Review: Marilyn Maye demonstrates that it's better with a big band

This article originally appeared at 88.1 KDHX, where Chuck Lavazzi is the senior performing arts critic.

Marilyn Maye
marilynmaye.com

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If you're already a fan of cabaret legend Marilyn Maye, you won't be surprised to learn that she and her long-time pianist/music director Tedd Firth rocked the house last night (March 7, 2019) at Jazz St. Louis, as part of an ongoing series of concerts co-produced with The Cabaret Project. And if you weren't a fan, you likely became one by the time the show was over.

Ms. Maye usually travels with a small combo consisting of Mr. Firth on piano, Rod Fleeman on guitar, Gerald Spaits on bass, and Todd Strait on drums. For this show, "It's Better With a Big Band," the group was supplemented by the winds and brass of the Jazz St. Louis Big Band, and the impact of that extra power made Ms. May's already strong performance that much more impressive. It was also a pleasure to hear some of our local pros strut their stuff.

From the moment she hit the stage with an upbeat "love" medley ("What the World Needs Now is Love," "Let There Be Love," and the Sarah Vaughan hit "It's Love"), Ms. Maye used her commanding performance presence and vocal virtuosity to immediately connect with the audience--a bond she unfailingly maintained right through her encore of Jerry Herman's "It's Today" over ninety minutes later. I think she might have made eye contact with every audience member at some point during the evening.

Her boundless energy, good humor, and obvious delight in her material are, in short, irresistible.

Tedd Firth and Marilyn Maye at Birdland
Photo by Kevin Alvey

These days Ms. Maye's shows appear to concentrate on elaborate and smartly assembled medleys of numbers from Broadway and the Great American Songbook, and this one was no exception. Highlights included a five-song set of numbers with lyrics by Johnny Mercer ("He knew how to put the right word on the right note," Ms. May observed), a set of four tunes from Lerner and Lowe's hit "My Fair Lady," and a collection by one of my all-time favorites, Thomas "Fats" Waller, that included a sly, seductive version of "Honeysuckle Rose."

That's not to say there weren't a few lovely ballads along the way as well. I was especially taken with "Fifty Percent," from the musical "Ballroom," with its beautiful take on love late in life, and with the medley that combined the Frank Sinatra hit "Here's That Rainy Day" (Johnny Carson's favorite song, according to Ms. Maye) with Harold Arlen's classic "Stormy Weather." That one segued into a dynamite rendition of Arlen's "Come Rain or Come Shine" with a killer piano solo from Mr. Firth.

I could go on, but you get the idea. I could go on, but you get the idea. As an added bonus for the local audience, 18-year-old Caden Turner, a graduate of The Cabaret Project's Sing Center Stage program, was welcomed to the stage for a swinging, Sinatra-inspired performance of "Come Fly With Me."

The term "living legend" can be overused, but Ms. Maye (who turns 91 in April) surely deserves the appellation. Following one of her 76 appearances on The Tonight Show (the all-time record for a singer), Johnny Carson turned to the audience and said "that, young singers, is the way it's done." As she proved once again with this latest visit to St. Louis, that's still the way it's done.

Astonishingly, Marilyn May took a 5 am flight the following day to San Francisco for a two-night gig at the Nikko Hotel, after which she's off to The Purple Room in Palm Springs. You can keep up with her busy schedule at her web site.

St. Louis theatre calendar for the week of July 20, 2015

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

For information on events beyond this week, check out the searchable database at the Regional Arts Commission's events web site.

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Anything Goes

Stages St. Louis presents Cole Porter's Anything Goes through August 16. "Set sail on the S. S. American with a zany group of travelers, bound from New York to merry old England, where gangsters, socialites, and arrow-collar lads collide in a true tap-sensation from a by-gone era when travel was still fun and as unpredictable as the weather. There'll be laughs a-plenty set to a raucous and romantic Cole Porter score. Enjoy meltingly romantic melodies as "I Get A Kick Out Of You," "It's De-Lovely," "Easy To Love," "You're The Top," and "Anything Goes," that will inspire an uproarious and tune-filled trip across the Atlantic where ANYTHING GOES!" Performances take place in the Robert G. Reim Theatre at the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 South Geyer Road in Kirkwood. For more information, visit stagesstlouis.org or call 314-821-2407.

