Spencer Day

Gerry Geddes
Singer-songwriter Spencer Day has begun a once-a-month residency at The Green Room 42 in celebration of his new CD, Angel City, which, as you might guess, is a tribute to and contemplation of Los Angeles. Given that premise, it is fitting that the overall feel of the show is very '60s/'70s West Coast jazz. The...

The Circus Is Cancelled

Gerry Geddes
One of the rare joys of cabaret reviewing (and cabaret going, for that matter) is coming upon a show that is unlike anything else that’s out there—a new and unexpected experience. The Circus Is Cancelled, which played recently at the Duplex, is one such show. It featured a clown, a mime, a magician, a pianist,...

Natalie Douglas

Robert Windeler
Ella Fitzgerald was arguably the premier female jazz and pop singer of the mid-20th century, certainly when it came to recordings and perhaps in live performance as well. Natalie Douglas clearly thinks so, and she made a very strong case for that premise in her recent remarkable Fitzgerald tribute show at Birdland. At the top...

Whitney Chapman

Mark Dundas Wood
There's a straightforward, almost conversational quality to Whitney Chapman's vocals that works well for some of the mid-tempo and up-tempo songs in her Burt Bacharach/Hal David show (directed by Barry Kleinbort) at Don't Tell Mama—especially on songs with lyrics about everyday concerns, such as waking up and applying makeup or putting a hundred down to...

Sierra Rein

Robert Windeler
The title of Sierra Rein's show at the Laurie Beechman Theatre is a deliberately ironic misnomer: Running in Place (directed by James Beaman) actually celebrates—in fine style—her arrival at a long-delayed finish line. Striding onto the stage in a tight-fitting black cocktail dress and high heels, Rein makes it clear she's totally in command of...

Brad Simmons and Lennie Watts

Mark Dundas Wood
I'm not certain I fully understand the point of the musical genre "Blue-Eyed Soul," which is essentially a nickname for soul music (and/or Rhythm & Blues) sung by white people. The term was reportedly coined by an African-American deejay at a radio station in Philadelphia who wanted to subtly inform his listeners that certain of the...

Michael Kirk Lane

Gerry Geddes
Singer Michael Kirk Lane decided to celebrate his birthday by presenting a new show at Don't Tell Mama called Glass Half Full. The optimism and positive energy implied by that title came to quite entertaining life on stage throughout the evening, even when he was addressing some rather dire and depressing aspects of our current...

Liz Robertson

Robert Windeler
There is a great deal to be said for inside information when it comes to creating and presenting a musical cabaret tribute show. Almost any singer could compile such an offering based on public domain material—or solely on Wikipedia snippets—combined with the honoree's greatest hits. But an artist's knowing or having known one's subject well...

Lisa Viggiano

Gerry Geddes
Singer Lisa Viggiano lives in New Jersey, so it is de rigueur that she be a Bruce Springsteen fan. But she feels a closer kinship to "the boss" than many others do, a kinship she celebrates in her new show, Lisa Viggiano Sings Bruce. She enlists the aid of Matt Scharfglass on guitar; he is usually...

Stearns Matthews

Penelope Thomas
In his recent show at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, Golden Ticket: The Songs of Leslie Bricusse, Stearns Matthews demonstrated that he is working with an embarrassment of riches. Even more than possessing a sweet lyric baritone that testifies to a solid classical training, he radiated intelligence, integrity, and a love of music that he shared...