MAYES YOU LIVE IN INTERESTING TIMES
Cabaret great and Tony-nominee Sally Mayes has been presenting a series of career retrospective concerts at the intimate Green Room 42 on the 4th floor of Yotel near Times Square. Each performance of this series is a one off, and those fortunate enough to catch Now And Then: The Stories on May 16, 2024, were lucky indeed.
One of Mayes most interesting gifts is a knack for selecting unusual material, and these stories (many of them featuring her original lyrics) do not disappoint. She opened with a dazzler: Frank Loesser’s rarely heard, hilarious, jazzy retelling of “Hamlet.” It includes this memorable verse:
“He bumped off his uncle
And he Micky Finned his mother
And he drove his girl to suicide
And stabbed her big brother
Cause he didn’t want nobody else but himself should live
He was watcha might call Un-co-operative.”
This gem was introduced by the great Betty Hutton in the film Red, Hot and Blue. It is an excellent choice for Mayes, who shares Betty Hutton’s gift for both physical and vocal comedy. as well as her “country girl on Broadway” persona. Mayes makes the most of it musically and physically as well.
“Hamlet” is one of many story telling triumphs presented by Mayes in this truly excellent show. Also memorable was her surprising choice of the song “Shopping Cart of Love” by folksinger and fellow cabaret diva, Christine Lavin. Before launching into this shaggy dog of a musical joke (sung to perfection), she made a pitch for Lavin’s remarkable storytelling talent and called for more cabaret artists to perform her work. She’s right: Lavin is a hoot (and not exactly obscure, having won five ASCAP composer awards).
Several songs were her own compositions. The love song “Somebody Sent Me an Angel,” showcased her lyrical ballad skills and left us sighing with empathy and delight. The hilarious “Dagmar: The Pirate King” about the fantasies of a small town reader of romantic fiction had me howling.
Mayes, who began her career singing rock-and-roll, closed with a hard rocking cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “The Fever” and left me wanting more. Music director Tedd Firth offered skillful piano accompaniment and contributed good-natured humor to the vocals in “The Fever.” He was joined by Michael O’Brien on bass.
The excellent backup singers were Jessica Wright (who also played the violin) and Carolyn Montgomery. They are no slouches! Wright has Broadway credits of her own (Sweeney Todd) and Montgomery returns to 54 Below on Wednesday May 22nd at 7 pm in girlSINGER, a celebration of Rosemary Clooney.
Mayes will return to The Green Room 42 on June 20th for the last of this series: Now And Then: The Great Big Huge Broadway. You should be there.
The Green Room 42, dedicated to making cabaret available to all, offers remarkably affordable ticket prices, including student rush tickets, and never requires a minimum beverage or drink purchase (although they do offer a full dinner menu at reasonable prices).
SONG LIST:
HAMLET- By Frank Loesser
I’LL GET UP TOMORROW MORNING – Music: David Shire
Lyrics: Richard Maltby
SOUTHBOUND TRAIN-By Julie Gold
WHISKEY LULLABY- Music: Sally Mayes and Ethan Fein
Lyrics: Sally Mayes
PAINTING MY KITCHEN
By John Bucchino
SOMEBODY SENT ME AN ANGEL
Music: Sally Mayes and Ethan Fein
Lyrics: Sally Mayes
SHOPPING CART OF LOVE
By Christine Lavin
DEAR DANNY
Music: Sally Mayes and Ron Abel
Lyrics: Sally Mayes
DAGMAR THE PIRATE KING
Music: Sally Mayes and Tex Arnold
Lyrics: Sally Mayes
UNKNOWN
By Gary Burr and Aimee Mayo
ONE MORE MINUTE
By Al Yankovic
SWEET DREAMS
By John Bucchino
MEETING ACROSS THE RIVER
By Bruce Springsteen
SUPERSTAR
By Leon Russell and Bonnie Bramlett
ANYONE WHO HAD A HEART
Music: Burt Bacharach
Lyric: Hal David
AFTER ALL
Music: Sally Mayes and Tex Arnold
Lyric: Sally Mayes
Encore:
THE FEVER
By Bruce Springsteen
