By Peter Haas
Overture!! Ready! Set!
Go? Just about. To quote the song, “there’ll be some changes made” since this year’s New York Cabaret Convention – the 26th — was first announced, this past spring.
One change is that the showcase series is back where it first began, at Town Hall, on West 43rd Street, while the lobbies at its most recent home, Lincoln Center’s Rose Hall, are being refurbished.
For another, the lineup of performers has changed since the series was first announced this past spring. “Some of our performers have gotten new engagements in cabaret and musical theater all over the country,” explains KT Sullivan, Artistic Director of the Convention’s producing organization, the Mabel Mercer Foundation. “And that’s good!” she notes. “The Cabaret Convention is all about bringing performers to the attention of not only cabaret audiences but club bookers from all over the country as well as London, Paris and Australia. The result, we hope, is engagements for them. What’s more, if someone has to drop out of the Convention, that means that we can give someone else a chance to perform, to be seen, to win an audience.”
Another change is the larger number of performers. “There are just so many slots each evening,” KT points out. “It’s usually been a dozen: six in the first act, six in the second. This time, we’re slimming most of our performers down to one song apiece. This way, we can bring more singers on stage, some 70 in all, plus a couple of added slots.” Audiences will hear numbers from the Great American Songbook, including songs of World War II, Marvin Hamlisch, Vernon Duke, Kander & Ebb and others.
In addition to its entertainment quotient, the Cabaret Convention is also an occasion to honor special talents. Several prizes are being given: the Donald F. Smith Award, sponsored by Larry and Adela Elow, to be announced on stage by Rick Meadows, the Foundation’s Managing Director; the Margaret Whiting Award, presented in her honor by her daughter, Debbi Whiting, and the Julie Wilson Award, sponsored by Peter and Linda Hanson. They are purposely presented as surprises to the recipients. “The nominees are made aware that they’re being considered, so they’ll be sure to be there,” says KT “But they only find out which of them is a winner, right then and there, as the audience does, when they are announced.” One exception this year is the Mabel Mercer Award, being presented to Amanda McBroom. “We told her,” says KT, “to ensure that she’d be coming to the Convention from her California home.”
A favorite focus of the Cabaret Convention is its discovery of new performers. One success story is that of Marilyn Maye. One year, attorney Mark Sendroff, long involved with entertainment, saw that there was an open slot at the Convention. Marilyn, who was in town, was a favorite on Johnny Carson’s show; Mark suggested her to perform. Donald Smith said, “Why not?” – and Marilyn sang. Later that night, she was booked to sing at the Metropolitan Room. After her appearance at the Convention, people were lined up down the street outside the Metropolitan Room to see her, and for years beyond at Birdland, and 54 Below (now Feinstein’s/54 Below).
Beyond Town Hall
The Mabel Mercer Foundation has grown beyond its annual Cabaret Convention evenings in promoting cabaret. It will be presenting a panel discussion on the topic on Saturday afternoon, October 17, at 4 PM, with representatives of several of the world’s best-known cabaret spots, including Ruth Leon of London’s Crazy Coqs. The event, at Urban Stages, will be moderated by KT Sullivan, with entertainment before and after the panel by the popular Tim Sullivan. (Admission: $20; $10 for MAC members.) The Foundation is also offering a series of performances throughout the spring at Lynn University, in Boca Raton. And it’s planning to celebrate Cole Porter’s 125th birthday, in June 2016, with a star-studded show at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Hall.
For KT Sullivan, the job is full-time-plus. She is out in the cabaret rooms most nights, scouting talent. “It’s a mission of the Cabaret Convention to keep alive the traditions of cabaret, by showcasing the best talent – well known performers as well as those who, so far, are less well known,” says KT. “We call it a cabaret community. To see that it is, join us at Town Hall. It’s a festival, a coming together, a convening of cabaret people – those who perform it, and those who love it.”
26th Annual New York Cabaret Convention, October 13 – 16, The Town Hall,123 W 43rd St, New York, NY 10036 (212) 997-1003 www.thetownhall.org Mabel Mercer Foundation www.mabelmercer.org 212 980-3026
Ticketmaster: 800 745-3000
