CYNTHIA CRANE, THE TONICS, HOLE-AMATIC...AND MORE!

CYNTHIA CRANE, a cabaret singer and Greenwich Village fixture of sorts, has a show scheduled for next month titled “John Denver, Bernie Madoff and Me.”


What she and John Denver, or more literally Mr. Denver’s estate, have in common is that they were both fleeced by Mr. Madoff.
As a result, Ms. Crane and her husband, Ted Story, a playwright, have had to put their five-story town house on West 11th Street, near Greenwich Avenue, up for sale.
“It’s like cutting off my arm to save my life,” the 73-year-old chanteuse said. The couple have lived in the 1855 house for 40 years.
They rent out four market-rate apartments on the top two floors. Their home, a quirky space, has a spectacular living room with double-height ceilings and a wall of glass that looks out onto a landscaped garden with a rocky waterfall and an aviary.
They’re selling because they can no longer afford a $2 million mortgage they took out on the house as a means of helping one of their two daughters build her home in the East Village.
They’ve already sold an apartment they owned in Paris to help pay their bills.
“We were with Madoff for over 30 years and we never got such returns that were ridiculous,” Ms. Crane said, “and the day he was arrested, we were all struck down.
The only thing that comforts me is we were not alone.”

Every nook and cranny inside the house has been filled with a life memory: an Al Hirschfeld drawing of Ms. Crane; a two-story flag from the Impossible Ragtime Theater, which the couple ran together in the 1970s; and artwork collected from around the world.
“Our tastes are eclectic,” Ms. Crane said. “We like oddball stuff.”

The uniqueness of the space has most likely made it a tougher sell. They first put the town house on the market last February for $8.995 million, and have now relisted it with Anne J. Marseille and Barbara Godson, agents at Halstead Property, for $7.995 million. “No one wants to be a landlord and everybody wants to renovate,” Ms. Crane said.
“But I believe we will sell this to the right person.”

E-mail: bigdeal@nytimes.com (SOURCE: NY TIMES)

THE TONICS are back!

After 15 years, The Tonics return to NYC for two shows only

THIS SUNDAY (Feb 28) and March 8* 7:00 pm each night
$25 cover + 2 drink min.


Join Cortes, Gene, Michael and (newbie) Kathie as they return to their
"home".
From Sondheim..to Stevie Wonder- better than evah!!!!

Tickets at www.joespub.com or 212 967-7555 for tickets.
For a table reservation, call 212 539-8778

*benefit for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aids
Hello valentine survivors! And happy Year of the Tiger (...happy thrill of
the fight...)

A few quick news items & then you're back to your day:
1. GH: HOLE-O-MATIC 2010 returns to The Duplex this SATURDAY 2/27 AT 7:30PM.
New medleys, old trivia, cool prizes, strong drinks, and nice reliable heat
so don't fear coming out of the house. More deets and reservation link
below - come play with us.

Their big ticket giveaway was pretty popular with repeat offenders and newbies
alike last run, so they're gonna do it again this time around! (I won two tickets to A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC!)



The lucky winner gets 2 tickets to either Hair, Jersey Boys, Rock of Ages,
or A Little Night Music on Broadway - winners choice - seriously, they get
to pick!

And if you win and don't happen to live in or around NYC, no sweat
- we'll find a way to send you to something cool where you do live, so it's
still a helluva good prize. So there.
3. They completely appreciate all that go to their shows, and they back that up
from their hearts to your wallets - for shows this run, use code GHTIGER when
reserving or when you check in at the door, and everyone in your party saves
$5 off their cover charge.
Stay warm & well - really hope to see you at a show!

http://www.holeomatic.com

http://www.theduplex.com/webcalendar/month.php


HOLE-O-MATIC 2010
..the "you pick 'em" random pop show!

SATURDAYS at 7:30pm
FEBRUARY 27TH THRU APRIL 3RD
Upstairs at The Duplex
Christopher St. & 7th Ave. NYC
Doors open 7pm - dress casual - credit cards welcome
Reservations strongly suggested:

http://www.theduplex.com/webcalendar/month.php

- One guy
- One girl
- One guitar
- And one big set where you pick the hits from the Œ70s/Œ80s, their own
songs, mash-ups & medleys, and beyond!