The Muny presents the Muny premiere of Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods nightly at 8:15 PM, opening on Tuesday, July 21 and running through Monday, July 27, in the outdoor theatre in Forest Park. "Could there be a better stage than The Muny for Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's landmark Broadway musical Into The Woods? After two Broadway productions and countless worldwide editions (including an upcoming feature film), this hilarious, surprising and timely musical makes its Muny premiere! Into The Woods takes classic fairy tale characters (Cinderella, Rapunzel, Little Red Ridinghood and more!) and sends them into the woods - at the same time! With a delicious score featuring the poignant "No One is Alone," "Agony," and "Last Midnight," this magical evening will put a lump in your throat and a smile on your face." For more information, visit muny.org or call 314-361-1900.

The Randy Dandies presents Burlesque Bingo on Thursdays from 9 to 11 p.m. "As anyone who frequents the bingo parlors knows, the facade of genteel decorum drops once the first game is won. The first cry of "Bingo!" fires up the blood something fierce, and all bets are off from that point forward. Now, imagine what would happen if you throw semi-clad young women into the mix - Ok, now stop imagining. The Randy Dandies present Burlesque Bingo from 9pm to 11:30 pm on Thursdays, and and it promises all the thrills of cutthroat bingo, with the added titillation of local burlesque performers and specialty variety acts plus silly prizes." The show takes place at Meyer's Grove, 4510 Manchester in the Grove neighborhood. For more information: therandydandies.com.

The St. Louis Cabaret Conference presents the Cabaret Conference Showcase on Saturday, August 25, at 8 p.m. "The St. Louis Cabaret Conference celebrates its 10th anniversary as one of nation's top training programs in the art of cabaret. Singers come from all around the country as well as our hometown to be mentored by the renowned artists who are performing as part of the St. Louis Cabaret Festival. This is the closing night revelry to honor their work. Don't miss this audience favorite and the go-to singer showcase of the year. Seats are limited. Who knows -- maybe the next St. Louis Cabaret Festival headliner will be on the stage! Directed by Marilyn Maye, Faith Prince, Peisha McPhee, Tim Schall and music directed by Tedd Firth, Alex Rybec and Michael Orland." Singers will include KDHX's own Chuck Lavazzi. The performance takes place in the cabaret space at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

Christine Ebersole

The Cabaret Project presents two-time Tony Award winner Christine Ebersole in concert on Friday, August 24, at 8 PM as part of the 2015 St. Louis Cabaret Festival. "Ebersole is one of Broadway's leading ladies. She won her first Tony award for her performance in 42nd Street and, of her second Tony winning role in Grey Gardens, The New York Times said "Ms. Ebersole's performance is one of the most gorgeous ever to grace a musical."" The performance takes place at The Sheldon Concert Hall, 3648 Washington in Grand Center. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

Circus Harmony presents The Flying Trapeze Show Saturday, July 25, at 4 p.m. The performance takes place at Union Station downtown. Show admission is free with museum admission. For more information: circusharmony.org.

The Lemp Mansion Comedy-Mystery Dinner Theater presents A Fistful Of Hollers through August 29. The Lemp Mansion is at 3322 DeMenil Place. For more information: lempmansion.com.

The Good Thief

The Midnight Company presents Joe Hanrahan in Connor McPherson's one-character one-act play The Good Thief, in rotating repertory with McPherson'sSt. Nicholas through July 25. The performances take place at Herbie's Vintage 72, 405 N. Euclid in the Central West End. A special pre/post-theatre menu will be available before or after the show, cocktails will be available for the performance, and live music will follow Sunday performances. For more information: midnightcompany.com.

The Cabaret Project presents composer, lyricist and performer Jason Robert Brown in concert on Thursday, August 23, at 8 PM as part of the 2015 St. Louis Cabaret Festival. "Brown is the ultimate multi-hyphenate -- an equally talented composer, lyricist and performer -- with sold out performances of his solo concerts around the world. Jason may be best known for composing the dazzling scores to several of the most renowned musicals of his generation: Parade (Tony award), 2014's The Bridges of Madison County (2nd & 3rd Tony Award) and 2015's Honeymoon in Vegas. His Off Broadway smash The Last Five Years is now a 2015 feature film starring Oscar nominee Anna Kendrick and Tony nominee Jeremy Jordan." The performance takes place at The Sheldon Concert Hall, 3648 Washington in Grand Center. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

