Interview: An unexpected cabaret journey

Brisbane based performer and writer Jenny Wynter has built her career that encompasses musical, character and improvised comedy. She decided to try her hand at cabaret a few years ago and hasn’t looked back since. Even a serious car accident didn’t stop this bright, energetic star - undeterred by the setback, she went to Los Angeles, wrote an award-winning show and captured the hearts of her audience. Earlier this year, she honed her craft at the Australian Cabaret Summer School and now, she’s ready to present An Unexpected Variety Show at the Adelaide Fringe 2012. With opening night less than one month away, she talks to Cabaret Confessional about her cabaret journey so far and the show that started it all.

What can the Adelaide audience expect when they go and see An Unexpected Variety Show?

For starters, it’s a one-woman variety show! I’m completely in love with the variety format. It fuses together cabaret, stand-up, character, musical and improv comedy, around the premise that “life is an unexpected variety show”.  It’s by far the most deeply personal thing I have ever dared bring onstage. I’ve had people come up to me crying in the foyer afterwards sharing their own stories. I received emails saying the show had made them decide to move interstate to pursue performing. A woman returned to see the show the next night bringing along her recent ex-husband… it’s the first time I’ve done something that seems to be really hitting such a nerve with people.

You’ve completely re-written the show in LA with a director Gary Austin. How did that opportunity come about? 

I did a masterclass in improv a couple of years ago in New York and Gary was one of the teachers. We connected immediately and both of us expressed an interest in working together again, but with three small kids and a life back in Australia, it was a bit tricky to organise.

Then in 2011, I was incredibly fortunate to be supported by the Ian Potter Cultural Trust to travel to LA to work with Gary in a series of private sessions focusing on solo improv performance and also with another of my incredible mentors, Michael Pollock, on solo musical improv. That whole experience was mind-blowing.  While I was there, I also performed my show for Gary who completely “got” what I was trying to do and became such a champion for it. Over the course of my time there, we re-wrote the show completely in his backyard and I ended the trip with a work-in-progress viewing at a cute little theatre in SoHo.

What was the process like to give your show a total makeover? 

I already knew the show was connecting with people, but seeing the difference between that work-in-progress show, which is the one I brought to Adelaide last year for the Cabaret Fringe, and what it is now - they just feel like different shows. Gary taught me the power of cutting the crap - even the crap you’ve become quite attached to - if it doesn’t serve the ultimate purpose of the show. Also having his directing hand was invaluable, particularly given that he comes from such a rich improv background. He taught me that each show really SHOULD be like an improv show. That you should constantly be discovering new moments, no two performances should be exactly the same; that really has transformed the show in itself. But more than just the work we did, Gary’s passion and belief in my show really transformed my own passion and belief in it.

An Unexpected Variety Show won the Award for Excellence in Cabaret at the Melbourne Fringe Festival. What was your reaction? 

Complete giggling shock! I didn’t even know I was nominated and I almost didn’t go to the ceremony! I was about to head home after my show when a friend of mine, whose venue Revolt Productions, where I was performing, was nominated, grabbed me on the way out and said “Hey, we’re going to the awards, do you wanna come?”

This is where what my hubby calls my “cannot miss out on a party” gene kicked in, and I leapt in the cab with them. We walked into the ceremony just in time to hear my award get called out. I was absolutely incredulous – I chuckled like a banshee, collected the award and went backstage where I was greeted with pink champagne and a glowing cloud of overjoyed disbelief. I called and woke up my hubby six times to share it with him. He’d been on the receiving end of my “Agh! I only had four people in the audience tonight! What have I done to our finances?” phone calls through the season.  He responded with his typical calmness each time and said “Don’t worry, just believe in the show. Just keep going!” So the victory was his as much as mine. I get so happy just thinking about that moment!

You suffered a setback before An Unexpected Variety Show premiered when you were in a car accident with your baby son. How did that affect you? 

