Singer-actor Danny Bolero is Desi Arnaz! Over the years there have been many celebrity tributes and impersonations in cabaret—Liberace, Peggy Lee, Marlene Dietrich, Rita Hayworth and other…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 05:03PMAs a critic, I’m afforded the opportunity to see some wonderful performers. There are times, however, when I see someone in a brilliant new light, and their performance is eye-opening in a…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 04:22PMWhat do you get when you mix entrancing drag queens, a world renowned jazz club and a delicious brunch, then pour them into a shaker and stir? You get a delectable cocktail called Pickled Pi…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 11:29AMJulia Van Cartier is a woman of many talents! She sings, she lip syncs, she‘s a storyteller, she knows how to work an audience and she drinks her vodka from a very special…umm…vessel! …
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 01:33PMI took a trip back in time at Pangea recently. Gerry Geddes’ Fabulous First Fridays made a…well…fabulous return to the club in the East Village and as expected, the show did not disapp…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 05:27PMI’ve seen a lot of drag in my day, but I can safely say I’ve never seen a tap dancing drag queen! As a matter of fact, in all my years in cabaret, I’ve only ever seen one other act fea…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 07:49PMFanny Brice is alive and well and appearing in New York City. No, I’m not referring to the current Broadway revival of Funny Girl, which has received mixed reviews at best. I’m talking a…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 05:19PMGaylin English was known by practically everyone in the NYC nightlife community. Whether she served you dinner at The 5 Oaks or Judy’s, or cocktails at The Colosseum, or even if you just h…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 08:26PMWe need Amanda McBroom! We may not have realized how much we needed her, but boy, did we need her! Her mellifluous voice. Her luminous spirit. Her masterful storytelling. Her sly sensuality.…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 07:25PMWhat did Therese Lee, a Hollywood entertainment reporter, faced with a run of bad luck, do when she no longer had a way to drive to her assignments in Tinseltown? She created her own musical…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 01:32PMI have never seen a bad show from Lennie Watts! Now, full disclosure: Lennie is a friend and cabaret colleague. Back when I was doing tech, I did lights and sound for many of his shows. I’…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 05:10PMIt’s always a treat to see an artist make their New York cabaret debut, especially one as good as Cindy Firing. In this case, the treat was twice as sweet, because not only is Firing incre…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 06:53PMHow on earth do I write this review?! David Dean Bottrell’s show, David Dean Bottrell Makes Love at The Triad Theater is one of the funniest, most touching and at times, one of the filthie…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 04:13PMI have a confession to make. I spent Valentine’s Day with a man who wasn’t my husband! No, it’s not like that! I went to see Matthew Liu’s wonderful show I Will Be Here at the Duplex…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 07:53AMEvery so often, a performer comes along who wins you over the minute they hit the stage and you just know that you’re in for a fantastic show. So it was with the incandescent Gabrielle Lee…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 07:24PMIn his wonderful show, Extra! Extra!, Scott Raneri sang “It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish and you’re gonna finish on top.” Well, Raneri was definitely on top! On top…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 05:51PMOctober 23rd, 2021. It’s a chilly, overcast autumn afternoon in NYC. Still, some of the best and brightest in the worlds of live music and cabaret turned out to present a free concert in F…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 11:52AM*Singer Becca C. Kidwell took her audience at Don’t Tell Mama on a journey—the journey of her life. While this is nothing new in cabaret, I found it fascinating to experience Kidwell’s…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 09:31PMIn my many years in cabaret, I’ve seen quite a few Marlene Dietrich tribute shows, but Kim David Smith’s intoxicating Mostly Marlene, at Club Cumming was indeed, as the Germans might say…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 09:16AMThe glorious duo of singer Elena Bennett and pianist Fred Barton recently got things swingin’ at the West Bank Cafe. Together, they recreated numbers from their timeless CD A Wrinkle in Sw…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 04:57PMIf you want to split a seam laughing and witness a truly classic drag act, you need go no further than Pangea, where Flotilla DeBarge returned to take her audience on a journey into post-Cov…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 06:20PMIt’s not often that I get the chance to review a cabaret show a second time, but Christina Pecce’s Witches, Bitches and Divas was well worth revisiting! I had reviewed Pecce’s show a c…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 02:55PMWelcome back to Pangea and welcome back to the world!” That was how director Gerry Geddes introduced the new show by Wells Hanley, Brian Childers and Matt DiPasquale. Presented not so much…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 06:36PM“We’re OPEN!” With that joyful call, pianist Gerry Diffenbach began his opening set at The Duplex Piano Bar and Cabaret. That one statement elicited shouts of happiness from the alread…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 06:57PMOkay. Full disclosure:I am not a Potterhead! I am not a die-hard Harry Potter fan who’s read all the books, knows which of the Hogwarts houses he belongs to or makes regular pilgrimages to…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 12:18PMIn a world where opportunities to see entertainers performing live are next to nil, I felt very fortunate to have caught two wonderful young singers performing at Don’t Tell Mama on West 4…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 03:29PMThe late Richard Hendrickson was a polarizing figure in the world of cabaret. Loved by many and reviled by others, he made a lasting mark in the New York nightlife community. Richard was…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 01:28PMBy Michael Barbieri***In the hit Broadway and West End comedy The Play That Goes Wrong, an amateur theater company presents a murder mystery beset by multiple onstage disasters. Collapsing …
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 03:40PMMusic that’s tuneful, entertaining and thought provoking? Oh, yeah, I’m on board for that! With All Aboard the Train of Thought, twin brothers Jack and Benny Lipson, known professional…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 01:28PMThese three queens are one remarkable woman! Three Tall Queens is a fascinating, often horrifying and ultimately inspiring serio-comic theater piece based on the life of Lindsey Kay—a pro…
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 06:19PMMama’s Boys are the perfect blendship! Four talented guys, fabulous harmonies, an eclectic mix of musical styles and warm onstage camaraderie make this a show that will have you smiling, …
SOURCE: NiteLifeExchange at 05:33PM