The Killing of Sister George

Max and Louie Productions presents the dark comedy, The Killing of Sister George by Frank Marcus through July 26. "Lusty, gin-swilling, cigar-chomping, lesbian, June Buckridge plays the beloved rural nurse, Sister George, the maternal heart and soul of the folksy BBC radio serial Applehurst. When studio executives decide to boost ratings and neutralize their difficult star's public relations problems, the queen of the soaps finds her throne in jeopardy. The undercurrents pull June, her fragile younger 'companion,' and a wily female BBC executive into a precarious minefield of mayhem and manipulation." Performances take place at the Wool Studio Theatre at the JCC, 2 Millstone Campus Drive. For more information, visit maxandlouie.com. Read the 88.1 KDHX review!

Take Two Productions presents the musical Legally Blonde July 24 - August 1 The show is recommended for mature audiences. Performances take place at Bayless High School Auditorium, 4532 Weber Road in South County. For more information, visit taketwoproductions.org.

Marilyn Maye

The Cabaret Project presents Marilyn Maye in Sinatra-Her Way on Wednesday, August 22, at 8 PM as part of the 2015 St. Louis Cabaret Festival. "Marilyn Maye holds the record for number of appearances by a any singer on the Tonight Show (76), has been honored at the Smithsonian, and was one of Ella Fitzgerald's favorite singers. Johnny Carson called her "Super Singer" and she is proving him right. She is currently at the peak of her form, selling out clubs and concert halls around the country. Who better to salute the songbook of the man who sang them all?" The performance takes place at The Sheldon Concert Hall, 3648 Washington in Grand Center. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

The Bissell Mansion Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre presents Mayhem In Mayberry through July 26. The Bissell Mansion is at 4426 Randall Place. For more information: bissellmansiontheatre.com

Insight Theatre Company presents Ken Ludwig's farce Moon Over Buffalo July 24 - August 9 "Moon Over Buffalo centers on George and Charlotte Hay, fading stars of the 1950's who are playing Private Lives and Cyrano De Bergerac in rep in Buffalo, New York. On the brink of a disastrous split-up, they receive word that they might just have one last shot at stardom: Frank Capra is coming to town to see their matinee, and if he likes what he sees, he might cast them in his new film. Unfortunately for George and Charlotte, everything that could go wrong does. As a result, this tribute to "Life in the Theatre" is simply outrageously hilarious!! " Performances take place in the Heagney Theatre, 530 East Lockwood on the campus of Nerinx Hall High School in Webster Groves. For more information, call 314-556-1293 or visit insighttheatrecompany.com.

St. Louis Actors' Studio presents readings of plays by the High School finalists in the Neil LaBute New Theater Festival on Saturday, July 25, at 11 a.m. at the Gaslight Theatre, 358 North Boyle. The festival features professional, new and previously unproduced one-act plays 45 minutes or less in length, chosen from submissions to the festival over the previous year. The plays, written by local area high school students, are "Listen To Me" by Benjamin Killeen; "Zodiac" by Meghan Rivkin; "The Day Netflix Crashed" by Veronica Silva; "Coming In" by Hannah Ryan; and "Guilt" by Sydney Cimarolli. For more information, call 314-458-2978 or visit stlas.org.

"Kandahar"
Photo: John Lamb

St. Louis Actors' Studio presents the Neil LaBute New Theater Festival, Part 2 July 24 - August 2 at the Gaslight Theatre, 358 North Boyle. The festival features professional, new and previously unproduced one-act plays 45 minutes or less in length, chosen from submissions to the festival over the previous year. The plays in Part 2 are "Kandahar" by Neil LaBute; "Pitch" by Theresa Masters; Marc Pruter; "Homebody" by Gabe Mckinley; "Deirdre Dear" by Norman Yeung; and "There You Are" by Fran Dorf. For more information, call 314-458-2978 or visit stlas.org.

OnSite Theatre presents The Runaway Cupcake: A Play About Eating for Families Who Eat Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through July 26. The play " introduces audiences of all ages to an affable Baker who has just one day to fend off an insistent Bill Collector. A modern-day Mom and Boy have a sizable order that may save the day, but a magical Cupcake is causing mischief, and a mysterious fairy-tale Girl complicates everything-perhaps for the better. Performances take place at SweetArt bakery and art gallery, 2203 S 39th St. in the Shaw neighborhood. For more information: onstietheatre.org.