³Ferociously talented & completely irreverent ­ AN ABSOLUTE MUST SEE!"
- Next Magazine



Vox Femina of Los Angeles
presents
Sister, My Sister
ONE NIGHT ONLY! www.voxfeminala.org/season.htm

WHEN: Saturday, March 20th, 2010 at 8:00pm
WHERE: Zipper Concert Hall, Colburn School of Music
200 S. Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA



TICKETS: $25 in advance ($30 at the door) by calling
310-922-0025 or at www.voxfeminala.org
or via E.mail at vfla@voxfeminala.org
Vox celebrates the depth, beauty and strength of our community of women in
a concert. The history of women, always in sisterhood, through many struggles and
joys, is reflected in music. Sister, My Sister explores women's history and music by
linking our audience to the generations of women who've gone triumphantly before us.
Starting as far back as the middle ages with Hildegard von Bingen, and moving
through the centuries, we'll hear from Clara Shuman, Sojournor Truth, Maya Angelou
and Cris Williamson.
The highlight of the concert will be a newly commissioned work
entitled “Healy Madrigals” by Roger Bourland featuring the poignant musings of Los
Angeles based poet Eloise Klein Healy.
Repertoire will also include the music of
Faustina Hasse Hodges, Beethoven, Coco's Lunch, Ysaye Barnwell, Rosephanye Powell
and others. The audience will feel the strength of the women's community and Vox
will truly “give women voice.”



Vox Femina Los Angeles, is a women's choral ensemble dedicated to the
performance of quality choral literature with an emphasis on music by women
composers.
Choral singing is one of the oldest performance arts in existence, but
Vox is excited to perform new works and accept new challenges for themselves and for
the audience. Dr. Iris S. Levine founded Vox in 1997. In the past 12 years, Vox
has established itself as one of the preeminent women's choruses in the United
States with a demonstrated ability to perform highly eclectic repertoire, some of
which can be heard on several recordings.
It has actively fulfilled its goals
through an exciting schedule of performances, touring and educational outreach. Vox
Los Angeles is funded through grants and private donations.

For your enjoyment, Michael Walters!




Award winning Writer, Hilliard Guess, proves he is equally as talented as a Director
and Executive Producer with the debute of the theatrical short film "Troublesome" at
the Renberg Theatre on Wednesday, February 17th, 2010.

"With the destruction of
jobs after the WGA strike, I took an active position in my life," recalls Guess.

"I'd proven myself as a writer and developed "Troublesome" as a project for me to
produce and direct."

The Hilldog Productions film starring stage and screen veteran Gordon Thomson as Dr.
Ross and Kareem Grimes as Rap super star Kritikal were very well received by
audience members which included Alison Arngrim (Little House on the Prairie),
Channing Chase (Mad Men), Romi Dames (Hanna Montana), and Kate Linder (The Young &
the Restless) among others.
The storyline takes its characters and patrons on a rather fast paced emotional ride
considering it takes place on board a stranded subway car with no promise of rescue.
"There's a reason I chose a subway as our one and only location," says Guess. "It's
contained, confining and worst of all ... Dark!" With Oxygen fading and tensions
rising, confrontations lead to confessions and ultimately discovery in this well
written and performed tribute to what can be accomplished with a low budget, when
you have both talent and dedication to produce excellence. The cast is complimented
by the work of director of photography, John Savedra and a remarkable musical score
that included "My Life's Kritikal," produced by Mike Greene with Lyrics by Dert
Julian and performed by Kareem Grimes. "Troublesome" should be submitted for
consideration as a Best Short Film Live Action for the 2011 Academy Awards.

Check out www.hilldogproductions.com/troublesome.htm for more information.

Meet Sappho, Michelangelo, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Rivera and
Ellen DeGeneres. One day, they decided to make history.
"Part history lesson, part musical, part politics and ALL ENTERTAINMENT!"
SAN DIEGO DAILY TRANSCRIPT


GetJaded.com and The Rose Theatre Company are proud to present:


ICONS
The Lesbian and Gay History of the World, Vol. 1
Written and performed by JADE ESTEBAN ESTRADA

As seen on Comedy Central and Bravo TV
Directed by Jeff Wills
Additional musical arrangements by Tracy Stark
Costumes by Aliza Washabaugh

