Gerry Geddes

Gerry Geddes, critic for BistroAwards.com, is an award-winning director, writer, teacher, performer, lyricist, and a contributor to the podcast Troubadours and Raconteurs. He conceived and directed the acclaimed musical revues Monday in the Dark with George (Bistro and MAC Award winner), Put on Your Saturday Suit—Words & Music by Jimmy Webb, and Gerry Geddes & Company (in its five-year residency at Pangea). He has directed singers André De Shields, Darius de Haas, Helen Baldassare, and Lisa Viggiano. He has been active in the cabaret world for over five decades and has produced numerous CDs; his lyrics have been performed and recorded here and in Europe. Gerry’s workshop, The Art of Vocal Performance, is regularly offered to singers of all levels. His memoir of life in NYC, Didn’t I Ever Tell You This?, was recently published and is available at barnesandnoble.com. He is currently at work on his first novel.

Klea Blackhurst

Gerry Geddes
In One of the Girls – The Words and Music of Jerry Herman at Birdland, singer Klea Blackhurst leaves no doubt about her affection for the famed Broadway composer and his songs. Using a program of mostly familiar material, she takes us on a dual journey through Herman's career and through her connections to it. Her...

Hannah Reimann

Gerry Geddes
At Pangea recently, singer-instrumentalist Hannah Reimann reveled in her love of all things Joni in her show, Both Sides Now – The Music of Joni Mitchell 1966-1974. As the title indicates, she focused on the songwriter's first six albums; this was a wise choice since those recordings contain most of her "hits" and her most accessible,...

Joanna Gleason

Gerry Geddes
Whenever students or singers that I'm directing adopt a personal-confession format for their performance, I am quick to point out that while there should be truth on stage, there don't necessarily have to be facts. The best singers allow the audience to experience their own moments of joy, grief, or passion through the storytelling of...

Carol McCann

Gerry Geddes
Singer Carol McCann described the theme of her new show, Music Lessons (recently seen at Pangea in an encore performance), as a collection of songs from which she has learned something. It's a simple concept, made all the more simple because she never really delved into the interesting possibilities that the title evoked. It became,...

Steve Dorff

Gerry Geddes
There is a particular pleasure to be had in listening to good pop songs sung by their creators. Whether it's Jimmy Webb or Sheldon Harnick or Paul Williams or Harold Arlen, there's a palpable connection to the material, obviously, but there's also a more gentle, conversational delivery of both lyric and melody that sets each...

Ravenswood Manor

Gerry Geddes
Return with us now to the thrilling days of yesteryear—the days of Charles Ludlum and the Ridiculous Theatrical Company, the days of Charles Busch and Psycho Beach Party. With Ravenswood Manor, directed by Ellie Heyman and recently seen at Joe's Pub over two evenings, with three "episodes" each evening, writer/star Justin Sayre makes his bid...

Mama’s Boys

Gerry Geddes
Anyone fortunate enough to have seen Tommy J. Dose, Brian Kalinowski, Paul Pilcz, or Jon Satrom perform in the piano bar at Don't Tell Mama, or at Brandy's or some other open mic room, knew before Mama's Boys started that there would be lots of good singing—and there was. What there wasn't, was lots of cabaret....

Reeve Carney

Gerry Geddes
Reeve Carney has enjoyed a number of successes both on television (in the series Penny Dreadful and in Fox's remake of The Rocky Horror Picture Show) and on Broadway (with Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark and, currently, Hadestown). It is clear from his new show at The Green Room 42 that the first among his...

Eva Noblezada

Gerry Geddes
In her new show, Ballad of a Broadway Twenty-Something, Eva Noblezada gives us a glimpse into the wild ride she's been on since being cast (in her teens and still in high school) in Cameron Mackintosh's epic remounting of Miss Saigon in London. She went on to receive a Tony nomination for the role on...

Love Letters – Music of Thomas Hodges

Gerry Geddes
Back in the heyday of New York City cabaret (or at least back in one of the heydays of New York City cabaret) I can remember wandering into a club and hearing Marc Shaiman accompany André De Shields or Ellen Greene or Annie Golden. I would go to see a hot new singer like Annie Hughes...