The Midnight Company presents Joe Hanrahan in Connor McPherson's one-character one-act play St. Nicholas in rotating repertory with McPherson's The Good Thief through July 26. The performances take place at Herbie's Vintage 72, 405 N. Euclid in the Central West End. A special pre/post-theatre menu will be available before or after the show, cocktails will be available for the performance, and live music will follow Sunday performances. For more information: midnightcompany.com. Read the 88.1 KDHX review!

Hard Road Theatre Productions presents Shrek the Musical Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m., July 26 - August 2. Performances will be held at Highland Elementary School Auditorium, 12760 Troxler Avenue in Highland, IL. For more information: www.hardroad.org.

The Skin of Our Teeth
Photo: John Lamb

Clayton Community Theatre presents Thornton Wilder's The Skin of Our Teeth Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through July 26. " This Pulitzer prize-winning work by one of America's best-known playwrights delivers an allegory about the life of mankind through the story of the Antrobus family in New Jersey." Performances take place at the Washington University South Campus Theatre. For more information, call 314-721-9228 or visit placeseveryone.org.

St. Charles Community College presents the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical State Fair Tuesday through Sunday, July 21-26. Performances take place in the Donald D. Shook Fine Arts Building on the campus at 4601 Mid Rivers Mall Drive in Cottleville, MO. For more information, call 636-922-8050 or visit stchas.edu.

Over Due Theatre presents the musical The Wizard of Oz Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2 PM, July 24 - August 2. Like so many girls her age, little Dorothy Gale of Kansas dreams of what lies over the rainbow. One day a twister hits her farm and carries her away over the rainbow to another world. Come join Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tinman, the Cowardly Lion and Toto as they travel the universe of Dorothy's imagination." Performances take place at the Olivette Community Center, 9723 Grandview Drive, in Olivette, MO. For more information, call 314-210-2959 or visit overduetheatrecompany.com.

Would you like to be on the radio? KDHX, 88.1 FM needs theatre reviewers. If you're 18 years or older, knowledgeable in this area, have practical theatre experience (acting, directing, writing, technical design, etc.), have good oral and written communications skills and would like to become one of our volunteer reviewers, send an email describing your experience and interests to chuck at kdhx.org. Please include a sample review of something you've seen recently.

Billy Stritch and Marilyn Maye double your pleasure at the St. Louis Cabaret Festival

When does a three-hour cabaret evening feel too short? Why, when it stars Billy Stritch and Marilyn Maye, of course.

Billy Stritch at Birdland

As part of the St. Louis Cabaret Festival, The Cabaret Project—a non-profit dedicated to promoting, developing, and sustaining cabaret in St. Louis—presented a dynamite double bill on Friday, August 1st: Mr. Stritch's Cy Coleman tribute and Ms. Maye's high-energy tribute to life, love, and sad saloon songs.

Full disclosure: I'm a member of the board of The Cabaret Project. With an evening of this quality, though, that's pretty much beside the point.

Mr. Stritch calls his show "I've Got Your Number: the Jazz of Cy Coleman," and, in fact, his set list relied as heavily on Coleman's stand-alone songs as it did on numbers from his Broadway shows. Examples of the former included "Witchcraft" and the ballad "It Amazes Me" (which Mr. Stritch singled out as one of his favorites). From the Broadway stage, we had familiar hits like "The Other Side of the Tracks" and "I've Got Your Number" (both from "Little Me"), as well as obscure goodies like "I'm Watching You" from "Nothing But the Truth," a show that died aborning. The songs Coleman wrote to lyrics by Carolyn Leigh—regarded by many as his best creative partner—were heavily favored.

It was a nicely balanced show, and performed in the dynamic, breezy, jazzy style that has made Mr. Stritch one of the most admired singer/songwriters on the cabaret and jazz scenes. He's also an impressive pianist, throwing off complex jazz riffs with deceptive ease and trading licks with drummer Jim Eklof and bassist Gerald Spaits, who backed up both him and Ms. Maye. They've both played with Mr. Stritch and Ms. Maye for many years, as their easy camaraderie made apparent.

It was, in short, a tribute to one of America's most versatile songwriters that was as entertaining as it was educational.