IN CELEBRATION OF BRITISH LGBT HISTORY MONTH 2010
8:00 P.M.
Thursday
March 4, 2010
$15
The Rose Theatre Company
11838 Wurzbach Road @ Lockhill-Selma
San Antonio, TEXAS
78230
210-360-0004
_http://www.therosetheatreco.com_ (http://www.therosetheatreco.com/)

Show duration is 70 minutes without intermission
Appropriate for ages 13 and up
Wheelchair accessible


For more information visit:
_www.getjaded.com _ (http://www.chilatcenter.wsu.edu/semana/calendar.html)
_www.facebook.com/jadeestebanestrada_
(http://www.facebook.com/jadeestebanestrada)
www.twitter.com/getjaded_ (http://www.twitter.com/getjaded)
Comedy Central star Jade Esteban Estrada will present his solo musical
ICONS: The Lesbian and Gay History of the World, Vol. 1 at The Rose Theatre
February 25, 2010. Photo by CHRISTINE CAIN-WEIDNER


"Jade Esteban Estrada is a brilliant young writer and performer. It was an
honor to experience the ministry of this modern pioneer of the gay
movement."
Rev. Troy Perry
Founder of the Worldwide Metropolitan Community Church
About ICONS:
Beauty. Art. Flamboyance. Love. Struggle. Fame. Meet Sappho, Michelangelo,
Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Rivera and Ellen DeGeneres. One day,
they decided to make history. ICONS: The Lesbian and Gay History of the
World, Vol. 1 is a “hilarious” solo musical written and performed by Jade
Esteban Estrada. The show debuted at the 2002 Columbus National Gay and Lesbian
Theatre Festival.

About Jade Esteban Estrada:
Formally choreographer to Latin diva Charo and a scratch vocalist to the
Back Street Boys, Jade Esteban Estrada is a graduate of the American Musical
and Dramatic Academy and has been called "the first gay Latin star" by The
Advocate. The actor, singer, choreographer, composer and writer has
appeared on PBS, FX, Comedy Central and hosted the 19th Annual South Florida
GLAAD Media Awards on Bravo TV.
His thirteen
solo theatre shows include: "ICONS: The Lesbian and Gay History of the World,
Vol. 1-4," "TransWorld! The Transgender History of the World," "Gay
Christian, Gay Muslim, Gay Jew," "Tortilla Heaven," and "Pico de Gallo." In
October 2006, Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher awarded him the title of "Kentucky
Colonel" for his work promoting goodwill and fellowship around the world.

Other colonels include Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, Johnny Depp, Mae
West, Joan Crawford and Pope John Paul II. He also lent his golden voice to
the "Being Out Rocks" CD compilation for the Human Rights Campaign. For
more information visit _www.getjaded.com_ (http://www.getjaded.com/) .
"Funny and irreverent...a feel-good session for gay people."
DALLAS MORNING NEWS

"Long before Estrada wraps himself with a rainbow-colored flag at the
show's end, he's proven that he's a master entertainer with a message to
convey."
RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH

"Without a doubt, the best entertainment dollars I spent this year went to
ICONS: The Lesbian and Gay History of the World, Vol. 1 with Jade Esteban
Estrada."
TAMPA BAY GAZETTE

"Catch ICONS as soon as you can, or you will surely live to regret it."
CURVE MAGAZINE


"Estrada is a drama queen with a lesson plan."
KNOXVILLE METRO PULSE

"Estrada's bug-eyed portrayal of Gertrude Stein is brilliant."
STYLE WEEKLY
Pick up the ANGEL CD today!
_http://www.cdbaby.com/jadeestrada_ (http://www.cdbaby.com/jadeestrada)


The Magic Castle®
and
Cabaret at the Castle™
Proudly Presents
Shelly Goldstein
In
ONE FINE DAY:
The Groovy Girls of the 60's

Musical Direction by Scott Harlan


WHAT: The “Kitten With a Quip” Shelly Goldstein's ONE FINE DAY: THE GROOVY GIRLS OF THE 60s is a celebration of the extraordinary women whose style, music and lyrics
revolutionized an era.
The show features the songs of such 60s icons as Dusty
Springfield, Carole King, Laura Nyro, Mama Cass Elliot, Carly Simon, Lesley Gore,
Nancy Sinatra, Lulu mixed with a dash of 60s Broadway as well as some of Shelly's
own inimitable comic lyrics, including her youtube hit: “The Middle Age of
Aquarius”. Go-go
boots and love beads welcome!

