By Andrew Poretz . . .
With a Song in My Heart: A Cornucopia of Entertainment, the third and final night of the 37th New York Cabaret Convention, was KT Sullivan’s night. Sullivan, a singer and actress and the Mabel Mercer Foundation’s artistic director, has kept the spirit and focus of the Foundation at the forefront of the cabaret world since Donald Smith’s passing in 2012. For this night, the theme, “A Cornucopia of Entertainment,” would be realized with a seemingly endless supply of talented performers.
KT, sporting a top hat, cold-opened the show sitting at the piano (a talent she picked up during the pandemic) to perform a somewhat subdued medley of “Give My Regards to Broadway” (George M. Cohan), “Take Me Back to Manhattan” (Cole Porter) and “I Happen to Like New York” (Cole Porter)
Pianist Jon Weber, bassist Steve Doyle and drummer Ray Marchica were the accompanists throughout the evening, except where indicated.
Susan Mack made a powerhouse convention debut with a medley of “I’m Gonna Live Till I Die” (Al Hoffman) and Let the Good Times Roll” (Sam Theard, Fleecie Moore), with special lyrics Mack wrote. This writer has known Mack since she was finding her way around the scene at open mics. I have reviewed her at several of her (usually sold-out) Birdland shows, and observed as she kept adding to her skill set and confidence through sheer hard work and determination. That hard work has truly paid off. Brava!
Robert Cuccioli performed with pianist Joe Baker for a medley of a song associated with Sinatra, “How Little We Know” (Phillip Springer/Carolyn Leigh), and another with Dean Martin, “Ain’t That a Kick in the Head” (Jimmy Van Heusen/Sammy Cahn).
Dawn Padmore made her convention debut with an operatic “Losing My Mind” (Stephen Sondheim) with pianist Brian Holman.
Tim Connell brought his beautiful tenor voice to “End of the World” (Matt Alber), a bittersweet song about a roller coaster of a dying romance, accompanied by pianist James Followell, along with violinist Seoyeon Im.
The very young Madeline Joy Travis evoked Barbara Cook with her lovely rendition of “Will He Like Me?” (Jerry Bock/Sheldon Harnick) from She Loves Me.
“You’re Nearer” (Richard Rodgers/Lorenz Hart) featured pianist/singer Jim Harder and singer Tim Cahill, humorously calling themselves “The IMs” (no relation to violinist Seoyeon Im). Tim has an absolutely gorgeous, pure bari-tenor that is a pleasure to listen to. Their voices blended nicely when they sang together.
Italian singer-songwriter Mafalda Minnozzi and the brilliant guitarist Paul Ricci have been making a splash the last couple of years with their duo act, which is well worth seeing. They were just terrific on “The Girl from Ipanema” (Antônio Carlos Jobim/Vinicius de Moraes, Norman Gimbel [English lyrics]) in both Portuguese and English. (See my March 2026 review HERE.)
The always debonair Eric Yves Garcia is a pianist, singer and polyglot raconteur who seems to have stepped out of a classic Woody Allen film scene. His stories are enchanting, and with his voice and cadence, he could probably read the phone book and not lose his audience. He performed “C’etait Moi” (“It was me”) (Frederick Loewe/Alan Jay Lerner) in French, then in English. You can find him holding court at The Pierre Hotel.
Actress and singer Melodie Wolford sang “Smile” (Charlie Chaplin/John Turner, Geoffrey Parsons) for her convention debut, with a downward modulation, accompanied by pianist Stephen Purdy and cellist Alden Terry.
Turkish immigrant Can M. Yasar (whose first name is pronounced “John”), also making his convention debut, performed Neil Diamond’s “Coming to America” with a passionate delivery and excellent voice. He sang from the perspective of himself being an immigrant, though he sounds as though he’s lived here forever. Tracy Stark accompanied on piano.
Shana Farr and Craig Rubano have two of the best voices in all of cabaret, and look as good as they sound. Their voices blended splendidly on “With A Song in My Heart” (Richard Rodgers/Lorenz Hart), including the obscure verse, to close the first act, with the “Prince of Cabaret” Steve Ross on piano as well as adding a third voice to the mix.
The always exciting and fabulous Carole J. Bufford returned to the convention for an ode to the late Dolly Parton. She chose “Little Bitty Pissant Country Place” (Carol Hall). Though not written by Parton, the legend performed it in the movie version of The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. The Georgia native is the perfect performer for this material, and was accompanied by her usual pianist, Ian Herman.
Raissa Katona Bennett and Arbender Robinson returned to the patriotic spirit with “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor” (Irving Berlin) with pianist Mark Janus. Their voices are good together.
Marieann Meringolo, who has a new show honoring Barbra Streisand, performed beautifully on “Pieces of Dreams” (Michel Legrand/Alan and Marilyn Bergman), also known by its opening line, “Little Girl Lost,” accompanied by Doyle Newmyer.
Sam Jewison, like Eric Yves Garcia, is a dapper pianist, singer and storyteller, albeit with a proper London accent. He delivered beautifully on “The Heather on the Hill” (Frederick Loewe/Alan Jay Lerner) from Brigadoon.
Ann Kittredge, stunning in a goddess-like outfit with matching floor-length cape and exposed legs, knocked it out of the park with Carole King’s “I Feel the Earth Move,” accompanied by pianist Christopher Denny. There was excellent work by guitar virtuoso Sean Harkness and bassist Steve Doyle on this number.
Brian De Lorenzo returned to the convention after some 26 years to perform a medley of “Just in Time,” including the very obscure verse, rubato, before lightly swinging it, and “Fly Me to the Moon” in the same shuffle rhythm. Afterwards, KT told a fascinating story about her first New York pianist, Bart Howard, who began writing songs at Mabel Mercer’s encouragement. His ballad “In Other Words,” first recorded by Kaye Ballard, eventually became known as “Fly Me to the Moon,” a title Howard formally adopted at Peggy Lee’s urging in 1963. KT noted that without Mabel Mercer, we might never have had “Fly Me to the Moon.”
Contralto Celia Berk was delightful on “Laughing Matters” (David Shire/Richard Maltby, Jr.) accompanied by Alex Rybeck.
Frank Sinatra famously said that Vic Damone had the “best pipes in the business.” Sinatra never heard Ben Jones, whose rangy tenor is something to behold on the surprising choice of ABBA’s “Slipping Through My Fingers” (Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson). KT noted that Jones “bent” the song. “I didn’t know I liked it!”
The funny yet regal Marta Sanders brought her big voice and presence to an obscure Argentinian song, “Volero,” but not before setting up the story and bringing it to life in a spellbinding manner, with accompanist Mark Nadler fooling the audience with the opening chords to “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina.” Sanders is like an old-school music hall performer. She was in top form here. It took a minute to notice that she was accompanied by the unusually subdued pianist, Nadler, who showed he can turn the dial when accompanying someone. He even subtly dashed off the stage the moment the song was finished, only to return a minute later for his own number. Sanders could easily have been the closing act, but wait! There’s more!
Mark Nadler is known for long pieces that are like shows unto themselves, with multiple tempos and surprising turns that take the listener on emotional journeys that can leave one entirely stunned. His timing is exquisite. His spectacular, showstopping “Ragtime Medley” is a theatrical arrangement of songs from the Broadway show Ragtime (Stephen Flaherty/Lynn Ahrens), featuring “New Music,” incorporating his own family’s history as Polish immigrants. Bravissimo!
The Mabel Mercer Foundation’s 37th Annual Cabaret Convention was held at Frederick P. Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center, 10 Columbus Circle, New York City.
Photos: Stephen Mosher
Cover photo: Andrew Poretz