After intermission, the stage and the audience belonged entirely to cabaret and supper club legend Marilyn Maye who, at the ripe young age of 86, can still tell a joke, belt the blues, and croon a ballad with the best of them—all with a charm and energy that would be the envy of someone half her age.

From the moment she hit the stage—with an ingenious medley of "Rainbow" songs—until she exited almost ninety minutes later with an exuberant reading of Jerry Herman’s “It’s Today” (apparently her signature encore these days), Ms. Maye had the crowd at the Sheldon in the palm of her hand. As I noted in my review of her 2007 appearance at the now-defunct Cabaret at Savor, her boundless energy and obvious delight in her material, in combination with her cheerful, off-the-cuff repartee, inevitably establish an immediate bond with those of us on the other side of the spotlight.

Elaborate and intelligently assembled medleys seem to be the backbone of Ms. Maye's act these days. She and Mr. Stritch, her long-time music director, put together some doozies for this show, including a nine-song set based on the weepy ballads that, according to Ms. Maye, are typical of what you get when you open a show up for requests. Starting with Barry Manilow's "Paradise Café" and winding up with Arlen and Mercer's world-weary classic "One for My Baby (and One More for the Road)," it was a bravura survey of some of the most notable "alcohol and lost love" songs from the Great American Songbook.

Mr. Stritch did the keyboard honors and joined Ms. Maye on some powerful jazz vocals. At one point Ted Firth (Ms. Maye's "other" music director) took over at the keyboard for a number that wound up with him and Mr. Stritch playing four-handed piano, to the delight of the audience.

For jazz and cabaret lovers, it just doesn't get much better than that.

The St. Louis Cabaret Festival concluded on Saturday, August 2nd, with a showcase the featuring 32 singers from the St. Louis Cabaret Conference, a professional training program that runs concurrently with the festival. For more information on The Cabaret Project, visit the web site.

Chuck's Choices for the weekend of August 1, 2014

As always, the choices are purely my personal opinion. Take with a grain (or a shaker) of salt.

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New this week:

The Cabaret Project presents A Cabaret Double Header with singer and pianist Billy Stritch performing I've Got Your Number: the Jazz of Cy Coleman, followed by An Evening with Marilyn Maye with Stritch on piano on Friday, August 1, 8 PM as part of The St. Louis Cabaret Festival. "Stritch is one of the premier singer-pianists on the New York jazz and cabaret scene, a Grammy winning songwriter and Broadway vet.. In this brand new show, that recently played New York's Birdland as well as London (four stars in The London Times!). Billy explores the pop/jazz side of the legendary songwriter Cy Coleman...Marilyn's great career highlights include a Grammy nomination as Best New Artist, 76 appearances on The Tonight Show, with Johnny Carson, Billboard hits, countless club/concert appearances and leading theatrical roles. Her recording of 'Too Late Now' is enshrined in the Smithsonian Museum's Best Performers of the Best Compositions of the 20th Century collection alongside works by Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland." The performance takes place in the Sheldon Concert Hall. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

My take: This is a pair of high-energy, dynamite performers. Mr. Stritch has a breezy, jazzy style that should be a perfect match of Broadway veteran Coleman's music. Ms. Maye is simply a force of nature, an authentic living legend of the cabaret stage.

The Cabaret Project presents Faith Prince with Alex Rybeck on piano in Have a Little Faith on Wednesday, July 30, 8 PM as part of The St. Louis Cabaret Festival. "Prince has been dazzling Broadway audiences since winning the Tony, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards for her performance as Miss Adelaide in Guys and Dolls, opposite Nathan Lane. She counts 3 additional Tony nominations and 11 other Broadway shows to her credit, including a starring role in this past year's Broadway revival of Annie. Faith's career has included roles in films and television and she has sung with major orchestras throughout the U.S. Her solo cabaret shows have played in New York at 54 Below and Joe's Pub, among other venues. Her recent 2013 performance at The Royal Room in Palm Beach, Florida resulted in the live CD Total Faith and her award-winning performance, A Leap Of Faith, was recorded at Joe's Pub and available on DRG records. Faith takes the stage in her solo St. Louis cabaret debut singing songs from her career as well as from her heart." The performance takes place in the Sheldon Concert Hall. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

My take: Ms. Prince is a major Broadway talent and Mr. Rybeck is one of the more in-demand music directors in the Big Apple. Expect big entertainment when you put them together.