WHEN: Sunday, April 18th 2010 - Doors 7pm - Show 8pm
WHERE: The Inner Circle at the Magic Castle, 7001 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, CA 90028
TICKETS: $20 for non-members, Call 323-851-3313 x434

Shelly Goldstein is a Hollywood screenwriter and producer who is also a
gifted comic as well as one of the most sought after and popular cabaret singers
from London to Los Angeles. Her theme is London in the swinging sixties and she
delivers a very funny depiction on how she imagines it was at the time, meeting The
Beatles and Yoko Ono, The Who etc. Although she was never there in sixties London,
she considers it her spiritual home.
Shelly also pays tribute to the songs of Carol King, Tony Hatch and Jackie Trent,
Tom Springfield et al, singers such as Mama Cass, Petula Clark, Lesley Gore and
Dusty Springfield, and songs including These Boots Are Made for Walking, One Fine
Day, Georgy Girl, Downtown, I Know a Place, Don't Sleep in the Subway, It's My
Party and Something Tells Me I'm Into Something Good. She also wittily rewrites
her favorite songs to suit her own views and something tells me that she has made
a very welcome return to the cabaret scene.
Ms. Goldstein is one of the busiest writers of awards shows in Hollywood, New York and the UK.
She frequently works punching up screenplays and writing special
material, comedy and song lyrics for performers. Shelly has doctored scripts or
written special material for such artists as Steve Martin, Sharon Stone, Cybill
Shepherd, Liza Minnelli to Donald Trump, James Earl Jones, Eva Longoria, Whoopi
Goldberg as well as Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Norman Lear and even Princess
Caroline of Monaco and Yoko Ono.
The Magic Castle is the world's most famous club for magicians and magic
enthusiasts and home to The Academy of Magical Arts, Inc. The Magic Castle is the
showplace for some of the greatest magicians from around the globe. The
magnificent Hollywood landmark known today as the Magic Castle recently celebrated
in centennial.


The Magic Castle® and Cabaret at the Castle™
Proudly Presents
An Evening with
Lee Roy Reams

“The Producers” “Beauty and the Beast”
“La Cage aux Folles” “Applause”
Tony-nominated performance in
“42nd Street”


The Magic Castle offers yet another great Broadway star to the stage of
Cabaret at the Castle with Lee Roy Reams. The man who columnist Liz Smith called
"Broadway's Darling" and the New York Times hailed as "Broadway's song and dance man
nonpareil" is scheduled to appear for one night only. A portion of the proceeds
will benefit the Sealed With A Wish Foundation, Inc. www.sealedwithawish.org

Tuesday, April 13th 2010 - Doors 7pm - Show 8pm

WHERE: The Inner Circle at the Magic Castle, 7001 Franklin Ave., Hollywood, CA 90028

$35 for reserved tables $30 for non-members, Call 323-851-3313 x434

With one of the greatest pedigrees in Broadway history, Lee Roy Reams won
critical acclaim as Roger DeBris in the First National Tour of Mel Brooks' musical
hit, The Producers as well as Lumiere in Disney's Beauty and the Beast, Albin/ZaZa
in La Cage Aux Folles, Cornelius Hackl in Hello Dolly! & Henry Spofford in Lorelei
(both starring Carol Channing), Duane Fox in Applause starring Lauren Bacall, Will
Parker in Richard Rodgers' revival of Oklahoma! Bob Fosse's Sweet Charity starring
Gwen Verdon, and An Evening With Jerry Herman. His regional theatre roles include
Captain Hook in Peter Pan, Toddy in Victor/Victoria, Alfred P. Doolittle in My Fair
Lady, and Phil Davis in White Christmas.__On Broadway, he directed Hello, Dolly!
(Tony Nomination/Best Revival) and An Evening With Jerry Herman. He also directed
Anything Goes starring Chita Rivera and productions of Hello, Dolly! starring
Madeline Kahn, JoAnne Worley, Michelle Lee, and Nicole Crosille in Paris. He is also
the resident director of Theatre Guild's Theatre at Sea whose stars include Patricia
Neal, Gena Rowlands, Rosemary Harris, Zoe Caldwell, Ed Asner, Cliff Robertson, Eli
Wallach, and Anne Jackson among others._ His television credits include: Jerry
Herman at the Hollywood Bowl (PBS and Bravo), Showboat (PBS), In Performance at the
White House (PBS), three Tony Award Shows, Night of 100 Stars II, and The Tonight
Show._Concerts and Cabaret have taken him to the White House and around the world:
Venice's Teatro La Fenice, Brazil's Manaus Opera House, The Istanbul Hilton, New
York's Carnegie Hall (New York Pops and Cincinnati Pops), New York's Town Hall,
Tennessee Williams Fine Arts Center, London's Palladium, Manhattan's Firebird Cafe,
and Rockefeller Center's Rainbow & Stars. He's had the honor of performing for four
U.S. Presidents: Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. Bush and Bill Clinton.__
The Magic Castle is the world's most famous club for magicians and magic
enthusiasts and home to The Academy of Magical Arts, Inc. The Magic Castle is the
showplace for some of the greatest magicians from around the globe. The
magnificent Hollywood landmark known today as the Magic Castle recently celebrated
in centennial.
(Thank you Harlan Boll for info on Shelly Goldstein, Vox Femina, and Lee Roy Reams)


