Grammy-nominated Singer SANDY STEWART
Pianist-Singer KATHLEEN LANDIS and Veteran Jazz Vocalist JANE SCHECKTER
Are Among the Honorees at the 40th Annual Bistro Awards Gala
(New York, February 26, 2025) —Celebrated cabaret-jazz singer Sandy Stewart, accomplished pianist and singer Kathleen Landis, and acclaimed jazz vocalist Jane Scheckter are among the 10 honorees for cabaret artistry at the extra-special 40th annual Bistro Awards gala on Monday, April 14 at Gotham Comedy Club in New York.
Actor and musical comedy improv wiz, Jason Kravits will be the evening’s guest host. Seen on screens and stages for over 35 years (most recent—Disney’s Snow White, Only Murders in the Building, Halston), he has been touring the country and abroad for the past 10 years with his Bistro Award-winning musically improvised cabaret, Off the Top!
A singer whose career first blossomed in the 1950s and early 1960s, Sandy Stewart will be presented with the Bistro Award’s top honor, the ASCAP-Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award, for her extraordinary and diverse career singing pop, early rock-and-roll, and American Songbook and jazz standards. Grammy-nominated for her 1962 recording of John Kander and Fred Ebb’s “My Coloring Book,” she appeared on early TV variety shows hosted by Ernie Kovacs, Ed Sullivan, and Perry Como. In later years, she became known as a sensitive and wise cabaret-jazz performer, often appearing and recording with her son, jazz-piano virtuoso Bill Charlap, who will accompany her at the Bistros celebration.
Kathleen Landis is being presented a special award for Consummate Piano-Vocal Artistry. Known for her long career as a restaurant and club entertainer, most notably her long stint at the Café Pierre at the Pierre Hotel, her unique style and talent are the epitome of sophistication, intelligence, and musical artistry.
Also honored with a special Bistro Award is Jane Scheckter, who will be honored for her Sustained Cabaret Artistry, both as a club performer and a recording artist. Her sophisticated vocal phrasing and straightforward jazz-singing style have consistently kept lyrics front and center throughout her years in the spotlight.
In 2024, Craig Rubano returned to New York cabaret after a hiatus of several years. He will receive an award for his outstanding Autobiographical Show, Take the Moment, a skillfully assembled piece of musical theatre about his life’s journey. It included carefully chosen songs that fit his story, along with some rafters-shaking singing.
Carolyn Montgomery will accept an award for outstanding Tribute Show for girlSinger: A Celebration of Rosemary Clooney. A textbook example of the way to do a tribute show in cabaret, it provided a glimpse into the life of an iconic American singer, with minimum patter and maximum charm.
Another outstanding Tribute Show, Family Matters: A Celebration of All Things Rodgers, Rodgers, & Guettel, will bring an award to the mother/son team of Deborah Zecher and Joshua Zecher-Ross. Highlighting an American music dynasty that includes three generations of musical-theatre composers—Richard Rodgers, Mary Rodgers, and Adam Guettel—it was an entertaining, informative, funny, emotional, and beautifully constructed show.
Singer Ann Kittredge will take home a trophy for outstanding Recording for her richly rendered album Romantic Notions. It’s a scintillating set of intriguing re-imaginings of hit tunes, named one of the top-10 vocal albums of 2024 by the Broadway Radio Show.
Also being honored with an outstanding Recording award are the team of singer Catherine Russell and jazz pianist Sean Mason. Their Grammy-nominated album, My Ideal, is an eclectic mix of attractive songs, pared down to just voice and piano, allowing the listener to experience the pair’s artistry in a fresh new way.
***
Writer and critic Gerry Geddes, a 10-year contributing member of the Bistro Awards Committee, is set to helm the show for the fourth time.
The evening’s musicians include the award show’s resident maestro, Musical Director Daryl Kojak (piano), along with veteran Bistro Awards musicians Ritt Henn (bass) and Rex Benincasa (drums).
Sherry Eaker, formerly the longtime Editor-in Chief of Back Stage, has produced the event since its inception in 1985. Eaker heads up the BistroAwards.com roster of writers and critics. Mark Dundas Wood, who has been part of the Bistro Awards committee since 2012 and who writes regularly for BistroAwards.com, serves as an associate producer of the show for the fourth time. Award-winning singer, dancer, choreogapher, and coach, Mary Lahti is back for her second year as assistant producer.
*****
The gala event will be held on Monday, April 14 at 7:00 pm at Gotham Comedy Club, 208 W. 23rd Street, in Manhattan. Tickets range from $75.00 to $275.00. Ticket buyers in all categories are invited to the Bistro After Party as guests of the Bistro Awards. For details about the various ticket categories and early-purchase prices, visit www.BistroAwards.com.
Following is a complete list of artists who, we believe, attained Outstanding Achievement in 2024 and/or for their body of work:
Sandy Stewart/ ASCAP-Bob Harrington Lifetime Achievement Award
Kathleen Landis / Consummate Piano-Vocal Artistry
Jane Scheckter / Sustained Cabaret Artistry
Craig Rubano / Autobiographical Show (Take the Moment)
Carolyn Montgomery / Tribute Show (girlSinger—A Celebration of Rosemary Clooney)
Deborah Zecher and Joshua Zecher-Ross / Tribute Show (Family Matters: A Celebration of All Things Rodgers, Rodgers & Guettel)
Ann Kittredge / Recording (Romantic Notions)
Catherine Russell and Sean Mason / Recording (My Ideal)
###
The Bistro Awards: recognizing, encouraging, nurturing, and educating cabaret, jazz, and comedy artists for 40 years through our insightful reviews and our annual awards — the oldest award of its kind in the industry. It was established by Bob Harrington in 1985 in his “Bistro Bits” column in the trade weekly Back Stage, then under the editorship of Sherry Eaker. For the first few years, the awards were merely listed in Harrington’s column as notable performances he had seen during the calendar year. The first formal presentation of the awards was held in 1990 at Eighty Eight’s, a popular cabaret venue in the West Village. From there, the show moved on to The Ballroom in Chelsea and then relocated to the Supper Club in the Broadway District, where it remained for many years. This year, 2025, will mark the 19th year at Gotham Comedy Club.
The guidelines that Harrington set up for himself to determine the first winners have become the basic philosophy behind the Bistro Awards, which recognize achievement in a wide variety of categories — from outstanding performances to outstanding contributions by members of the cabaret community. The object is not to choose the “best” of anything of the year, but to recognize and congratulate the accomplishments of those who have done something special. Accordingly, categories can easily be created from year to year as they best fit the year’s distinguished work.
Some of the Bistro’s special honorees have included Robert Klein and Julie Gold (2024), Ronny Whyte (2023), Jimmy Webb (2022), Petula Clark (2021); Richard Maltby, Jr. and David Shire (2020); Judy Collins (2019); André De Shields (2018); Darlene Love (2017); Jon Hendricks, Annie Ross, Janis Siegel, and Christine Andreas (2016); Carol Fredette and Lillias White (2015); Ben Vereen (2014); Lainie Kazan, Maurice Hines, and Clint Holmes (2013); Kaye Ballard, Melissa Manchester, and Dee Dee Bridgewater (2012); Dionne Warwick and Carol Channing (2011); Mitzi Gaynor and Elaine Stritch (2010); Charles Aznavour and Liza Minnelli (2009); Marilyn Maye (2008); Betty Buckley (2007); Steve Ross (2006); as well as Cleo Laine and John Dankworth, Bobby Short, Eartha Kitt, Barbara Cook, and many others.