The St. Louis Cabaret Conference presents the St. Louis Cabaret Conference Showcase on Saturday, August 2, at 7 PM. "30 singers from around the country take to the stage in a celebration of their work. This culmination of the 5 day St. Louis Cabaret Conference has become an annual go-to showcase for cabaret lovers in the Lou! Join us in celebrating 30 new faces of cabaret! Directed by Mailryn Maye, Faith Prince, Tim Schall. Music Direction by Billy Stritch, Tedd Firth, Alex Rybeck." The performance takes place at the Kranzberg Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information: stlouiscabaretconference.com.

My take: I have taken the Cabaret Conference several times in the past, so I know the level of talent involved as well as the amount of care taken in assembling the final showcase. It's always a wonderfully balanced, expertly directed evening featuring talent from around the country as well as from St. Louis.

Soprano Lucy Sauter
(Blance in Streetcar)

Union Avenue Opera presents Andre Previn's A Streetcar Named Desire, based on the play by Tennessee Williams, Friday and Saturday at 8 PM, August 1 - 9. Performances take place at the Union Avenue Christian Church, 733 Union at Enright in the Central West End. The opera is sung in English with projected English text. For more information, visit unionavenueopera.org or call 314-361-2881.

My take: I won't have an opportunity to see this until next Friday, but I'm putting it in here simply because it's the local premiere of a major work by an American compose noted equally for his work in the jazz and classical worlds. I can't think of a more appropriate person to set Williams's classic to music. "Mr. Previn has a fine ear for voices," wrote New York Times critic Bernard Holland of the work's 1998 premiere. "He knows how to flatter and coax it and send it gracefully from one musical episode to the next.....one had the impression that Mr. Previn had been writing for the musical theater all his life."

The Cabaret Project presents The Streisand Songbook with Ann Hampton Callaway on Thursday, July 31, 8 PM as part of The St. Louis Cabaret Festival. "Platinum award-winning singer-songwriter Ann Hampton Callaway celebrates the music of one of America's most powerful and enduring musical artists: Barbra Streisand. Singing timeless classics from five decades of the celebrated diva's career, Callaway crafts a loving musical portrait of Streisand, the musical icon for whom Callaway has written several personally tailored songs. A Tony-nominated actress (Broadway's Swing!) and multiple award winning singer, Callaway puts a unique pop/jazz spin on unforgettable Streisand classics from Barbra's Broadway years, through her film and pop hits. " The performance takes place in the Sheldon Concert Hall. For more information: thecabaretproject.org.

My take: Ms. Callaway is no stranger to St. Louis audiences, having made numerous appearances at the Sheldon and the Jazz Bistro. She has a voice that is spectacularly flexible, equally at home in jazz, Broadway, and cabaret.

Held Over:

Photo: Peter Wochniak

Stages St. Louis presents the musical Always..Patsy Cline through August 31. "Jacqueline Petroccia and Zoe Vonder Haar star in the return engagement of the show critics called 'exceptional, must see entertainment.' The touching and true story of Country music legend Patsy Cline and her friendship with Texas housewife Louise Seger returns to STAGES this spring. Combining down home country humor, heartache and 27 of Patsy Cline's unforgettable hits such as 'Crazy,' 'Walkin' After Midnight,' and 'Sweet Dreams,' Always... Patsy Cline endures as a piece of genuine Americana." Performances take place at The Playhouse at Westport Plaza. For more information, visit stagesstlouis.org or call 314-821-2407.

My take: Call this a qualified recommendation. If you're a lover of Patsy Cline or country music in general, I think you'll have a great time at this show, which is really more of a celebrity impersonation review than a book musical per se. Jacqueline Petroccia captures Cline's voice and manner so accurately it's eerie and Zoe Vonder Haar is a hoot and a half as Louise Seger, the real-life Houston fan who became a close friends and correspondent of Cline. With over two dozen Patsy Cline hits performed to perfection by Ms. Petroccia and a six-piece band, the show is a real feast for fans. See my KDHX review for more information.

