Brenda Braxton

Mark Dundas Wood
Other songbirds may warble sweeter notes than Brenda Braxton. Other raconteurs may spout wittier quips. But where rapport with an audience is concerned, Braxton is hard to beat. Braxton is, first and foremost, a good host—she knows how to share a moment with her listeners and what to do to make everybody feel at home....

Jennifer Sheehan

Robert Windeler
In her current show at 54 Below, "Stardust: A Night in the Cosmos," Jennifer Sheehan gets lost in the stars, mostly in a good way. No fewer than sixteen full songs referring to the moon, planets, space exploration, and just plain old distant points of light in the sky show this exceptional singer and radiant...

Charlie Johnson

Roy Sander
In an email promoting his show "CHARLIE! Anything but Basic" at the Metropolitan Room, Charlie Johnson made a few rather grand claims. He described it as "a terrific new act" and added that he has a "unique performance style [that combines] classic cabaret with a modern-day sensibility in a way no one else is doing."...

Robyn McCorquodale

Mark Dundas Wood
When singer-pianist Robyn McCorquodale claims that her career has taken her to all seven continents, you may wonder who, exactly, comprised her audience in Antarctica. Emperor penguins? It all makes better sense when she explains that she has worked extensively as a cruise ship entertainer. Apparently she has been very successful in this career, and...

Seth Sikes

Mark Dundas Wood
More than enough words have been spent remarking on gay men's fascination with Judy Garland. But though Garland herself left the world nearly a half century ago, enthusiasm for her among this particular demographic seems to be stubbornly alive—that is, if the predominantly male turnout at 54 Below for an encore presentation of "Seth Sikes Is...

Lauren Stanford

Mark Dundas Wood
When Lauren Stanford was developing her portrayal of Helen Morgan for her cabaret show "More Than You Know," she must have paid special attention to lyrics from Louis Alter and Arthur Swanstrom's song "(I've Got) Sand in My Shoes." The song's verse begins with the line "You see me smiling, but it's not with my...

Donna Hayes

Robert Windeler
In her show "Ordinary Miracles," at the Metropolitan Room, Donna Hayes makes a strong case for her title's seeming to be an oxymoron. In her view, it's those unexpected miracles that matter most, and they are to be found all around us, not so much the major ones we pray or long for. These minor...

Stacie Koby

Mark Dundas Wood
In "Committed," her new show at The Duplex, Stacie Koby ignores the old show-business warning about the dangers of being upstaged when working with animals or children. There are no critters in the act, but Koby is visibly pregnant with her second child, scheduled to arrive several weeks from now. Maybe she figured that because...

Delphi Harrington and Woody Regan

Robert Windeler
In their current show at the Metropolitan Room, Delphi Harrington and Woody Regan, two pleasantly seasoned performers of a certain age, with help from director Ann McCormack, have managed to create the feel of performing ad hoc at a party in someone's living room. This is mostly a good thing, as "Cowardly Swann," their awkwardly...

Maureen McGovern

Robert Windeler
In her current show at 54 Below, based on the work of an eclectic and worthy group of female singers and songwriters, Maureen McGovern evinces no diminution in her vocal and dramatic warmth and power. She may be, as she says on stage, "slouching toward 66" and suffering from "CRSS (Can't Remember Shit Syndrome)," but...