The car crash was devastating and of course, rather ironic, given my whole show is about themes of “unexpected twists of life!” I fell into a terrible depression for months and it felt like everything I’d been working towards was over, but I can honestly say now that since that happened, my performances have been completely transformed. I remember at the masterclass in New York, one of my classmates asked whether I had any advice or techniques to deal with stage fright and I replied in all honesty, “Well, six months ago I was sitting in a smashed car wondering if I were going to die. I was later lying in a hospital bed wondering if I were going to be able to walk. So when I walk onstage, all I think about is how freaking happy I am to be here!” I really, really am! Whatever happens once I’m out there is cream on the cake.

How did you discover cabaret? 

By complete accident! I was at Woodford Folk Festival a few years ago, where I perform regularly as a comedian and I’d been seeing so much amazing stuff, some of which came under the cabaret banner. Something about it just niggled at me. I said to my friend Mary, who is also a performer, “I think I want to do cabaret, but…what is it” She laughed and said, “You’re probably already doing it!” It only occurred to me as I continued to develop An Unexpected Variety Show that it really did fall into the cabaret realm.

What appeals to you the most about cabaret?  

That it frees you up to share yourself so fully with an audience without the pressure of punchline. Not that my stand-up has ever been particularly punchy, as such - I can be a bit of a lazy writer to be honest! As a stand-up, you are certainly expected to be bringing the laughs. What I love about cabaret thus far is that the audience is completely willing to listen to you and go with you on more serious and even excruciatingly personal material, even if there are no laughs in it. I’ve got more freedom in that way. I’ll always love comedy and it’s always going to be a part of what I do no matter what. I have an extraordinarily large ham inside me that needs to be indulged! I do love the other shades I can play within the more theatrical realm.

What is cabaret to you? 

I’m still discovering what cabaret is, but right now, it means creating a friendship of sorts with the audience, by means of sharing your light and your dark with them. And like any good friendship, that they will indulge your need to dress up, sing and strut!

You were a participant at the Australian Cabaret Summer School and blogged your experience on Cabaret Confessional. How would you summarise your experience? 

Life-changing. I feel like it’s completely transformed the path I’m on as a performer. Working with such incredibly high calibre teachers, being exposed to a range of backgrounds and styles…even just the act of creating my showcase piece has changed me that I cannot wait to finish the full hour of it and start performing it! I’m not a very patient person, clearly.

Who and what do you draw your inspiration from? 

Every performer I ever see, regardless of the art form, experience or style, teaches me something about performance. In terms of my day-to-day life, I draw inspiration from my mother, who was a singer/songwriter and a single mum of three. She very sadly died when I was quite young. That event has massively informed who I am as a person, not the least aspect of which is to pursue your passions in life, and taught me that it really is too short not to. She was a beautiful Mum too, while actively dedicating herself to her music, so that inspires me hugely.

In parallel universe, where you’re not a performer, what do you see yourself doing?

Being utterly depressed and would probably be blogging about it.

What are you looking forward to about performing at the Adelaide Fringe 2012?

Last year at the Fringe, I ended up crowd-surfing while singing “You’re the Voice” by Farnsy, so I can only imagine it’s going to go downhill from there. I think Adelaide really gets me. I just love the audience. I’m so looking forward to finding my people and sharing my show with them. I’m absolutely wrapped to be working with the incomparable Matthew Carey again, who has miraculously offered to play with me during my Fringe run (part of me is still squealing in delight at that!), catching up with my Summer School buddies, doing guest spots in other shows including resurrecting my new German piece in a Eurovision tribute show which features the Axis of Awesome and more…and whatever other “unexpected” delights await! Bring it.

Jenny Wynter’s official website: www.comicmummy.com

Jenny is touring her award-winning An Unexpected Variety Show to the 2012 Adelaide Fringe and the 2012 Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

Click here to book tickets to the 2012 Adelaide Fringe.

Click here to book tickets to the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

 

Related posts:

Jenny Wynter’s Australian Cabaret Summer School blog series:

Australian Cabaret Summer School: Meet and Greet & Day 1

Australian Cabaret Summer School: Day 2 and All That Jazz

Australian Cabaret Summer School: Day 3 - A Breakthrough  

Australian Cabaret Summer School: Day 4 - Insecurities

Australian Cabaret Summer School: Day 5 - An Epiphany

Australian Cabaret Summer School: The Final Frontier

*Calling all Adelaide Fringe 2012 cabaret performers! If you are interested in having your Fringe show featured on Cabaret Confessional, click here for more information.

