Repertoire for the Once and Future American Songbook Article #19 in this ongoing series. Usually, for these Cabaret Setlist articles, I’ll look at a song and trace its creation, along with its performance and recording history, then add the insight of contemporary singers who have performed the number recently. For this installment—and the next one—I’m […]
Review: Wendy-Lane Bailey’s “Five Minutes: Snapshots in Time”
Wendy-Lane Bailey, the beautiful and enigmatic singer/producer, took centerstage as a performer at United Solo Festival this year with her work, Five Minutes: Snapshots in Time. The show was directed by Omar Sangare who is the founder and artistic director of the festival. Described as a “musical examination of the turning points that transform your life […]
CD Review: Karen Mason’s “Let the Music Play”
I first reviewed Karen Mason back in the “golden days” of NYC cabaret, at the Duplex, just after she moved from Chicago to NYC and then, a bit later, at the opening night of the cabaret room at Don’t Tell Mama. She was an electrifying vocalist, a spellbinding and open-hearted storyteller, and a star. She […]
We began this article with the hypothesis that cabaret artists must have learned at least something from their virtual presentations that they were then able to bring bring back to their new and live performances. So, we reached out to six cabaret performers—Eric Comstock, Carole Demas, Barbara Fasano, Ann Kittredge, Michael McAssey, and Billy Stritch—to find out […]
Multi-Bistro Award-winning cabaret artist, Ricky Ritzel, shares with a friend his best memories of the Bistro Awards evenings.
How About an Apéritif Before the Show?
Whet your appetite for April 30th’s Bistro event with a taste from our 30th anniversary awards show. A buffet of performers at their best including Dee Dee Bridgewater, Carol Fredette, Jason Graae, Karen Mason, Marilyn Maye, and others. (Jason Graae’s opening number written by Rick Jensen and Sally Mayes; video created by Evan Seplow/StageBuddy Pro. […]
Darlene Love: From “Rebel” to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
Pop icon and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Darlene Love was honored at the 32nd Annual Bistro Awards on Monday, March 13, 2017, receiving the ASCAP-Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award for her five decades of musical accomplishments. Rolling Stone has called Love “one of the greatest singers of all time,” and The New […]
André De Shields: A Video Glimpse of an Artiste Extraordinaire
The Bistro Award team created a video montage for the multi-award-winning artiste extraordinaire, André De Shields, when he was honored with its 2018 Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award. However, as things can happen during a live performance, we never got the chance to show it! So, here it is now, a two-and-a-half minute glimpse of […]
How Important Is It to Have a Director? Here Are What a Few Directors and Artists Have to Say
Article #12 in The New Cabaret Artist’s Handbook. Part Two of Shellen’s Lubin’s discussion on the importance of directors in cabaret. I hope you’ve figured out from the “shopping list” of directorial tools and qualities that I noted in Part One of this article that each director brings their own skill set and perspectives to the […]
Just How Valuable Is a Director to Your Cabaret Act?
The New Cabaret Artist’s Handbook Article #11 in this continuing series. Most likely there have been times when you’ve asked yourself this question: “Do I really need a director for my cabaret show? After all, I have a theme and ideas, plus I’m working with my longtime musical director who is smart and savvy and […]
The Musical Marriage Continues: Your Musical Director and You (Part Two)
Article #10 in this running series. For this half of our focus on musical directors (just in case you missed Part One: read it here), I posed some challenging questions to a number of them along with a few singers. We’ll begin with Daryl Kojak, who has been the musical director for most of the Bistro Awards […]
The Musical Marriage: Your Musical Director and You (Part One)
Article #9 in this running series. Your musical director is probably your first and most primary connection as a cabaret artist. In fact, if you don’t have a director and/or writers with whom you’re working (both of which we will be addressing in future pieces), they may very well be your only collaborator in the […]
