A new brain

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Who: Taylor Pietz with Justin Smolik
What: If I Only Had a Brain
When: April 10, 2014
Where: The Gaslight Cabaret Festival at the Gaslight Theatre

The title of actor/singer Taylor Pietz's show "If I Only Had a Brain" is somewhat deceptive.  She not only clearly has a brain, she has put it to good use concocting a fresh, funny, and polished cabaret evening that gave the old "this is my life" school of cabaret a quirky, self-effacing spin. 

I'm not normally a big fan of the autobiographical approach, but she made it work well, providing a nice theatrical through line for her song choices.

I should point out that I have known Ms. Pietz professionally for over a decade now.  We first met during a production of "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" nearly eleven years ago when she was 17 and I was—well—eleven years less old than I am now.  I was playing Senator Wingwoah and she, appropriately, was playing Shy.  I say "appropriately" because she struck me than as a somewhat shy young lady—but with terrific pipes and impressive acting skills. 

The ensuing years have only sharpened those skills and developed that voice into a lovely precision musical instrument.  That old shyness seems to have morphed into a kind of pixyish, cheerfully ironic stage persona.  With her first song ("Put on a Happy Face" from "Bye Bye Birdie") she projected a combination of poise and vulnerability that immediately got (and kept) the audience on her side.

That opening number allowed her to talk about how being an actress involved putting on somebody else's happy (or sad) face and losing yourself in a role.  Her real life, she noted, was closer to the lyrics of her next song, Jamie Cullum's "Twentysomething."  And, in fact, the end of that song's refrain—"I'm still having fun and I guess that's the key / I'm a twentysomething and I'll keep being me"—was something of a recurring theme throughout the evening.  If this show had a message, it would probably be Polonius's admonition to Hamlet: "to thine own self be true."

For the rest of the show, Ms. Pietz touched on subjects such as her checkered academic career ("Don't Wanna Be Here" from Adam Gwon's "Ordinary Days" and "No Reason at All" from Jonathan Reid Gealt's "Thirteen Stories Down"), her questionable dating decisions ("Fuck Was I" by Jenny Owen Youngs), and her inability, as a freelancer, to turn down a project, no matter how insane ("I Cain't Say No," with clever new lyrics by Ms. Pietz).

As you might gather from that last paragraph, "If I Only Had a Brain" heavily favored newer singer/songwriters and the younger generation of theatre composers.  I'm happy to say there were a number of songs here I'd never heard before, which is something that happens all too rarely, at least in my experience.  When she did turn her attention to a classic, though (such as her title song), she made it entirely her own.

Of course, every cabaret show is a team effort, and Ms. Pietz had some pretty substantial talent to help shape this one.  Her music director and pianist, Justin Smolik, has been the resident music director of New Line Theatre (where Ms. Pietz and I first met) since 2010 and has worked with many local professional companies.  His arrangements fitted Ms. Pietz's voice and style like a well-tailored suit and delivered some surprises along the way.  I was especially taken with his semi-ragtime approach to the Beatles classic "Help."

Directing Ms. Pietz was local cabaret and theatre veteran Ken Haller, whose own shows have been big critical and commercial successes.  He and Ms. Pietz gave a nice shape to the show, with the kind of dramatic arc I associate with a well-planned cabaret evening. 

"If I Only Had a Brain" finished in appropriately upbeat style with "That's Life," after which Ms. Pietz came back to accompany herself on a number of her own.  It's still a work in progress, but her current title for it is "That's What My Daddy Said."  I won't tell you exactly what her daddy said, but I will note that 1) it was another "to thine own self be true" message and 2) it brought her show to a conclusion that was as unexpected as it was funny.

And the audience loved it.

Chuck's Choices for the weekend of April 11, 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:

Stray Dog Theatre presents Kander and Ebb's musical Cabaret Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM through April 19. "The popular musical, based on British writer Christopher Isherwood’s semiautobiographical short novel Goodbye to Berlin, explores the decadence and seamy underbelly of 1930s Germany where beguiling, self-destructive chanteuse Sally Bowles lives with no thought for tomorrow. As the growing power of the Nazi’s Third Reich secretly begins to take hold, everything is thrown into disarray." Performances take place at The Tower Grove Abbey, 2336 Tennessee. For more information, visit straydogtheatre.org or call 314-865-1995.

My take: This show has gotten a lot of exposure (you should pardon the expression) lately, but it never hurts to be reminded of how easy it is for people to just go along with evil rather than stand up against it. The Stray Dog production adds a new element by basting an female actor (Lavonne Byers) as the androgynous MC. "If you want to see this show and you should," writes Andrea Braun in her review for KDHX, "get tickets now because the first weekend was sold out before the opening. Ask about cabaret seating (the first rows of pews) with tables and service by the cast."

The Presenters Dolan present Taylor Pietz in If I Only Had a Brain on Thursday, April 10, at 8 PM as part of the Gaslight Cabaret Festival. "People always see the perfectly put-together 'performer' side of me, but rarely do they see the unpolished and awkward side," says Taylor. "But tonight's the night. With songs highlighting the stumbles, falls, and life lessons of a perfectly imperfect artist." The performance takes place at the Gaslight Theater, 358 North Boyle. For more information: gaslightcabaretfestival.com.

My take: I first encountered Ms Pietz over a decade ago when we both appeared in New Line Theatre's production of "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." I have always been impressed by her musical theatre chops, but last year she started coming to The Cabaret Project's monthly open stage night at Tavern of Fine Arts and I saw the emergence of her cabaret personality. I'm looking forward to this one.

Photo: John Lamb

The West End Players Guild continues their 103rd season with Kate Fodor's Rx by Thursday through Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM, through April 13. “If there was a drug that could make your dreary job an exciting daily adventure, would you take it? If you did, would it make your life better or worse? And who would dream up such a thing in the first place? Answers to all those questions - liberally laced with laughter - will be found in Rx, the satirical romantic comedy by 2013 Guggenheim playwriting fellow Kate Fodor. The show takes a hilarious look at life, love and Big Pharma.” Performances take place at the Union Avenue Christian Church, 733 North Union at Enright in the Central West End. For more information, call 314-367-0025 or visit www.westendplayers.org.

My take: OK, I'm on the board at West End as well as the play reading committee that recommended this piece in the first place. I also did the sound design for this production. That said, I wouldn't have voted for this script if I hadn't thought it was funny and thought provoking. Ms. Fodor takes on our drug-obsessed society effectively without getting strident. In his review for broadwayworld.com, Chris Gibson calls the show "likable and engaging" and notes that "Renee Sevier-Monsey's direction is well done, maximizing the comic potential of the script while also paying attention to the romance."

Held Over:

Photo: Jerry Naunheim, Jr.

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents Michael Frayn's comedy Noises Off through April 13. “Disasters abound as a frantic, sleep-deprived touring company of actors rehearses and performs their fictional farce, Nothing On. Too many doors, too many sardines and not near enough time combine to create a riotously funny situation on and off stage for both cast and crew. Michael Frayn's intricately crafted mayhem is hailed as one of the greatest comedies ever written.” Performances take place on the mainstage at the Loretto-Hlton Center, 130 Edgar Road in Webster Groves, MO. For more information, call 314-968-4925 or visit repstl.org.

My take: Reviews for this show have been overwhelmingly positive, and with good reason. Michael Frayn's script is an ingenious, brilliantly assembled laugh machine performed with all the necessary precision by a fine ensemble cast.