Find out how YOU can become an exclusive Founding Patron of Cabaret Confessional.

Subscribe to Cabaret Confessional via email.

‘Like’ Cabaret Confessional on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. 

A Not So Quiet Achiever

Lauren Allison

By Maeve Marsden, Artistic Director, blackcat productions

Just returned from Peats Ridge Festival and on the cusp of her busiest year yet, Lauren took time to talk all things bands, baths and bicycles.

Fans of Lauren Allison, drummer to the not-quite-stars, should throw Radox, not roses, when they see her perform. Playing for “eight or so” Sydney bands, including Lady Sings it Better and a number of cabaret performers. rehearsing, teaching and gigging nightly can take its toll. All this, plus a full time job selling and fixing drums at Billy Hyde Music Store, it’s amazing Lauren gets time to sleep. But she insists she averages 6 hours a night. And she wouldn’t have it any other way.

“I always wanted to play the drums. I wanted to play when I was three years old but Mum said no, so I played piano then guitar then saxophone and none of them worked. When I was in year 10, my brother got a drum kit for his birthday and I ended up playing more than him, so Mum said I could have lessons. I found this awesome 75 year-old five-foot tall jazz cat from New York and he taught me everything I know.”

At 26, Lauren now teaches 11 students of her own, and we meet to chat in Silverbean, a café one of them runs. He doesn’t let us pay for our coffees.

Lauren credits Jack, that five-foot tall jazz cat, with a lot of her success. “He inspired me. Unfortunately, he passed away about two years ago. But even now, I’ll be teaching someone and something he taught me would come back.  (By doing that) I’ll re-learn it, so I’m still learning from him by teaching other people.”

Lauren plays for an extremely diverse mix of musicians, from cabaret, indie rock, to jazz, covers bands, folky singer songwriters and everyone in between.

None of the acts could be described as famous, though they’re all amassing regular crowds in Sydney and beyond. I asked her whether the dream was to hit the big time; become the next Hannah Blilie.

“I couldn’t imagine anything worse than having to play with one famous band,” she replies emphatically. “I love that I have diversity. For the last six years I’ve been playing in no less than six bands. I got to nine or 10 at one point. I would go insane if I couldn’t have that. You see famous bands that tour the world for maybe two years. I want to be 80 and playing in a café in Glebe, not touring the world for two years.”

This dream promises an extremely busy life, so the inevitable question comes up about managing a social life and a relationship. “It’s not easy, but I am lucky to have an amazing girlfriend, Geri, who comes to the shows, rocks out and is really supportive. There are months when I see her for two hours a day, but you make it work.”

Adorably in love, she proudly explains that her girlfriend works for MS Australia in Customer Relations. A keen cyclist, Lauren did the Gong Ride to raise money for the organisation. She might not want you to know, but she also spent some time on tour last year in Adelaide, hand writing poems and song lyrics and sending them home to her lady.

“I missed Geri, but going to Adelaide Fringe Festival with Lady Sings it Better was awesome; it was my first big group touring environment. But I don’t have a favourite, or the ‘best’ gig,” Lauren explains.

“To me, playing at a shitty pub in St Marys and playing at Midsumma or the Adelaide Fringe, is the same. You can have five or 5000 or 50,000 people and it’s the same to me. A highlight was sneaking in to the Gaelic Club to play when I was 17. That changed my life.”

At the same age, Lauren also experienced her worst gig. “I met this band through an ad in a rehearsal studio. We’d played a couple of gigs then had one at the Harp in Tempe. These guys were so drunk that they couldn’t even tune the guitar. I sat up there with my mum and dad in the audience. I was so embarrassed. I’d count in a song and they’d drop their guitars. It was the worst 40 minutes of my life. We all left the gig, got paid our $6 each and never spoke again. To this day, my mum still assures me I played well…”

This experience highlights the challenge a drummer often faces. Despite being an integral part of any group, they aren’t “up at the front” so don’t always get to shape the tone of a gig. “What’s it like,” I ask, “spending all that time playing at singers’ arses?”

“I love it!” – a quick reply with a cheeky glint in her eye.