Support THE ARTS! LIVE THEATRE! Go see a show this week! Send me your reviews and suggestions and I will put them in my next blog coming out next Friday! Here's to an ARTS-filled week! Don't forget to contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/Foundation.htm

With grateful XOXOXs for your support!

Richard Skipper

Follow me on Twitter @RichardSkipper


HERE IS WHAT AUDIENCES ARE SAYING ABOUT MY WORK:
Last month at The Iguana was a total blast! So much talent there. For me it was a great mix of things. Singing and working with Barry Levitt and Saadi Zain, Rick De Kovessey (of course) was really delicious. (love playing with such good musicians). The audiance is so appreciative and all of us are having a ball all night. Richard and Dana are wonderfully gracious hosts, stunning to look at and incredibly talented. They are great singers and FUNNY!
Besides having a fabulous musical experience, I also had a reunion with my former roomate and good friend Jane Scheckter who sang fantastically. I found out that Jerry Wichinski and I went to tap school together waaaaay back when and we went thru a whole roster of friends. Jerry sang beautifully too. This is a very cool party, really lots of fun. Thanks Richard!
Jane Stuart:http://www.janestuartmusic.com


Thank you for another wonderful night, Richard! I think it was the best night so far. You an Dana were wonderful and charming as always.
Arianna, http://www.AriannaUSA.com



What a fantastic birthday/Valentine celebration of entertainment at The Iguana last night. Richard, you were true to form when Richie Eisenberg sang the song for you, "Sparkle" because you certainly do sparkle and lighten the room. Nice touches with the RED color theme and for sharing the birthday cake. Thanks again to you and Dana for being such fabulous hosts. You're very gracious to your performers and of course, the audience. I'm hooked and will return as often as I'm able.
Mary Lahti







FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NYC Now a night out in NY to see a show at a VERY AFFORDABLE price!
Dana Lorge and I have put our OWN spin on the variety show format and are now hosting every Wednesday night in NYC at The Iguana VIP Lounge (http://www.iguananyc.com) in the heart of NYC (240 West 54th Street 8-11PM/with an intermission).



Cover: $12 - no food or drink minimums – but remember – the food is great!
This is a nice night
out with the family!

For more info, please call 845-365-0720 or visit _www.RichardSkipper.com_
RESERVATIONS A MUST!!!!!!!!
212-765-5454. No one admitted before
7:30.











Feb 28
7-10:30pm
ETCETERA, ETCETERA, 352 West 44th St. NYC 10036
THE SALON HOSTED BY MARK JANAS
Richard Skipper will be Co-Hosting our "Pre-Oscar Party" Salon on February 28th with Dana Lorge as the Special Guest!

The Salon is an ongoing open entertainment event in which singers, writers and musicians share their talent with each other and audience members. We are currently enjoying our new venue, Etcetera, Etcetera where there is a $10 COVER (cash) AND a $10 FOOD/BEVERAGE MINIMUM (cash or credit). You may sign up to perform starting at 6:30 by seeing one the evening's 'Etceterettes' to fill out a card with your name, the name of your song, whether it's a ballad or an up tempo, (up tempos and comic songs are greatly encouraged!) and any upcoming events you'd like the co-host to announce. Please remember that we do not present performers in order of sign-up and, due to our time restraints and other variables, filling out a card does not guarantee you will perform, but we do our very best to get you up! It is usually a good idea to bring a few different song choices to avoid duplication. All types of material including spoken word are welcome at the Salon but please limit your selections to three or four minutes in length and please bring clear, complete charts for Mark to read. If you would like to add a (or remove your) name from our list, e-mail me at tanyamoberly@juno.com.