Photo: Peter Wochniak

Stages St. Louis presents the musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying through August 17. "Big business means big laughs in this delightfully clever lampoon of life on the corporate ladder. A tune-filled comic gem that took Broadway by storm winning both the Tony Award for Best Musical and a Pulitzer Prize, How to Succeed...boasts an exhilarating score by Frank Loesser including “I Believe in You,” “Brotherhood of Man,” and “The Company Way.” Bustling with humor, romance and song, this swingin' 60s send-up of Madison Avenue charts the spectacular rise (in record time!) of an ambitious young window washer to VP of Advertising!" Performances take place in the Robert G. Reim Theatre at the Kirkwood Community Center, 111 South Geyer Road in Kirkwood. For more information, visit stagesstlouis.org or call 314-821-2407.

My take: It's a sad commentary on the state of the nation that the cheerfully cynical satire of the mendacity, mediocrity, and Machiavellian backstabbing of corporate America that makes up the book of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" is as relevant now as it was when the show opened back in 1961. The Stages production is, as I write in my review for KDHX, a big, bright, hilarious technicolor cartoon that keeps the action firmly in the "Mad Men" era, so its sexism feels funny rather than creepy. The cast is wonderful, headed by Ben Nordstrom as perhaps the ideal J. Pierrepont Finch.

All cabaret, all the time

Tim Schall

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Lovers of the art of cabaret will find a lot to like in Grand Center this week as The Cabaret Project of St. Louis presents its second annual St. Louis Cabaret Festival.  Held in conjunction with the St. Louis Cabaret Conference, a five-day professional training seminar for cabaret singers from St. Louis and around the country, the festival features four nights of widely varied performances by local and national artists.  Both the conference and festival are spearheaded by St. Louis cabaret entrepreneur Tim Schall.

It all starts on Wednesday, July 31st, at 8 PM with Billy Stritch Sings Mel Tormé. A musician and singer with substantial theatre credits, Stritch is perhaps best known as Liza Minnelli’s go-to “one man band.” His show, says The Cabaret Project web site, "breathes new life into Torme’s beloved standards such 'Born To Be Blue' and 'A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square,' bringing an easy sense of humor and exciting showmanship to his performances."  In addition to his work with Minnelli,  Stritch has performed and recorded with Tony winners Christine Ebersole and Linda Lavin.  He has recorded multiple CD’s, including several solo efforts.  The show takes place at at The Bistro at Grand Center, 3536 Washington Blvd.

Thursday, August 1st, at 8 PM brings a double bill of two powerhouse performers: Marilyn Maye and Jason Graae.  A cabaret legend who  appeared a record number of 76 times on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, Maye has been packing them in at Carnegie Hall, New York’s 54 Below, Feinstein’s, Birdland, and in clubs and concert venues throughout the country.  Reviewing her appearance here in 2007, I praised her "immediate and honest communication with the audience." "Maye’s boundless energy and obvious delight in her material," I wrote, "in combination with her cheerful, off-the-cuff repartee, establish an immediate bond with those of us on the other side of the spotlight."

Graae, meanwhile, is a stunningly talented singer/actor with enough energy to illuminate an entire city.  Reviewing his appearance here with Liz Callaway back in 2005, I wrote that "Graae’s comic timing is brilliant and his imagination protean." His range is wide, easily shifting from comedy to pathos, and he even plays the oboe.  For his appearance here, Graae will be performing Perfect Hermany.  It's his tribute to Broadway master Jerry Herman, whose hits include Hello Dolly, La Cage Aux Folles, and Mame.

The Marilyn May/Jason Graae double bill starts at 8 PM on Thursday at the Sheldon Concert Hall, 3648 Washington.

Friday, August 2nd, at 8 PM it's an evening with singer/songwriter John Bucchino at The Bistro at Grand Center, 3536 Washington Blvd.  A prolific composer for stage and screen, Bucchino has had his songs recorded by artists as diverse as as Art Garfunkel, Judy Collins, Liza Minnelli, Barbara Cook, Kristen Chenoweth, and Michael Feinstein. His theater and film scores include include Broadway’s A Catered Affair (winner of the Drama League Award for Best Musical, with a book by Harvey Fierstein), the Dreamworks animated film Joseph, King of Dreams, and lyrics for the children’s musical Simeon’s Gift (with a book by Julie Andrews).