“Jack said to me once, ‘you need to know you aren’t the centre of the band.’ Everyone starts out really hard, really fast and tries to be the noisiest person on stage. You quickly learn that that’s going to lose you the gig.”

“I love the idea that the drummer lays down the groove and sets up the backbone of the song. In some ways you’re the silent achiever. That’s cool for me. I don’t want to be centre stage. I love sitting up the back, seeing everything, seeing the inner workings of the music and then walking off stage knowing we all did a really good show. I really dig that.”

Lauren has four drum kits, eight congas, 12 snare drums and three boxes of assorted percussion, as well as eight guitars, a cello, a couple of violins that don’t work and plans to buy a piano. She’s going to need it all with the year she has planned.

“I just drew up my booking schedule and I have a bunch of gigs in January then four weeks at blackcat lounge, with four different acts, a month with The Frocks, this little thing called the Edinburgh Fringe Festival… It’s looking to be a big year. It’s the third day and I already have two pages of bookings.”

How is she going to cope?

“Radox baths, man. Radox baths.”

See Lauren play:

Feb 14 – Mar 10: blackcat lounge: a season of queer cabaret

playing with Lady Sings it Better, Brett Every, ali Hughes & leonie cohen, Beauty and the Bastard: A Spoonful of Disney and at HOMAGE.

More info: blackcatproductions.com.au

Tickets: sidetrack.com.au

Maeve Marsden, Artistic Director of blackcat productions is a regular contributor to Cabaret Confessional. blackcat productions focus on showcasing women and queer cabaret talent for a broad audience. She’ll be blogging wearing all three of her hats: producer, director and performer.

Related posts:

Why we play HOMAGE to our queer musical heroes

*Calling all Adelaide Fringe 2012 cabaret performers! If you are interested in having your Fringe show featured on Cabaret Confessional, click here for more information.

Find out how YOU can become an exclusive Founding Patron of Cabaret Confessional.

Subscribe to Cabaret Confessional via email.

‘Like’ Cabaret Confessional on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. 

Michael Griffiths' Cabaret Tour Diary Part 5 - A Collaboration

Last Saturday nights audience filing in under the mirror ball

Friday January 27, 2012

I’m having a wonderful week so far. The days are going by in the usual fashion - Proud Mary for breakfast, an hour of practice in the space and a big swim to run through the show in my head. What’s making it really special are the evenings - the crowds are full and the show gets better with every performance, I couldn’t be happier!

Also, the reviews are in this week - 4 stars from the Herald Sun and 4.5 stars from ArtsHub - an absolute rave. It reads like it may have been written by my mother (arguably my biggest fan), but it’s actually penned by arts writer Aleksia Barron and is almost too good to be true. These reviews, plus good word of mouth have made this second week virtually sold out. Saturday night is already at capacity but we do have room for the handful of walk-ins that we expect tonight. 

Dean was scheduled to fly to Brazil early this week to mount the local production of Priscilla Queen of the Desert The Musical of which he is the Associate Director. Happily for me, there’s been a little visa upset meaning he doesn’t fly until tomorrow so I’ve had him on hand for little notes and refinements. 

He’s been in both shows this week and sweetly (and perhaps a little strangely) had the biggest laughs in the room, even though he knows the jokes are coming a mile away! I think it’s because he takes such delight with an unsuspecting audience and their response to the saucier moments in our show. 

We did a proper notes section on Wednesday, creating a new segue and adding a couple of ‘buttons’; a finishing comment on a chapter in the show, usually to evoke a laugh. My folks flew in from Adelaide yesterday to see the show and it was a treat having them in with such a great crowd.

Indulge me while I get a little philosophical. Doing this show, a collaboration with my dear friend, has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. I’ve had a great run over the last ten years doing big scale musicals (admittedly, as the ensemble member at the back who understudies everyone), I’ve had a real blast and made fantastic friends. But I’ve never enjoyed time spent on a stage as much I have playing The Queen of Pop each night. I’ve been pondering this all morning as to why this is, and it’s because of two main reasons.