Mar 2
7pm
LAURIE BEECHMAN THEATRE, 407 W. 42nd St., New York, NY
MARCH IS CABARET MONTH GALA
Richard Skipper hosts Cabaret Hotline's THIRD ANNUAL MARCH IS CABARET MONTH GALA. With the support of performers, venues and cabaret organizations around the world, Cabaret Hotline is leading the charge to make the public more "cabaret aware" during the month of March. The New York Gala is the premiere event of the annual celebration promoting the art and the artists of cabaret. This year's Gala will pay special tribute to today's composers writing the music we love to hear in the world of cabaret. Tickets are just $25 and will be available on-line only through the Cabaret Hotline website at http://www.svhamstra.com/index.shtml.Several new performers have been added to the show: Brian Lane Green (The Life, Starmites, Big River); Jenny Powers (Grease, Little Women, Follies, Happiness); Becca Johnson Southworth (The After Party); Raisa Katona Bennett (Phanton Of The Opera); Liz Callaway (Baby, Cats, Miss Saigon, The Three Musketeers, The Look Of Love, Merrily We Roll Along, The Spitfire Grill); and Faith Prince (Guys And Dolls, A Catered Affair, Bells Are Ringing, Little Me, The King And I, Little Mermaid). This is in addition to the fantastic and talented songwriters will take part in the show, including David Friedman, John Bucchino, Amanda McBroom and Alex Rybeck (Alex will also be serving as musical director for the event).


Mar 3
8pm
IGUANA VIP LOUNGE, 240 West 54th Street, NYC
WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT THE IGUANA

Bill Zeffiro on keyboard & Saadi Zain on bass.
Tonight's guests include: Vickie Burns, Elli: The King of Broadway, Food of Love (featuring Alex Elias, Richard Marshall, and Woody Regan), Danielle Grabianowski, Gregory Nalbone, Rich Siegel ...
...and a few other surprises as well! $12.00 Music Charge/No food or drink minimum!
Reservations a must (212) 765-5454


March 3rd: Danielle Grabianowski

March 10th: David Alpher & Jenny Litt, Louise Quick (pictured), Nicholas Tamagna, Pam Tate, Maureen Taylor.
And I'm doing a duet with the incredible David Vernon!

March 17th: Bending Threads and Cindy Marchionda returns along with Sally Swallow!

March 24th, Jackie Draper Julie Reyburn, and Diana Templeton returns!


March 31st: Frank Basile returns


April 7th: Esther Beckman Group, Sina Lewis, RJ Shaw, Susan Winter


April 14th: George Stella returns!


April 21st: Henry Dee, Rita Ellis Hammer, Susan Eichhorn Young

April 28th: Kecia Craig and Frank Stern!



May 5th: Anton Van Der Merwe


May 19th: Michelle Collier, Barbara Gurskey

TILL NEXT MONTH...HERE'S TO A MUSICAL MARCH!

WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT THE IGUANA IS A HIT

“The secret of happiness is not doing what one likes, but in liking what one does" -JM Barrie



Happy Monday! I hope this finds you well and enjoying a great Monday morning.





The pics you are seeing here are from this past week's show at The Iguana.
What a cast we had last week.



Along with Barry Levitt on keyboard and Saadi Zain on bass, I love sharing the stage with Dana Lorge. Having a different cast each week is exciting but also nerve-wrecking!
The talent makes it ALL worthwhile.




This past week, Jana Robbin's mother, Edith Eisenberg made her cabaret debut! She sang a medley of MEAN TO ME and IT HAD TO BE YOU (Jana joined her on the latter). They brought the house down and got a standing ovation. We also had the lovely Wendy Lane Bailey who sang The Dieter's Prayer and two other wonderful selections.

Cynthia Crane, who just celebrated her 45th Wedding anniversary yesterday with Ted Story by flying a hot air ballooon over the Catskills!,stopped by a sang a French tune. It was appropriate because she was joined by Sheldon Forrest who has been living and performing in Paris for the past two years! Welcome back, Sheldon.