The St. Louis Cabaret Festival concludes on Sunday, August 4th, at 7 PM with the St. Louis Cabaret Conference Showcase at The Bistro at Grand Center, 3536 Washington Blvd. After five days of working on their craft, each one of the Conference’s 30 singers (including yours truly) takes the stage in a solo turn for this culminating event.  The evening is directed by Marilyn Maye, Jason Graae, and Tim Schall with musical direction by Billy Stritch, John Bucchino, John Randall.

For more information, visit thecabaretproject.org.  Tickets for all events are available via MetroTix.  You can also hear an interview with Jason Graae on the Break a Leg podcast at 88.1 KDHX as well as a conversation with festival producer Tim Schall, Marilyn Maye, and Billy Stritch on St. Louis Public Radio.

The St. Louis Cabaret Conference and Festival are just two reasons why St. Louis is now regarded as a serious cabaret city.  Come one down to Grand Center this week and find out why.

Stage Left Podcast, 18 October 2007

Reviewed: Marilyn Maye's appeatance at The Cabaret at Savor in St. Louis October 17 - 21, 2007. You can hear a podcast version of it here. A shorter version was broadcast on KDHX-FM in St. Louis.

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Here's the text of the review:

Following one of Marilyn Maye's dozens of appearances on The Tonight Show, Johnny Carson turned to the audience and said "that, young singers, is the way it's done." As she's demonstrating this week at Savor, that's still the way it's done. And it's not just young singers who might want to take notes

rom the moment she hit the stage - with an upbeat medley of "The Song is You" and "I Hear Music" - until she exited ninety minutes later with an exuberant reading of Jerry Herman's "It's Today", Ms. Maye had the opening night crowd in the palm of her hand. Setting up immediate and honest communication with the audience is an essential skill for the cabaret performer. It's a skill she has in abundance, as her long and successful career clearly indicates. Maye's boundless energy and obvious delight in her material, in combination with her cheerful, off-the-cuff repartee, established an immediate bond with those of us on the other side of the spotlight.

How solid is that bond? Well, let's put it this way: how many cabaret singers could put Kander and Ebb's "Cabaret" right in the middle of the act and not have it come across and obvious and hackneyed? Ms. Maye did it and we all loved it. Case closed.

As you might gather from what I've just said, Marilyn Maye's musical tastes would appear to run mainly to American songbook standards. Her current show, for example, features fine performances of classics such as Rogers and Hart's "Mountain Greenery" (in a version so jazzed up that I failed to recognize the verse at first), "Get Happy", and "Come Rain or Come Shine". There's also a solid medley of tunes by the man who gave Ms. Maye her big national break, the late, great Steve Allen, including "When I'm in Love, "I Love You Today" and, of course, "This Could be the Start of Something Big". The latter is probably the best known of the literally thousands of songs produced by the multi-talented musician, actor and comic.

Ms. Maye is also a great admirer of the late Ray Charles, however, so for the last ten minutes (or thereabouts) of the evening she breaks away from cabaret standards to deliver an inspired eight-song set of the late R&B singer's hits, including "Born to Lose", "Cryin' Time", "You Don't Know Me" and a version of "Hallelujah I Love Her So" with new lyrics that turns the song into an unabashed valentine to Charles. The fact that her Maye Sings Ray CD was on sale afterwards, while hardly coincidental, was welcome. I bought a copy, anyway.

Accompanying Ms. Maye and, in fact, acting as equal partners in the act are Billy Stritch and His Trio - Stritch on piano and vocals with Andy Davis on bass and Jim Ekloff on drums. Her lively interaction with all three is great fun to watch. Stritch and company get to shine in a set of their own as well - a tribute to the late Mel Torme featuring a swinging run through Porter's "Just One of Those Things" combined with the film classic"Green Dolphin Street".

The bottom line is that Marilyn Maye puts on one hell of an entertaining show. Her approach to cabaret is very much in the old school, "knock ‘em dead" style with a strong East coast jazz feel - markedly different from the more intimately personal style favored by many younger masters of the art. It serves as a reminder that there's plenty of room under the cabaret tent for a variety of approaches. The only sine qua non is playing straight with the audience - and that Marilyn Maye certainly does.

The demand for tickets has been big and The Flim Flam Room at Savor is small, so you'd be well advised to reserve seats in advance by calling 314-531-0220 or on line at licketytix.com . Marilyn Maye will be knocking ‘em dead through Sunday, October 21st [2007] at Savor, 4356 Lindell in the Central West End.