Firstly, it’s an opportunity to combine my very specific skills and use them together - namely playing my own piano arrangements and singing pop songs. I’m never going to be employed for my dancing skills (although, I have been, and ended up hidden up at the back!). I’d pretty much given up on playing the piano a few years ago and it was only because Dean insisted that I accompany myself for this little project that I have become reacquainted with it and I’d forgotten how much joy it brings me.

Secondly, it’s about being part of the creative process and the extra personal investment this demands. I’ve never worked so hard at anything before. The show has been a true collaboration between Dean and I. Neither of us has settled for anything less than the absolute best from each other. Sitting at the piano singing Madonna songs in front of a captive audience have been some of the happiest hours of my life.

I’m now keen to rip up these last two shows then I better start thinking about NYC!

Reviews:

“He creates a sense of togetherness in the room, reminding audiences that pop songs aren’t popular because they’re ordinary or vacuous, but because of the joy and connectedness that they inspire in the people who hear them. To miss this show would be even more of a crime than Madonna’s cover of ‘American Pie’.”

Click here to read the Four and a half-star review by ArtsHub reviewer Aleksia Barron.

“Griffiths’ charming and impish performance sheds new light on Madonna’s songs and career…” - Kate Herbert

Click here to read the four-star review by Sun Herald reviewer Kate Herbert.

“With some impressive arrangements for piano, Griffiths gives the music and lyrics a considerable lift, and together with some clever monologues, injects a lot of humour” - Australian Stage

Click here to read the full review by Vito Mattarelli. 

Michael Griffiths in In Vogue: Songs by Madonna

Melbourne season as part of the Midsumma Festival at fortyfivedownstairs: For tickets and show info, click here.

New York season at Don’t Tell Mama: For tickets and show info, click here.

Sydney season as part of the Slide Cabaret Festival: For tickets and show info, click here.

Read his interview with Cabaret Confessional here.

Cabaret Confessional is excited to announce our new guest blogger Michael Griffiths, a critically acclaimed cabaret and musical theatre performer. He made a spectacular cabaret debut at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival last year with In Vogue: Songs by Madonna. Following his success, he is now touring the show to Melbourne, New York City and Sydney. He will document his time on the road on his tour diary for the next two months.

Michael Griffiths Bio:

Performing Arts (WAAPA) with a Bachelor in Music Theatre in 1999 and has a Diploma in Music Composition. Michael is currently performing in Sydney in Jersey Boys. Before this Michael toured Australia and New Zealand in Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Michael performed in the Australian and Japanese tour of We Will Rock You!, appeared in the original Australian cast of Shout! and was in the original workshop for the new Australian musical Prodigal. Michael has performed cabaret at Sydney’s legendary Showqueen at the Supper Club and for Koookaburra’s Up Close and Musical series. He enjoyed a sold-out season with his cabaret debut In Vogue: Songs by Madonna at the 2011 Adelaide Cabaret Festival. 

Michael Griffiths’ Cabaret Tour Diary series

Michael Griffiths’ Cabaret Tour Diary Part 1 - Melbourne debut

Michael Griffiths’ Cabaret Tour Diary Part 2 - Preparations

Michael Griffiths’ Cabaret Tour Diary Part 3 - Mirror Ball

Michael Griffiths’ Cabaret Tour Diary Part 4 - The Audience

Michael Griffiths’ Cabaret Tour Diary Part 5 - A Collaboration

Related post:

Interview: Michael Griffiths salutes Madonna

*Calling all Adelaide Fringe 2012 cabaret performers! If you are interested in having your Fringe show featured on Cabaret Confessional, click here for more information.

Find out how YOU can become an exclusive Founding Patron of Cabaret Confessional.

Subscribe to Cabaret Confessional via email.

‘Like’ Cabaret Confessional on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. 

Interview: Inside Babushka

What do you get when you put four sopranos on a stage, singing opera, show tunes and pop songs and give it cabaret treatment? You get Babushka, a brand new cabaret group hailing from Brisbane. In their show I Can Keep a Secret, these four classically trained divas, Alicia Cush, Bethan Ellsmore, Michelle Bull and Laura Coutts twist, turn and mash-up familiar songs in perfect harmony. Think Carmen and Kylie, or Dvorak and Gotye – their repertoire is a unique blend of old and new.  

