It's so exciting! There are all of these amazing competitions going on in and around NYC, giving a vast variety of amazing performers the chance to strut their stuff and show off. I've been able to make it to some of these competitions and I'm very happy to say that the competition is tight. It's very hard to try to figure out who's going to win these.
I'm going to start with the MetroStar Talent Challenge. This is a competition that's been going on at the Metropolitan Room. I found out about the competition because of one of the Top Five contestants, Danielle Grabianowski. I was amazed by the talent! Of the three women in the top five, I will say with no hesitation that any one of them could easily take the win. I'll start by talking about Liz Lark Brown. Ms. Brown is one of the two "Kissin' Kazoo Sisters" who often perform with Joe Iconis:
(she's the taller one with the darker lipstick)
Ms. Brown opened her set with the lyric "The saddest thing about having one leg..." (paused long enough for the crowd to snicker appropriately) "... is that having one leg isn't the saddest thing about me!" She used this song of loneliness and physical disproportion to lead her into a beautiful rendition of "Sleepy Man" (God, but I wish I had a video of this to show you!), and that's not even the most impressive part. Her dulcet tones in "Sleepy Man" worked as the perfect set-up for her next line: "That song is dedicated to someone who has passed on." (Awwww!) "He's not actually dead, he's just dead to me." Count that among one of the biggest and longest laughs I've ever heard in any theatre. Her versatility from comic to dramatic and back again--add that to her incredibly impressive vocals--makes her a must-see cabaret performer.
Next, I'll mention Carole Bufford, who opened her bluesy set with "Gimme a Pigfoot":
Ms. Bufford is a trained musical theatre performer who chose to focus on that age-old American institution, the blues, for her set the night I was there. She runs the gamut from outlandish to subtle all within each song. She has a sense of humor that brings out the sincerest human emotions in every song she sang. And she's got a range to match. She also looks (as I'm not sure you can tell from the angle of that video) like Betty Boop, so it's lucky for her Ms. Boop will be coming to Broadway in a new musical next year!
Now, I'll talk about my friend Danielle Grabianowski. Danielle has one of the most unique voices I've ever heard. Listen to her BroadwayDemo, and I'm sure you'll agree. She seems very rooted in pre-1950s music (though she did mention that one of her latest influences is Regina Spektor). Her vocal quality and her understanding of the musical structure of those early years of American music make her a stand-out among many of today's cabaret singers. I was lucky enough to hear her sing what the judges referred to as possibly the definitive rendition of one of my favorite songs, "Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" It's this quality that won Danielle the title of 2008 1930s Idol last summer, another competition which she judged this year.
1930s Idol is an annual competition held in honor of Dorothy Parker's birthday. She would be 116 years old this year, and as Bill Zeffiro aptly puts it in his song "Happy Birthday, Mrs. Parker" I'm sure she doesn't wish she was here. But those of us who attended the finals last night were very glad we were there! A number of impressive performer sang their little hearts out--a la Depression Era crooners--in order to win the title of 2009 1930s Idol.
The first runner-up for the evening was the always entertaining and wildly funny Ritt Henn:
Mr. Henn could not sing one of his own compositions for the competition, but instead, wowed us with his hilarious rendition of "Has Anybody Seen My Gal?" accompanying himself on ukelele and slap-bass. His comparisons of the bass (which stands even taller than he does) to his gal (mentioned in the song as being 5' 2", which would come about to Mr. Henn's shoulder) tickled the audience and obviously tickled the judges, as well.
The 2009 audience favorite was the amazing Merrill Grant:
Ms. Grant, a Shirley Temple fanatic, has an uncanny ability to mimic the vocal stylings of the 1930s in a way that doesn't sound mocking nor unintentionally comic, but sincere and nostalgic for an era long gone. I'm sure she was voted so high by the audience because she truly brought us all back to a time of black and white, toes tapping and Busby Berkely beauties.
The 2009 1930s Idol champion was the 2008 first runner up, Sigali Hamberger--who does not have any video or audio up anywhere. If you see her, tell her to remedy this. Ms. Hamberger brought the 1930s style sex to the evening, starting with her somewhat shocking and very funny rendition of "Primative Man" and concluding with a sultry "Do It Again" by the Gershwin brothers, surely steaming up at least a few sets of spectacles in the room (I was wearing my contact lenses which, to my knowledge, do not steam up). Among Ms. Hamberger's prizes was her own evening at Big Night Out, so we'll have to come back and see what she drums up when she has an entire hour to fill!
I would be remiss if I did not mention the other two of 1930s Idol's Top Five, the stunning and sweet Julie Leedes and the sassy and brassy Sierra Rein, both of whom gave the other contestants a good run for their money.
Well, competition season is not yet over, and we are getting right into the thick of festival season. I will be back next week with news from the NY Fringe Festival and I look forward to seeing what comes out of the NY Musical Theatre Festival next month. I'll also be sure to let you know who wins the MetroStar Talent Challenge, and perhaps I'll see you there next Monday night!
