Amy Wolk

Kevin Scott Hall
"A Wolk On The Wild Side" The Duplex – October 21, November 25, December 9, 17, February 17 The small Duplex stage burst into bubble gum fun as soon as Amy Wolk and her cohorts took to it in her recent candy-coated cabaret confection, "A Wolk on the Wilde Side." Wolk and musical director Steven...

Rosemary Loar

Robert Windeler
"When Harry Met the Duke" Metropolitan Room - January 19, 27, 30, February 22 It must be getting harder to come up with titles, or even themes, for cabaret shows. Rosemary Loar has certainly tried hard with this one. The title refers to the show's running theme: when and whether Harold Arlen and Duke Ellington...

Pia Zadora

Mark Dundas Wood
"Pia Zadora – Back Again and Standing Tall" The Metropolitan Room  –  February 7-10 Pia Zadora is a trouper. On the eve of the recent snowstorm, playing to a small audience, she kept her energy level high, as though playing to a packed house. She gave special attention to each occupied table—at one point circulating...

Eric Michael Gillett

Kevin Scott Hall
"Careless Rhapsody: An Evening Dedicated to the Lyrics of Lorenz Hart" 54 Below  –  February 4, 7, 26, 27 Cabaret favorite and multitasker Eric Michael Gillett has come up with yet another new show, this time celebrating the lyrics of Lorenz Hart. Gillett and his director, Arthur Masella, succeed in encompassing as much of the...

Vickie Phillips

Kevin Scott Hall
Don't Tell Mama  –  January 26, March 16   How refreshing it is to be reminded of why we do this art form called cabaret. Vickie Phillips, who for many years has made Don't Tell Mama—and other Sidney Myer-booked clubs before that—her performing home, brings joy and enthusiasm to her work as though she were...

Sharón Clark

Mark Dundas Wood
"Blame It on My Youth" Metropolitan Room  –  January 22, 28, 30, February 1, 2 "So, you're diggin' the Afro?" D.C.-based vocalist Sharón Clark asked the audience upon stepping onto the stage on the first night of her Metropolitan Room engagement. Her retro hairstyle is part of the packaging for her show "Blame It On...

Jeff Harnar

Mark Dundas Wood
"Does This Song Make Me Look Fat?" Laurie Beechman Theatre  –  January 14, 21, 28, February 8 Some cabaret performers choose to pack a show with languid ballads. Sure, they may feature the odd up-tempo number and perhaps a comic turn or two: bones thrown to the notion of variety. But mostly these singers go...

Michael Winther and Dan Tepfer

D4vidFinkle
The Metropolitan Room  -  January 4, 11, 17 18 Usually a pianist playing behind or alongside a featured singer is considered an accompanist. But not always. When Kenny Werner plays for Betty Buckley, what occurs is a collaboration between equal partners. This is often the case as well with Rick Jensen and whomever he's partnering....

The Wonderful Wizard of Song: The Music of Harold Arlen

Mark Dundas Wood
St. Luke's Theatre  –  Mondays at 7pm, Wednesdays at 2pm, Thursdays at 8pm The songs of composer Harold Arlen—with their sophistication and mix of Jewish and African-American melodic elements—need to be approached with intelligence, care, and taste. One of Arlen's standards (co-written with Ted Koehler) famously touts the "right to sing the blues." Perhaps the...

Smile on My Face: The Songs of Richard Eisenberg

Mark Dundas Wood
Laurie Beechman Theatre: May 6; Etcetera Etcetera: October 24; Urban Stages: December 13; Don't Tell Mama: February 7 The four performers in the revue "Smile on My Face" begin with a medley of two Richard Eisenberg selections—"Hum a Song" and "They Don't Make Them Like That Anymore." These songs lament the tuneless and repetitive nature...