After taking the Queensland festival circuit by storm, they have been selected as a feature act for Bank SA’s Support Act program for Adelaide Fringe 2012. The initiative supports emerging artists and new shows at the festival.  

Ahead of their Adelaide debut, Alicia Cush from the group shared a few secrets about Babushka and what’s within those layers.

How did you come up with the concept for the group?

We like to say that Babushka formed when four divas bonded over a case of Soprano Identity Crisis Syndrome at the Queensland Conservatorium. None of us quite fit the opera singer mould and found ourselves wanting to be more creative over a jug of beer at the pub instead of during Italian or interpretative movement classes. Coopers Pale Ale please, if you see us with empty glasses in any Adelaide bar!

Tell us a bit about I Can Keep a Secret?

The initial idea for the show came from many an afternoon spent on buses and in coffee shops observing people as they went about their business and creating imaginary lives for them, wondering what makes them tick and what they hide from the world? This got us sharing and gossiping about the idea of keeping secrets and the nature of confessions, be they dirty or squeaky-clean. So, over many glasses of champagne, ale and many more tales of indiscretion later, I Can Keep a Secret was drunkenly conceived.

How did you decide to name your group Babushka?

Fact 1: We are not a group of Russian grandmas or a bunch of multi-coloured headscarves.

Fact 2: We do have an unhealthy obsession with all things Kate Bush.

Fact 3: No! One of us is not fat enough to fit the other three in their belly. However, I will be seven months pregnant at the time of the Fringe; so it will look as if I have eaten the group.

Fact 4: Just as those cute little Babushka dolls have many parts come together to create a whole, despite being classical singers, the four of us are each very different in our musical endeavours, tastes and talents, It’s this combination that forms a dynamic creative force to be reckoned with.

Fact 5: We also just love that word!

How do the four diverse members complement each other?

From the very beginning it seemed that what started as a crazy idea from one of us snowballed as we all thrived on each other’s creativity. We encourage, inspire and challenge each other, which makes for a great dynamic. It’s an exciting challenge to work together and not to mention incredibly fun.

I’m sure we initially felt bonded by our shared musical confusion and wanted to work together to see what would happen if we mashed all of it together. To sum up; Michelle has the big and crazy ideas, Bethan is the resident booze hound and brings the big belt, Alicia is the music master and occasionally cracks the whip (formerly a booze hound and now relies on Bethan to drink for two), while Laura brings the giggles and killer pins.

Three reasons why people should come and see your show?

Simple! Dirty little secrets, high Cs and big hair.

How did you all discover cabaret?

We’ve all had quite different ‘firsts’ with cabaret. I moved to Melbourne in 2003 to study opera and got to see the best cabaret it has to offer. Though the one performance that really got me hooked was Meow Meow in La Clique. She blew my mind then and still does every time I see her. I’m still trying to master doing the splits over an audience while singing an aria! Michelle’s bug started when she saw legend Ute Lemper over ten years ago and left her transformed. We also love Camille O’Sullivan and fellow Queenslanders The Kransky Sisters. 

What do you think makes mixing the elements of opera, musicals and contemporary pop to create cabaret interesting?

We truly are a bunch of happily confused sopranos with a real passion for these styles of music and more. We’re determined to take songs we love in any genre and completely deconstruct and mash them in whatever way we fancy. Every time we choose a new song to perform, I become infatuated with unique, unexpected ways to arrange it. Also, we find operatic singing spine-tinglingly primal. The thrill of hearing that kind of noise in an up close, utterly exposed within the honesty of cabaret is really exciting. Who would’ve thought that mashing Bizet’s Carmen with Kylie Minogue would be so tasty? 

What appeals to you about cabaret the most?

We love that cabaret has no boundaries. It really is ‘anything goes’. There is no expectation of what it should and the opportunity to make it unexpected and thrilling. Cabaret is also about connection, getting up close and personal and sharing an experience.

We also love the unpredictability that comes with this connection and the excitement of being vulnerable in that moment. It is also very nice to sing to an audience that doesn’t clear out Coles of purple hair dye, has an average age of less than 70 and actually stays awake during the whole show. Please don’t fall asleep while we sing…

What are you looking forward the most about performing at the Adelaide Fringe Festival?

