Ricky Pope News

Actor, singer, piano man, and now entertainment manager? Michael McAssey has his hands full, and he loves it.

LAGUNA PLAYHOUSE is set to present one of the longest running Off-Broadway productions of all time, I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE!, book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro, music by Jimmy Roberts, musical direction by  Ricky Pope, directed & choreographed by Paula Hammons Sloan.  Comments Executive Producing Director Ellen Richard, “The song ‘Satisfaction Guaranteed’ from this joyous musical is what our subscribers and audiences will undoubtably have as we welcome this extraordinary cast and creative team to the Playhouse stage!”  I LOVE YOU, YOU’RE PERFECT, NOW CHANGE! begins previews on Wednesday, April 20; will open on Sunday, April 24 at 5:30pm and perform through Sunday, May 8, 2022 at the Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Drive in Laguna Beach.

Claire Moore and Veanne Cox joined Betty Buckley on her opening night of BETTY BUCKLEY AND FRIENDS at Joe's Pub.

Relative NYC newcomer Jacob Khalil has been making the rounds but when he sold out Birdland Theater, he may just have found an artistic home.

Rodgers and Hammerstein are the topic and Meg Flather is the professor, and such sweet tutorials were never, before, had.

Heading into a weekend performance of her acclaimed RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN show, Meg Flather shares some thoughts about artistic process and the importance of community in a Broadway World interview.

At every point of her career, Liz Callaway has been closely associated with the work of Stephen Sondheim. Her Broadway debut was in Merrily We Roll Along, which despite its sadly brief run has gone on to be the ultimate cult musical. Along with Merrily co-star, Jim Walton, she sang excerpts of Sondheim’s work when he appeared on Bravo’s Inside the Actors Studio. She has also appeared in a number of Sondheim tributes including You’re Gonna Love Tomorrow and the much-heralded concert of Follies in which she played Young Sally. This month, Liz Callaway pays tribute to the recently departed maestro in a very personal evening entitled TO STEVE, WITH LOVE which will premiere at Feinstein’s 54 Below on March 23. I had the pleasure of talking to Ms. Callaway about the show and her body of work with Stephen Sondheim.

As the pandemic nears its much overdue endemic end, artists are coming out of the woodwork to sum up the past 24 months with their personal stories of survival and thriving. Last September, Tony award winner Cady Huffman and respected jazz bassist Mary Ann McSweeney presented such an evening at Birdland. With only the two of themselves, they put together an eclectic evening of jazz-flavored tunes with Ms. McSweeney on bass and Ms. Huffman on vocals entitled IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR: SONGS INSPIRED BY A PANDEMIC. This coming Tuesday, February 22, Huffman and McSweeney will present a new and improved version of the show at The Green Room 42, with a few surprises for those who caught the show before.

Broadway World Cabaret editor Stephen Mosher made some new discoveries in 2021 and his keeping his eye out for them during this next year.

Steve Bustamante's film of Sue Matsuki's 2021 cabaret outing provided this writer with a great morning of entertainment - one worth writing about.

The return to live entertainment brought a lot of honesty and authenticity, and some singing actors who had a lot to say. This is the list of shows that rose, in some way, to a new level for audience member and cabaret journalist Stephen Mosher.

Mad Cow Theatre has announced a special edition of a beloved holiday cabaret tradition—My Favorite Things: The Holidays Go Broadway!

Feinstein’s/54 Below, Broadway's Supper Club, presents Joe Gulla in the World Premiere Performance of his newest work, Swimming To Mongolia on January 21st at 9:30pm. This marks playwright/actor/reality star Joe Gulla’s Back By Popular Demand return to the club after sold out performances of his popular The Bronx Queen.

There are some people who manage to make everything look so easy, even the difficult things. Lisa Howard is just such a person. She has worked with some of the best and brightest on Broadway. She has won a Drama Desk Award and been nominated for another. Her powerhouse voice feels as effortless as a cool breeze on a summer day. She’s been directed by James Lapine, David Hyde Pierce, Joe Mantello, Bartlett Sher, and Christopher Ashley, and yet it always looks like she glided on from the wings and just made up something brilliant.

It's been two years of ups and downs for the world and for the small venue entertainment scene. Everyone is grateful for the return to some kind of new version of 'Normal' - especially one writer who probably spends more nights in the clubs than, even, the average cabaret performer.

Mykal Kilgore is a force to be reckoned with. In only a few short years he has appeared in a brace of Broadway musicals, including, Hair, Motown: the Musical, The Wiz Live!, Dear Evan Hansen, Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert, Songs for a New World, and Into the Woods. His first album, A Man Born Black was a big hit for Affective Music. His single from the album  “Let Me Go” was nominated for a Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Performance in 2021. He is the first openly gay artist to be nominated in the category.

A little chat and a little music is just the thing for a Wednesday morning, as the cabaret journalists of Manhattan meet the stars who will bring their gifts to the 54 Below stage this holiday season.

That's three performances down for Maria Corsaro, and one to go on December 9th. She and The Gregory Toroian Trio have really jazzed up Pangea.

So what does a cabaret director do? Today in my ongoing series, THERE ARE NO ONE-PERSON SHOWS, we will find out from one of the busiest cabaret directors in New York, Marc Tumminelli. Marc is the founder of Broadway Workshop, which provides year-round, professional-level classes and workshops for kids 8-19 with some of the finest artists working on Broadway and in the West End. He is also the founder of Project Broadway, a non-profit that provides scholarship opportunities to young performers.

Kim David Smith returned to Club Cumming for another go-round with MOSTLY MARLENE and Broadway World Cabaret photojournalist Helane Blumfield just couldn't miss it.