From the first notes of Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Fantasy” (Maurice White, Verdine White, Eddie del Barrio), the opening number of his new show, …Just Me, singer Anthony Wayne leaves no doubt that he has a remarkable voice. The title is somewhat belied by the fact that surrounding him on the stage at The Green Room 42 is a large (in cabaret terms) musical ensemble that supplies bristling, energetic accompaniment throughout the evening. With music director Richard Baskin on keyboards, Andrew Latona on guitar, Criston Oates on bass, David Frazier Jr. on drums, Adam Wooten on percussion, and a horn section made up of Karl Lyden (trombone), Skyler Floe (trumpet), and Griffin Ross (saxophone), there is barely room for Wayne on stage…both physically and metaphorically. The band is fantastic, filling the room with irresistible R&B and Broadway sounds. While the singer matches their bravura energy and sound with strong, sure and exciting vocals, the show quickly becomes more of a playlist than a compelling narrative. Director Rufus Bonds, Jr. seems more concerned with overall production and presentation and less with storytelling and personal interpretation.
Anthony Wayne
Prominently displayed on a music stand is a book titled Diary which he indicates in his effusive patter, will be the centerpiece of his show. It takes no time at all for the prop to reveal itself as a “cheat sheet” to which he refers constantly, both in when speaking and singing, most irritatingly when he reaches over to turn a page in the middle of a lyric. What little connection to the words that might have been there, is immediately quashed when this happens.
The song choices are fine, but each one is delivered as a carbon-copy cover of the original and the more familiar the song, the more vociferous the audience response. Admittedly, most of the material consists of songs (notably by Earth, Wind & Fire and Sylvester) that are worthy of such excitement, but the presentation is the focus. Wayne disappears once the music starts—he is all about recreating and rarely about reinvention or reimagining. “What You Won’t Do for Love” (Bobby Caldwell, Alfons Kettner), “Magic to Do” (Stephen Schwartz, from Pippin), “All Night Long’ (Lionel Ritchie), and “Gimme the Ball”, his Broadway turn as Richie by Marvin Hamlisch and Ed Kleban, are guaranteed crowd-pleasers, and please they do, but I kept thinking there could have been so much more going on, how much more exciting it would have been to let them help reveal the performer to the audience, to share his love and connection to them rather than to concentrate on technical precision. His obvious emotional investment when he is speaking vanishes once he starts to sing. I wanted less polish and more heart.
Lastly, the show falls victim to one of the most pervasive cliches in cabaret these days—a Broadway/ theatre performer recounting “how they got here,” starting from childhood with early songs, then on to high school and college productions and the influences along the way, then the first fully professional gigs, and then climaxing “on Broadway” triumphantly (or not, depending on the performer and show). These shows tend to become a “fill in the blanks” endeavor in which the songs and show titles change, but the stories, the emotions, and the narrative through-line are interchangeable.
Wayne has been at work for a while on a tribute show to the legendary Sylvester, a subject worthy of the effort by a singer who could do it justice. But when he closes the show with Sylvester hits, he does it as Sylvester, which might have been effective had he spent the rest of the night letting us get to know him, but as it is, it was more of the same—sparkling surfaces but (to paraphrase The Wizard of Oz) paying “no attention to the man behind the curtain.”
It is disappointing that a singer/ dancer as talented as Anthony Wayne obviously is, did not take advantage of the unique opportunities that cabaret offers and, instead, went the musical route of a cover band on tour. Granted, it is one of the most accomplished and entertaining cover bands (and singers) one is likely to encounter, but the lost opportunity of getting to know Anthony Wayne still stings. Perhaps next time, fewer facts and more truth?
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Presented at The Green Room 42, Tenth Ave., NYC, on August 5, 2024.
Gerry Geddes has conceived and directed a number of musical revues—including the Bistro- and MAC Award-winning "Monday in the Dark with George" and "Put On Your Saturday Suit-Words & Music by Jimmy Webb"—and directed many cabaret artists, including André De Shields, Helen Baldassare, Darius de Haas, and drag artist Julia Van Cartier. He directs "The David Drumgold Variety Show," currently in residence at Manhattan Movement & Arts Center, and has produced a number of recordings, including two Bistro-winning CDs. He’s taught vocal performance at The New School, NYU, and London’s Goldsmith’s College and continues to conduct private workshops and master classes. As a writer and critic, he has covered New York’s performing arts scene for over 40 years in both local and national publications; his lyrics have been sung by several cabaret and recording artists. Gerry is an artist in residence at Pangea, and a regular contributor to the podcast “Troubadours & Raconteurs.” He just completed a memoir of his life in NYC called “Didn’t I Ever Tell You This?”