The Adelaide Fringe Festival has such an incredible buzz with show-goers that will give anything a go. The line-up is always mind-blowing and there’s inspiration everywhere as a performer. We look forward to meeting other artists and the chance to share our gem of a show with new audiences and a discerning cabaret crowd…Look out Adelaide, there’s a new cabaret group coming to town!

Creative Team:

Director:  Simone de Haas

Musical director: Matt Samer & Babushka

Starring: Babushka

www.babushkamusic.com

 

I Can Keep a Secret will debut at the Adelaide Fringe Festival 2012 and will be performed at Dragonfly Bar + Dining on  February 29th, March 1 and March 3 (two shows).

For more information and bookings, click here. 

*Calling all Adelaide Fringe 2012 cabaret performers! If you are interested in having your Fringe show featured on Cabaret Confessional, click here for more information.

Find out how YOU can become an exclusive Founding Patron of Cabaret Confessional.

Subscribe to Cabaret Confessional via email.

‘Like’ Cabaret Confessional on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. 

Interview: Jim Caruso gets ready to party in Hollywood

Ptoto by Bill Westmoreland

Every Monday night at Birdland in New York City, Broadway and cabaret impresario Jim Caruso hosts a party like no other. Showbiz luminaries like Liza Minnelli, Chita Rivera and Michael Feinstein are known to sing a few tunes alongside up and coming performers at this weekly impromptu variety soiree.

Together with musical director Billy Stritch, Jim Caruso is taking the hugely popular open mic night to Los Angeles for the seventh time on February 29 and March 1 at the brand new venue, The Coterie at The Renaissance Hotel. Since the LA Cast Party premiered in 2010 with spectacular success, many stars including Melissa Manchester, Carol Channing, Cybill Shepherd, Dave Koz, Legally Blonde composers Larry O’Keefe & Nell Benjamin, Taylor Dayne, Jason Graae, Debby Boone, Shoshana Bean, Miranda Sings and many more have joined in on the fun. With the next LA Cast Party coming up, Jim Caruso talks all about the Cast Party and why it’s one of the hottest tickets in town.

With Billy Stritch Photo by Steve Handwerker

How would you describe the Cast Party in your own words for the uninitiated?

Cast Party is an open mic for the Broadway, jazz, cabaret, pop, country, folk, comedy, polka and didgeridoo communities!  It’s been called the most ‘extreme’ open mic on the planet, because of the excellent musicianship, the wide variety of musical styles, and the occasional superstar drop-in.

The Cast Party is heading to Los Angeles for the third year. After having your first Cast Party there in 2010, how has it evolved and grown?

We were unbelievably lucky with the press the first time we took Cast Party to Los Angeles.  There was a full-page colour feature in the Sunday LA Times, and Billy and I did three hours of ins-and-outs on the KTLA Morning TV show…it was kind of career-making!  When we finally opened, there wasn’t a seat to be had, and the talent was off the charts!  My fingers are crossed that the same energy and support will continue at The Coterie.

In what ways are the performers and the audience members in Los Angeles different compared with your home crowd in New York City?

I’ve noticed that the audience is more intense in Los Angeles.  Perhaps it’s because our visits are sporadic – so it seems like a festive occasion when we get there!  There’s a very appreciative feeling of “We’ve been waiting for you!”  There are so many brilliantly talented musical performers that have moved from NYC to make their mark in Hollywood, and I think Billy and I bring a little New York vibe to the scene. We’re like two bagels on a plate of low-fat rice cakes, to misquote a famous movie…!

LA Cast Party is moving from the Magic Castle to The Coterie. Why did the venue change? 

We did six successful rounds of Cast Party at The Magic Castle, and had a complete ball each time!  Recently, though, they decided to forego musical acts and stick to a purely magical line-up, which I understand, considering the name of the place!  I was so excited to get a call from my pal Julie Garnyé, who was putting together a musical series at The Coterie at The Renaissance Hotel, and booking friends like Lance Horne, Erich Bergen and James Barbour.  I’m really looking forward to playing the room, and hopefully making it our west coast home!

