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| Although the runs of most cabaret shows don't lend themselves to full-scale reviews at CurtainUp, on this page we attempt to bring readers a taste of cabaret life in New York. In the section called "New and Noteworthy," we provide news and reports about cabaret goings-on that are especially worthy of attention; in the "Cabaret Venue" section, a list of major cabaret venues of potential interest to theater-goers in New York and, where available, links to websites that contain up-to-date information on who's performing. |
New and
Noteworthy
Ute Lemper: "Voyage"
By Brad Bradley
Ute Lemper’s current engagement at the Café Carlyle is one of the most far-ranging and stirring cabaret performances in recent memory. This German native who now lives in New York has created a programme from a large assortment of styles and languages (going far beyond the predictable English and German). She began with "Ikh Shtey Unter a Boyserboym", a Yiddish/Russian plea for promises in a land of freedom, the contemporary political relevance not lost on her savvy New York audience. That was followed by "Life’s a Swindle," a more upbeat tune but effectively socially pointed as well.
By Ms. Lemper’s third number, she was on territory more familiar to her audience, Kurt Weill’s "Alabama Song," which she rendered beautifully, choosing to playfully interpolate a moment of Marilyn Monroe’s "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" to lighten the mood. Already the evening was feeling like an unusually emotional experience; it’s an understatement that Ms. Lemper’s choices will not always please the faint-of heart, but surely will excite and even thrill many bold cabaret fans. Her willingness to bare her soul in an entertainment forum leads what often becomes an ethereal communication with her audience. As she is quoted herself in a press release, "I keep experiencing music as an expression of the heart in the search for ultimate freedom and peace, as I breathe and live inside the centers of chaos in the worlds of today and yesterday."
In keeping with her "voyage" theme, we next were off to "Buenos Aires" by way of Ms. Lemper’s own fine translation of Piazzolla. Later, her own evocative song "September Mourn"(a double meaning surely intended) stirringly recalled the most horrid day of recent memory.
A more familiar musical response to the ninth month in the calendar was Weill’s "September Song,"”a surprising choice beautifully rendered. Of course this standard tune, one of Weill’s first as an American resident, forever has been associated with a gentleman of advanced age and requires some suspension of disbelief by the audience when sung by a relatively young woman. Such an iconoclastic choice notwithstanding, we can’t forget that our singer has the strongest Weill credentials and presentations since his widow Lotte Lenya last concertized decades ago.
The final trio of selections at the occasion attended all are highly energetic yet laced with darker meanings. They are the Jacques Brel’s Belgian take on "Amsterdam," Weill’s unforgettable anthem from The Threepenny Opera," Moritat" (better known as "Mack the Knife"), and the sadly sentimental French "La Vie en Rose," here easily overcoming memories of Edith Piaf’s recordings. Lemper has built into the "Moritat" a medley with Kander and Ebb’s "All that Jazz," now known to many millions from the film version of Chicago, but appreciated long before by theater and cabaret audiences. The newer song surely must be counted a career milestone for Ms. Lemper, who appeared as Velma in stage productions in London, New York, and Las Vegas.
The full hour sailed by, with the management impatiently raising house lights to prepare for a second show. Hopefully arrangements can be made at future dates in this engagement to permit an encore or at least a comfortable good-bye from the artist. Additional songs in Ms. Lemper’s current repertoire, including selections by Tom Waits, Nick Cave, and Stephen Sondheim, will be welcome.
Ute Lemper: Voyage
with Van Gierig (piano), Mark Lambert (acoustic guitar), and Todd Turkisher (drums)
Running Time: One hour (no intermission)
Café Carlyle, 35 East 76th Street at Madison Avenue
Viewed on Friday, January 9, 2003 by Brad Bradley
Plays Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8:45 p.m. Late shows on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 10:45 p.m. From January 9 until January 31.
Cabaret Venues
{Phone Numbers are 212 unless noted)
{Phone Numbers are 212 unless noted)
Arci's Place, 450 Park Avenue South 532-4370 Closed 3/15/02
Café Carlyle, 35 East 76th Street 744-1600
Danny's Skylight Room, 346 West 46th Street 265-8133 www.dannysgrandseapalace.com
Dillon's,) 245 West 54th Street, 212-307-9797
Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street 757-0788 www.donttellmama.com
The Duplex, 61 Christopher Street 255-5438 www.theduplex.com
Feinstein's, 540 Park Avenue 339-4095 www.feinsteinsattheregency.com
Firebird, 365 West 46th Street 586-0244 New Upstairs cabaret
Rose's Turn, 55 Grove Street, 212-712-8702
Joe's Pub, 425 LaFayette Street 539-8770 www.joespub.com
Judy's Chelsea, 169 Eighth Avenue 929-5410 (closed)
The Julie Wilson Room, 32 West 37th Street 947-8940 (New)
Rose's Turn, 55 Grove Street 366-5438 www.rosesturn.com
The Triad, 158 West 72nd Street 799-4599
West Bank Café/Laurie Beechman Theater, 407 West 42nd Street 695-6909
At This Theater
Leonard Maltin's 2003 Movie and Video Guide
Ridiculous!The Theatrical Life & Times of Charles Ludlam
Somewhere For Me, a Biography of Richard Rodgers
The New York Times Book of Broadway: On the Aisle for the Unforgettable Plays of the Last Century
6, 500 Comparative Phrases including 800 Shakespearean Metaphors by CurtainUp's editor.
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