Not content to coast, Liza Minnelli soars in Broadway reprise
By Joe Brown (contact)

LIZA MINNELLI stunned a star-studded audience by breaking down mid-performance during a show last week (begs28Sep09).
The Cabaret star was belting out a medley originally arranged for her mother, Judy Garland, at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas when she became “too emotional” to continue.


Stars including Barry Manilow, Renee Zellweger and Alan Cumming looked on as Minnelli took a few moments from singing before she “composed herself and finished the showstopper to a standing ovation”, according to New York Post’s gossip column PageSix.








Joe Brown Reviews

Death-defying and life-affirming, Liza Minnelli’s Wednesday night performance at the Hollywood Theatre at the MGM Grand exceeded all expectations.
Minnelli was here to re-create her limited-engagement Broadway show “Liza’s at the Palace!,” which recently won a Tony Award for Best Special Theatrical Event. She began her run at the MGM Grand last Friday; the Wednesday and Thursday shows were being filmed for a public television special and a DVD, and it’s a good thing, because this show — like its star — is one for the ages.

Throughout her career as a performer, Minnelli has famously thrown caution to the wind, and on Wednesday night she went full out in every song — if her voice breaks, what the hell? It sometimes seemed she might not survive to sing the next song, much less the two and a half hours she ended up delivering.

But the strangest and most wonderful thing happened: The 63-year-old Minnelli seemed to get stronger — and younger — with each song, as if she was receiving an energetic transfusion from the spotlight and the audience.

By the show’s end, Minnelli — in a Halston sparkling black shirtwaist mini, black sheer stockings and knee-high black suede boots — was incandescent, kicking and belting at full vitality.



I don’t know how she did it — I was exhausted after the show.

Minnelli opened with a suite of disenchanted love songs, and created characters for each, including the 1951 I-shot-my-man novelty number “If You Hadn’t, But You Did” which was a feat of memorization, just for starters) and Charles Aznavour’s “What Makes a Man a Man?” the quietly defiant soliloquy of a gender illusionist.

Perhaps unequaled in her ability to hold the stage alone, Minnelli has an emotional gravity (imbued by her classic showbiz lifeline) that — I’m gonna say it — Bette Midler and Cher combined can’t equal.
The first set was studded with signature songs, including a triumphant “Maybe This Time,” and in “Cabaret,” Minnelli acknowledged her much-discussed history of hard partying and recovery with a wry pause after the line “That’s what comes of too much pills and liquor.”
Minnelli assured the crowd that when she goes, she “ain’t goin’ like Elsie.”


Act II was a bouquet to Minnelli’s godmother, author/composer/actress/singer and bon vivant Kay Thompson, and Minnelli evoked not only Thompson’s eclat but addressed more directly than in other shows the memory and legacy of her late, legendary mother, Judy Garland.

Minnelli’s longtime choreographer and director Ron Lewis summoned a late 1940s performance featuring Thompson and the singing, dancing Williams Brothers (including Andy), whom Walter Winchell once called “the best nightclub act in history.”
The bandstand set became the glamorous Ciro’s nightclub in Hollywood, and Minnelli stepped in as Thompson, buoyed by her exuberant quartet through a medley of “I Love a Violin,” “Clap Yo’ Hands,” “Jubilee Time” and “Hello Hello.”


This was a loving, period-perfect evocation of a specific moment in showbiz history, presented without camp or irony, and the harmonies and snappy choreography were as razor-sharp as the parts in the chorus boys’ hair.


At moments — when Minnelli raised her in-turned arms or mussed up her hair — we were left with the uncanny afterimage of Mama, and Minnelli made the invocation explicit in an encore, nestling on the piano bench next to longtime accompanist Billy Stritch and singing a teary, tremulous — and sincere — “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”

If you missed it, Minnelli’s studio recording of the “Palace” show is available as a double CD; the Vegas performance is scheduled for broadcast by American Public Television in December; a DVD release is projected for early next year.

Hodge Back in La Cage Pre-NYC,

Douglas Hodge will reprise his Olivier Award-winning drag queen performance as Albin/Zaza in the West End production of La Cage Aux Folles this Christmas prior to a planned Broadway transfer in 2010. Hodge, along with previous co-star Denis Lawson as his on-stage lover Georges, will return to Terry Johnson’s multi award-winning production at the Playhouse Theatre for five weeks only from 30 November 2009.


