By Andrew Poretz . . .
Isaac Mizrahi, the clothing designer and talk show host, has no filter. And that’s a good thing. But Mizrahi performing cabaret? The mind raced with possibilities. Would he critique clothing from the stage? To the wardrobe, Batman!
As quickly became apparent on opening night March 1 of his annual Café Carlyle residency, Isaac Mizrahi is an absolute gift. He is funny. Snort-inducingly funny. Frank, engaging, vulnerable and raw, he was backed by a killer band of first-rate jazz musicians. This alone would warrant the significant cost of an evening at the legendary Café Carlyle. But wait! There’s more! Mizrahi can really sing! With a lovely voice, he delivers songs like a seasoned cabaret artist. He writes brilliant song parody lyrics. More surprisingly, his ballad interpretations make you gasp at its beauty.
With the band conservatively dressed, Mizrahi wore a tuxedo, shirt open revealing a white tee shirt, with a white double corsage on his left breast pocket. Opening with a bouncy “Get Happy” (Harold Arlen/Ted Koehler), he immediately connected with the full house. His engaging opening monologue touched on the pandemic: “I can’t stay in my room for the rest of my life with my dogs, eating my feelings,” he said, to much laughter. Mizrahi spoke of happiness and the inability to sleep without his “giant sleeping pill.” “People do not come to New York to be happy or to sleep!” There were “Questions for Isaac” cards on every table, and he answered several questions between songs.
Interestingly, Mizrahi’s second number was “Happy Days Are Here Again,” arranged somewhat similarly to Streisand’s part in the legendary Streisand/Garland duet medley of this tune and the first. Turning to new comedic targets like plastic surgery, Botox and hair dye, he mused about recently turning 60. “Someone has to break it to the people on the East Side,” the area of the venue. “After a certain age, you just don’t look better.”
Mizrahi’s parody lyrics for the Beach Boys’ instrumental, “Pet Sounds,” literally had pet sounds in it. “Bow… wow… bark… moon,” with one section performed as a rap. Rapping “There’s some dogs in this house,” he meant dogs, not “dawgs.”
Sexuality was spoken about in a frank, x-rated way that was over-the-top funny. (One could swear the jaw dropped in the Bobby Short portrait in the hallway!) Quoting him here would require many asterisks.
Billie Elish’s “Everything I Wanted” was Mizrahi’s “world premiere” of this song. This was one of several songs for which he read the lyrics. Addressing this in his inimitable fashion, he described the time he and husband Arnold saw Streisand perform at the Barclay Center. He was amazed by her seemingly perfect recall until Arnold pointed out that every word of song and patter was projected for Streisand to read. “So, I don’t feel bad about reading these. Besides, the musicians have music stands!”
Mizrahi gave Cy Coleman/Dorothy Fields tune, “You Wanna Bet,” a Sinatraesque swagger and verve, with a hot trumpet solo by Bruce Harris. A Xanax riff broke up the room. “Let’s hear it for the diazepam family!” He spoke of people thinking they must dress up for him. Before meeting Arnold, his dates would say, “What do I wear on a date with Mizrahi?” He confessed he’d be thinking about “trying to get his clothes off!” At that, he unveiled his raunchy parody of Cole Porter’s “You’re the Top,” his “favorite song, just based, I think, on this title,” which has quite a different meaning for gay men. “Cole Porter knew a thing or two about penises,” he declared before singing his clever lyrics, which managed to rhyme “bitcoin mining” with “indoor dining,” and “Miley Cyrus” with “coronavirus.”
Alicia Keys’ “This Girl is On Fire” allowed Mizrahi to show off his musicians, all of whom, he bemoaned, are straight. There were solos from each. After Joe Peri’s bongo solo, Mizrahi exclaimed, “That made me feel like Judy Garland! That made me feel real for the first time!” He gazed at pianist Ben Waltzer with adoration and appreciation during Waltzer’s excellent solo. “That wasn’t a solo. It’s more like a Netflix series!”
The best and most serious musical moment came with Sondheim’s “One More Kiss .” The ballad, sung perfectly and from the heart, had a muted trumpet solo by Benny Benack III. This gorgeous interpretation required several tissues.
Mizrahi answered the audience question, “Is New York coming back?” with the closing number, a triumphant “New York, New York” (John Kander/Fred Ebb).
Isaac Mizrahi is performing at the Café Carlyle nightly through March 12, 2022.
Photos: David Andrako for Cafe Carlyle
Ben Waltzer: Musical director and piano
Benny Benack III: Trumpet
Bruce Harris: Trumpet
Neil Miner: Bass
Joe Strasser: Drums
Joe Peri: Percussion
Isaac Mizrah In-Person
Café Carlyle, 35 East 76th Street, NYC
