Rain Pryor

Gerry Geddes
Jazz and comedy rarely work together as well as they do in Rain Pryor's "Divorced, Dangerous, Diva-licious" at the Iridium. Carrying on the tradition of her father, legendary comic Richard Pryor, she is hilarious in her self-deprecating survey of her life, romantic and otherwise. But the soundtrack she chooses for this story is what makes...

Lisa Jason

Mark Dundas Wood
Bullying in schools has likely been a problem ever since schools were first established. (I can personally attest that it was alive and unwell in the early 1960s.) Only lately, though, has it gotten the attention it deserves from commentators and activists. In Massachusetts in the 1970s, Lisa Jason lived through a childhood filled with...

Jimmy Webb

Gerry Geddes
Jimmy Webb, the man responsible for "Up, Up and Away", "Didn't We", "By the Time I Get to Phoenix," "MacArthur Park," and on and on, is such an iconic songwriter that he could easily rest on his laurels and just present his hits in their original form and let the audience be satisfied and excited...

Bill Dyszel

Mark Dundas Wood
For his new Don't Tell Mama show, "The Internet Ate My Brain," Bill Dyszel seems to have taken to heart the familiar creative-writing-course aphorism "Write what you know." According to bio notes, communications technology has been a big part of Dyszel's career. He is the author of 21 books, including many editions of Microsoft Outlook...

Jarrod Spector and Kelli Barrett

Gerry Geddes
First, I have a confession to make. I have a soft spot for the "Vegas side" of cabaret when done well. I have such lasting memories of Ann-Margret, Peter Allen, Petula Clark and others doing big, brassy, flashy shows that at the same time managed moments of heart and intimacy. At Feinstein's/54 Below, Jarrod Spector and...

Alexa Ray Joel

Gerry Geddes
The Café Carlyle is one of the last of its kind in New York City—a genuine night club, an elegantly appointed room harkening back to the days of the Empire Room, the Persian Room and the Maisonette, where legendary stars and promising newcomers would ply their craft before a room full of equally elegant diners...

Cheryl Ann Allen: Sophie Tucker in Person

Robert Windeler
Bearing an uncanny physical resemblance to her zaftig and otherwise larger-than-life subject, Cheryl Ann Allen, in her current show at Don't Tell Mama, nearly lives up to the title "Sophie Tucker in Person." Not only does Allen look and dress the part, she sings like Tucker and has even nailed Sophie's wheezy speaking voice. Written...

The 26th New York Cabaret Convention

Bistro Awards
The 26th edition of the New York Cabaret Convention, presented by the Mabel Mercer Foundation, took place October 13-16 at The Town Hall. Robert Windeler, Mark Dundas Wood, and Gerry Geddes covered the four nights for us. Following are their thoughts.   GALA OPENING NIGHT – by Robert Windeler "Another Op'nin', Another Show" sang KT Sullivan...

Andrea Bell Wolff

Gerry Geddes
Sometimes when a show goes wrong, it goes wrong in every way. Sad to say, Andrea Bell Wolff's "Bad Girls Do Cry," which is dedicated to the girl-group sounds of the 1960s, is one of those shows—from little things like misspelling the names of Lesley Gore and Carole King (repeatedly) in the song list, to...

Kristoffer Lowe

Robert Windeler
In his new show at the Metropolitan Room, Kristoffer Lowe presents a dazzling tribute to a relatively forgotten composer from the first half of the 20th century, Harry Warren. Because he was not the publicity hound that so many of his songwriting contemporaries were, Warren wasn't that much of a celebrity even in his lifetime...