Cabaret Review by Brian Scott Lipton . . .
As her now-traditional opening song states, there is a party going on whenever Jamie deRoy hosts one of her now-too-infrequent variety shows, each guaranteed to have happy guests both off and on the stage. Her July 1 outing at Birdland, a benefit for the Entertainment Community Fund, was no exception, offering 90 minutes of truly outstanding entertainment.
As always, deRoy—now very busy as a theater producer with a shelf-load of Tony Awards to her credit—was an excellent emcee, generously praising the performers and keeping the audience amused with anecdotes from her colorful past. But deRoy is smart enough to know she is not the main attraction. H er primary job is to invite a variety of singers and comedians who deserve their 10 minutes in the spotlight.
Two musical theater favorites, Jason Graae and A.J. Shively, once again proved their star quality. Graae was charm personified singing the love ballad “Mrs. S.L. Jacobowsky” from Jerry Herman’s The Grand Tour, while delighting the crowd with a comically exaggerated version of the standard “Just a Gigolo,” in which he also reminded us of his remarkable proficiency with the oboe.
Shively, most recently seen in the stunning Encores! production of Titanic, showed off his considerable leading man chops on Burton Lane and Frank Loesser’s infectious “I Hear Music,” and then practically brought the audience to tears with a touching rendition of Lynn Ahrens’ and Stephen Flaherty’s “Love Who You Love” (from A Man of No Importance)—adding to the pathos by letting us know he recently heard this song performed by a seven-year-old in a school musical!
It was a real thrill to hear rock legend Jim Vallance talk about writing two of his biggest hits with frequent songwriting partner, the legendary Bryan Adams (oh so appropriate on Canada Day), and then listen to these tunes, “Heaven” and “Summer of ‘69” being performed with strong-voiced bravado by his life partner, the stunning Catherine Porter, whom I immediately need to see more frequently.
New Zealand native Jason Henderson did full justice to two witty and sometimes wistful songs, from Noel Coward, “I Like America” and “Come the Wild, Wild Weather,” while MOIPEI, a stunning group made up of three identical female triplets from Kenya, simply wowed the crowd with their exquisite harmonies on John Fogerty’s R&B classic “Proud Mary” and Stephen Sondheim’s elegiac “Sunday” (from Sunday in the Park with George).
Finally, the sole comic on the bill, Cory Kahaney (familiar from Last Comic Standing and soon to have her own Amazon Prime special), made the most of her short set, much of it devoted to a hilarious complaint letter she received after performing in a tribute to the late Joan Rivers, along with the zingy response letter she penned. (Also, you will never think of the term “Yemenite Jewelry” again—if you ever hear it—without chuckling loudly.)
Of course, a show like this also depends on dependable musicians, such as pianist Ron Abel and bassist Tom Hubbard, who played for all the acts, as well as guest pianist Christopher Denny and guitarist Nate Brown, along with the flawless direction of deRoy’s longtime collaborator Barry Kleinbort.
So next time you find yourself “invited” to a Jamie deRoy & Friends party, RSVP “Yes” ASAP.
Jamie deRoy & Friends took place July 1 at Birdland (315 West 44th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues). www.birdlandjazz.com)
Photos: Maryann Lopinto
