By Melissa Griegel…
Photos by Melissa Griegel Photography
Liz Callaway discovered Stephen Schwartz’s Pippin when she was in high school and then made her off-Broadway debut in Schwartz’s Godspell. She has since had a love affair with his music and a thirty-year friendship with the Grammy-, Oscar-, and Tony-Award-Winning composer and lyricist. She moved to New York when she was 18, along with her sister, singer/songwriter/actress Ann Hampton Callaway. She hilariously read bits of her somewhat mixed Variety review from her first cabaret, with the reviewer noting that she did particularly well with “Lion Tamer” and “West End Avenue”, from Schwartz’s The Magic Show. She sang both of those songs for us, along with “Corner of the Sky” and “Finale/With You” from Pippin.
Her three shows at 54 Below (March 18th, 20th, and 21st, 2026) celebrated the release of her brand-new album: The Wizard and I: Liz Callaway Sings Stephen Schwartz, which was recorded at 54 Below. The album is out now and you can order an autographed copy here. The CD includes a 12-page-booklet, with liner notes by Callaway and Schwartz. This is a follow-up to her Grammy-nominated album To Steve With Love: Liz Callaway Celebrates Sondheim. Callaway was joined on stage with Musical Director and pianist Phil Reno, Ritt Henn on bass, and Ron Tierno on drums.
Callaway with Ethan Carlson and Cole Wachman
For “Bless the Lord” from Godspell, Callaway brought two back-up vocalists on stage. Before introducing Ethan Carlson and Cole Wachman, she said “This is actually the first and only show I have ever done at 54 Below with back-up singers, and I am calling them my ‘Lizbians’!” Callaway started doing concerts with Schwartz after 9/11. They would open the concerts with “Beautiful City” from the movie version of Godspell, but he slowed it down and changed some lyrics. “In times of darkness,” she said, “this song gives me hope.”
For the May 18th show, Stephen Schwartz watched the show from a center booth, and joined Callaway on stage to play the piano for a song he wrote for Callaway. “Fearless” came out of conversation, friendship, and lots of tennis matches with Callaway. It was such a treat to see Callaway sing this special song with Schwartz at the Steinway. This song appears on the new album, along with a snippet of Callaway’s original demo for “Just Around the Riverbend” from the animated film Pocahontas. She played the recording for us and expressed gratitude for Disney giving her the rights to use it.
Of course, the highlights of the evening for much of the audience was when Callaway sung
“The Wizard and I” and “For Good” from Wicked and a wonderful “Stephen Schwartz Hits Medley” that included lots of his well-known songs from Broadway and animated films such as Pocahontas, Hunchback of Notre Dame, and Prince of Egypt. Callaway filled us in on a little behind-the-scenes with Schwartz’s collaborations with Alan Menken on the films “Life with Mikey” and “Hunchback of Notre Dame” and delighted us with “Cold Enough to Snow” and “Out There” from those films.
Her penultimate song was “Meadowlark” from The Baker’s Wife. “It is my favorite song to sing. Period. I started singing this song when I was a singing waitress, and I will never stop singing it.” Callaway really puts a lot of emotion into that song, and you can see her love imbued in every note. She ended the evening with a song we all have heard a lot recently with the success of the two Wicked movies: “For Good”. She and Schwartz graciously greeted fans after the show. You can stream Callaway’s new album on all major streaming services.
Callaway made her Broadway debut in Stephen Sondheim’s Merrily We RollAlong, received a Tony Award nomination for her performance in Baby, won acclaim as Grizabella in Cats in her five-year run in the role. In addition, Callaway starred in the original casts of MissSaigon, The Three Musketeers, andThe Look of Love and has also provided the singing voice for numerous animated movies including the Oscar-nominated Anastasia.