With Carol Channing Photo by Brian Putnam

What and who would you pick as your most memorable moment and guest from the last six LA Cast Parties?

I have two words for you: Carol Channing.  She and her sweet husband (who passed away last month) showed up at our last Party at The Magic Castle.  I introduced her, and the crowd went ballistic – watching this legend making her way to the stage of an open mic night!  We chatted for about 5 minutes – about arts education, showbiz, and the fact that all of her impersonators are men.

All of a sudden, she launched into the “Let me go, Ephraim” monologue from Hello Dolly! and I knew it was my cue to exit. Billy started playing some gorgeous chords, and she began a slow, unbelievably touching performance of “Before The Parade Passes By.”  I sat like a stunned mullet, taking it all in, until I saw big tears streaming down Billy’s face as he was playing…then I was gone!  There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as we watched this icon of the theatre roar that song with such ferocity and soul…and she did it about twelve inches from her audience. 

I will never forget it as long as I live, and neither will anyone else in that room.

You’ve taken the Cast Party on the road to many cities over the years with your long time musical director Billy Stritch. Do they work as well out of town as they do in NYC?

Somebody asked me if I were afraid to be celebrating local talent in places other than New York City.  The concept of Manhattan having a lock on talented people is a completely crazy notion.  Broadway performers weren’t born on 42^nd Street…everyone’s from somewhere!  Each city we’ve taken Cast Party - Chicago, LA, Las Vegas, Austin, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Orlando to say nothing of the high seas - is blessed with some extraordinary talent.  There are always wonderful theatre, cabaret, jazz, and pop singers, along with a few wacky acts to mix it up a bit! 

What are you looking forward to the most for this Cast Party in LA?

Considering it’s currently 17 degrees in NYC, I’m looking forward to some sun!  I can’t wait to see some of my LA peeps, and eat some honest-to-gawd Mexican food!  Of course, I’m really excited to see just who shows up to sing for us. Folks like Melissa Manchester, Liza Minnelli, Sam Harris, Chita Rivera, Cheyenne Jackson, and Donny Osmond have been known to warble a tune, so who knows who will be grabbing the mic this time!

If you could have anyone at your LA Cast Party, whom would you like to turn up?

Of course, I have some dream guests.  Right up front, I’ll say Carol Burnett and Dick Van Dyke…I grew up watching, loving and obsessing over them, but I promise I won’t gush. Hollywood is filled with TV stars with Broadway backgrounds, and it’d be a kick to have Neil Patrick Harris, Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Sean Hayes visit.  Would it kill Kathy Griffin to show up?  I know her and think she’s a genius.  Kathy…can you hear me?  Throw in one or two Kardashians.  I have no idea what any of them DO, but am pretty sure it’d equal good press!  Something tells me at least one of them sings “Defying Gravity.”

Is there any chance of you bringing the Cast Party to Australia soon?

Nothing would please me more!  I spent one of the best weeks of my life in Sydney, and can’t wait to return.  I know there’s brilliant talent, too, because so many Australian performers and WAAPA students have made their way into Birdland.  Trust me, mate, Billy and I are packed, properly hydrated and ready for that 20-hour flight to Oz!

JIM CARUSO’S CAST PARTY in Los Angeles

Venue: The Coterie at The Renaissance Hollywood Hotel & Spa

1755 North Highland Avenue, Hollywood

Dates: February 29 & March 1, 2012

Time: Doors open at 7.00pm, Show starts at 8.30pm

In Advance for Dining Room - $25 plus 2 item minimum

At The Door for Dining Room - $30 plus 2 item minimum

In Advance for Standing Room (Must be 21+) - $10

At The Door for Standing Room (Must be 21+) - $15

Reservations: Call 530-426-8374 or click here.

Jim Caruso’s Cast Party website: www.CastPartyNYC.com

Become a Cast Party Fan on Facebook

*Calling all Adelaide Fringe 2012 cabaret performers! If you are interested in having your Fringe show featured on Cabaret Confessional, click here for more information.

Find out how YOU can become an exclusive Founding Patron of Cabaret Confessional.

Subscribe to Cabaret Confessional via email.

‘Like’ Cabaret Confessional on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.