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Rob Lester
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Cabaret Review: LINDA EDER: PLAY IT FORWARD (54 Below)
A FAMILY AFFAIR AT 54 BELOW Linda Eder shines, with a promising assist from Jake Wildhorn; like mother like son — both likeable Casual and confident, a smiling Linda Eder strode onto the stage on February 9 at the venue where she’s a regular—54 Below—welcomed extra warmly by her fervent fans. The publicity for this…
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Cabaret Review: MARTIN BONVENTRE (Swingin’ in a New Dimension Album Release, The Beechman)
A SWING SET WITH PROMISE AND PATCHES Martin Bonventre’s energetic debut mixes strong musicianship with uneven vocal control Martin Bonventre sang a line in his act that was unintentionally relevant on the very last night of January, when the temperature in New York City had plunged to a punishingly low number. The song in question…
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Cabaret Review: CATHERINE RUSSELL (Birdland Jazz Club / New York)
GOOD VIBES, GOOD SONGS– LET THE GOOD TIMES ROLL Vintage jazz, Mardi Gras spirit, and irresistible charm make for another Birdland triumph Celebrating ten years of playing Birdland, the imminent release of a new live recording, and the sounds of New Orleans’ annual Fat Tuesday festivities, Catherine Russell was in a merry Mardi Gras mood…
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Music Review: COME SUNDAY: THE SACRED WORKS OF DUKE ELLINGTON (Jazz at Lincoln Center / New York City)
TAKE THE “A” TO AMEN Luther S. Allison reimagines Ellington’s sacred music with power, passion, and joyful reverence. A mix of jubilation and reverence was, appropriately, projected in a satisfying concert at the end of January in The Appel Room, one of the performance spaces of Jazz at Lincoln Center at Columbus Circle. To get…
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Off-Broadway Review: AN IDEAL HUSBAND (Storm Theatre at A.R.T./New York Theatres)
WITNESSING WILDE’S WONDERFUL WIT IS ALWAYS WELCOME Storm Theatre delivers elegance and precision, if not always sparkle Lurking under the characters’ control, courtesies and curtseys, calculated comments, formal wear and formalities, etiquette, etc., are their real feelings and fears that forced smiles with gritted teeth and British stiff-upper-lip mask. Mocking manners and marriage in the…
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Cabaret Review: JIMMIE HERROD (54 Below)
A HIGH VOICE, SOME HIGHLIGHTS, AND A HIGH-SPIRITED CROWD If you were shopping for the most versatile fantasy fabric for fashioning a fabulous outfit, imagine it by checking each of these boxes: ✅ … something smooth as silk, ☑️ … something warm as wool, ✅ … stretchable as elastic, ☑️ … solid as denim, ✅…
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Cabaret Review: QUINTIN HARRIS TRIO (Quintin Harris, Griffin Frank, and Max Marsillo at Birdland Jazz Club)
QUINTESSENTIAL QUINTIN Essential jazz, effortless swing, and a trio’s genuine chemistry Jazz fans bid farewell to January with a smile at Birdland Jazz Club by settling into a sublimely satisfying set by pianist and vocalist Quintin Harris and his terrific trio-mates, bassist Griffin Fink and drummer Max Marsillo. “We’ve become like brothers,” the calm leader…
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Concert Review: AN EVENING WITH LAURA BENANTI (Kaufmann Concert Hall, 92NY)
MUSIC, MEMORIES, MOTHERHOOD & MELANIA Laura Benanti sparkles in a knowing, joyful evening at 92NY Her silver gown sparkled. Her voice sparkled. Her wit sparkled. Yes, Laura Benanti was aglow on January 29 in a concert at 92NY. Self-aware, self-confident, and a bit full of herself in the most entertaining way possible, her musical menu…
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Cabaret Events: AMERICAN SONGBOOK HIGH SCHOOL COMPETITION & CABARET WORKSHOP CONCERT (Mabel Mercer Foundation, Laurie Beechman Theatre)
A CONTEST AND A CONCERT The Mabel Mercer Foundation nurtures the next generation of cabaret artists Three cheers for the Mabel Mercer Foundation (MMF) and its ongoing commitment to introducing younger performers to the Great American Songbook and the art of cabaret. This winter, the Foundation has presented two related initiatives: a concert held last…
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Theater Preview: CREATIVE STAGE SPECTACULAR 2026 (Creative Stage Collective, Symphony Space)
AN INTERGENERATIONAL, SENSATIONAL THEATRE GROUP Creative Stage Collective’s annual revue proves that age is irrelevant when imagination leads To get to their Sunday rehearsals, the many members of Creative Stage Collective are real troopers, traipsing and trudging through snow falling—and lingering—in unpleasant temperatures dipping below freezing and staying there. After all, these dedicated kids, teens,…
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Concert Review: ISABEL LEONARD AND FRIENDS (Carnegie Hall)
A VARIED AND VOLUPTUOUS NIGHT OF SONG A night at Carnegie Hall always feels special and elegant, and the evening of January 15 was no exception. Applause was plentiful, cheers resounded, and moments of surprise and comic relief brought amused laughter that banished any fear that a heavy layer of formulaic formality would settle over…
