th Ave. NY, NY 10014.
Black, Blind and Beautiful, Peggy Easton's robust and gorgeous style will enthrall everyone who hears her. Once again, she is directed by ten-time MAC winner Lennie Watts -- and after two successful outings on June 9th and June 15th, Peggy is back again tonight, July 23rd.
Since I attended more than 50 shows over the past eight months (a few more than once)--the large majority of which were reviewed on these web pages—I felt I had more than enough cabaret show inventory to present my second-annual “Mid-Year Cabaret Review” citing the “20 Best Cabaret Shows and Performances” for the first half of 2014. Since the eligibility period for 2014 BroadwayWorld New York Cabaret Award consideration begins with shows staged since last November (late October if it was the first of a run), I've included a few of those late 2013 shows in this group. And with the announcement of the BWW Award nominees just four months away, I've offered some projections on the Award categories for which these shows very well might receive consideration.
Black, Blind and Beautiful, Peggy Easton's robust and gorgeous style will enthrall everyone who hears her. Once again, she is directed by ten-time MAC winner Lennie Watts -- and after two successful outings on June 9th and June 15th, Peggy is back again on July 23rd.