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Theater Review: CAMELTON (Stephen Cole’s One-Man Show About One Man’s Wild Ride)
THERE’S NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE MIDDLE EAST Stephen Cole’s backstage Qatar saga is stranger than fiction—and just as entertaining In the story category of “truth is stranger than fiction,” and well worthy of inclusion in an edition of Ripley’s Believe It or Not, comes the mind-boggling saga of how…
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Music Review: THE LOVESTRUCK BALLADEERS (Birdland Theater)
A POEM IN PRAISE OF THE LOVESTRUCK BALLADEERS There’s a super group that gets plenty of cheers:They’re called The Lovestruck Balladeers.They had a Birdland three-night gig.And the repertoire was pretty darn big.They play vintage music – originals, too.One cute highlight’s a song that’s called “Looking for You.”And this delight just happens to beThe title tune…
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Theatre Review: GOING BACHARACH: THE SONGS OF AN ICON (Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater)
A REMARKABLY RESPLENDENT & RADIANT REVUE If you’re wandering around Manhattan, just “Wishin’ and Hopin’” for a magnificent musical revue with some “Magic Moments,” don’t “Walk On By” the building at 10 West 64th Street. The show there is the “Best That You Can Do,” so “Make It Easy on Yourself” and see the super-satisfying…
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Concert | Theater Review: OKLAHOMA! IN CONCERT (Carnegie Hall)
OH, WHAT A BEAUTIFUL EVENIN’! RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN RIDE AGAIN AT CARNEGIE HALL With a full cast, full dialogue, and a glorious orchestra, this Oklahoma! concert leans into the classic’s warmth— exclamation point included. Ah, the classic musical Oklahoma! It begins with the offstage cowboy character named Curly singing about nature—“There’s a bright golden haze…
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Theatre Review: FINDING DOROTHY PARKER (Laurie Beechman Theatre)
SARCASM ON STEROIDS To say that Dorothy Parker had a way with words would be the understatement of the century—and she spanned two of them, being born in the last decade of the 1800s and hanging on until 1967. Even her own death was subject to one more pithy punchline. In a story with herself…
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Cabaret Review: BOOM! 15TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT (Ann Hampton Callaway & Liz Callaway at 54 Below)
BOOM! IS A BLAST! Separately, each is terrific. Together, the two are sublime. When singing sisters Ann Hampton Callaway and Liz Callaway combine their voices and sensibilities—echoing each other’s lines, with glorious harmonies weaving and soaring through songs—it’s one of the best things you can do for your ears. At 54 Below, through Saturday, January…
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Off-Broadway Review: THE DISAPPEAR (Minetta Lane Theatre)
MARRIAGE, MOVIES & MISERIES AT MINETTA LANE Marriage may be like a garden — has to be consistently and attentively nurtured and cared for or it will wither instead of bloom and grow — but for Ben and Mira in The Disappear, nobody’s doing much watering, making this particular union look parched, prickly, and perilously…
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Cabaret Review: DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER & BILL CHARLAP (Birdland)
A PLEASING PAIR Standards stretched, teased, and joyfully reimagined The song “’S Wonderful” will be a century old next year, so it’s not a new thing to wonder if its titular positive adjective might describe the rendition du jour and the full live set or recording in which it has appeared. In the case of…
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Album Review: CHRISTMAS & YOU (Anthony Nunziata)
A RARE HOLIDAY ALBUM OF ALL-NEW SONGS Anthony Nunziata sidesteps recycled carols with a freshly written, earnest Christmas collection It’s not exactly a Christmas miracle, but it is kind of rare among the thousands of holiday albums to find one with material that is 100% new. Year after year, most new releases rely heavily on…
Theater Review: ANY REBELLION OF WILL (Trap Door Theatre in Chicago)
by Croydon Fernandes | October 14, 2026
in Chicago, TheaterOff-Broadway Review: A GHOST IN YOUR EAR (Audible Theater at Minetta Lane Theatre)
by Gregory Bernard | October 14, 2026
in New York, TheaterOpera Review: DON GIOVANNI (Lyric Opera)
by Barnaby Hughes | October 12, 2026
in Chicago, Music, TheaterTheater Review: DRACULA: A COMEDY OF TERRORS (Actors’ Shakespeare Project, Watertown)
by Lynne Weiss | October 11, 2026
in Boston, TheaterOff-Broadway Review: GOOD TIME CHARLIE (The Public Theater)
by Gregory Bernard | October 9, 2026
in New York, TheaterTheater Review: VLADIMIR (Shattered Globe Theatre, Chicago)
by Emma S. Rund | October 9, 2026
in Chicago, TheaterTheater Review: AMERICAN RHYTHM (Lamb’s Players Theatre / Coronado)
by Milo Shapiro | October 8, 2026
in San Diego, Theater
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