The revival of Jerry Herman’s 1983 Broadway musical comedy opened at the Menier Chocolate Factory at Christmas 2007, before transferring in October 2008 to the West End’s Playhouse. Since Hodge stepped out of his stilettos, the role of Albin/Zaza has been tackled by chat show host Graham Norton, Roger Allam and, currently, John Barrowman, who faces critics on Monday night (5 October, previews from 14 September) playing opposite Simon Burke as the new Georges.

Based on the 1973 French play by Jean Poiret and subsequent 1978 French-Italian screen version, the musical focuses on a gay couple – Georges, the manager of a St Tropez nightclub featuring drag entertainment, and Albin, his star attraction - and the adventures that ensue when Georges' son Jean-Michel brings home his fiancée's ultra-conservative parents to meet them.

La Cage Aux Folles has a book by Harvey Fierstein (Torch Song Trilogy) and music and lyrics by Jerry Herman, whose other classics include Hello Dolly!, Mame and Mack and Mabel. The score features songs including “I Am What I Am”, “The Best of Times”, “Song on the Sand”, “Masculinity” and the title number.




Welcome to the wonderful world of Joyce Aimee
By Melora B. North


“My music is out of style,” Aimee says with candor, “but I have a following. For this show I’ll play the accordion and my musette accordion, which is tuned for French songs. It has a bit of an off-key sound. [Provincetown pianist] John Thomas will accompany me.”

No stranger to the accordion, Aimee, originally from Brooklyn, which she refers to as the “left bank of the East River,” has been playing the instrument since she was three years old, when her career was hatched. She now shares her time between Provincetown, where she eventually wants to retire, and Los Angeles.

“When I got into the business I used to jump through a screen, then do tap on my toes,” she says. “Milton Cross, who narrated the Metropolitan Opera on Saturdays, discovered me. I was on the ‘Coast to Coast on a Bus’ radio show in the ‘30s and ‘40s, where I played the accordion. Milton could just see the top of my head, the accordion was so big. [Actor] Dick Van Patten was on the show too, we went to a professional school in New York together.
We’re still friends.”

It was at age six that Aimee got that first, important accordion.

“My father gave me one when I was six and I took lessons for 25 cents with a teacher who would hit me on the knuckles with a ruler when I made a mistake,” she laughs.

However, Aimee’s lessons took a more serious turn when she was 11 and sent to audition for a renowned teacher who only taught the cream of the crop.

“He told me, ‘I never take young people but I will take you on if you promise to practice two hours a day and four hours on Sunday.’ I had to, the lessons were $10, and if I didn’t practice I knew I’d get killed. My accordion weighed 40 pounds and my mother and I had to take a bus, then the subway.
The el steps were high, it was a long commute to get there. My mother, who was a social worker, was a very little lady. She had to carry it to every lesson.”

But the lessons were taking and Aimee was progressing in her studies. So serious was her passion that her father bought her an $1,100 accordion when she was 12.

The only hitch to the deal was that Aimee had to pay for the “gift.”

“I would play parties and after each one I gave my father the money,” she says. “It was the biggest gift he ever gave me. I learned a great life lesson.”

As Aimee was climbing the ladder in the world of entertainment she went on to perform in U.S.O. shows with Buddy Rogers, husband of actress Mary Pickford.

“We were performing in California,” she says. “I had to lie about my age,” she laughs again with glee.

Meantime, back in New York she was making her name by performing on such programs as the “Arthur Godfrey Show,” and the “Robert Q. Lewis Show.” Eventually she got her own in 1947 called “Musical Miniatures” on WNBC.
“Everything was live,” she says. “The timing didn’t always work out on the shows so I would fill in with timed numbers.
I had to wear purple lipstick, dark makeup, no white or black.”

In 1949 Aimee got a message that perhaps changed her life on a certain level.
“I got a call that Bugsy Siegel had been shot,” she says. “I needed to get to the Flamingo in Vegas as soon as possible. I opened with Vic Damone and we played for two weeks.
Then I went on to perform in Reno with Joe Frisco, he was a comic. He was superstitious. For 50 years he rented his hats,” she chuckles.


A big break came in 1952 when Aimee took over the Palace Theater in New York where she performed for six years. It was there that famed chanteuse Josephine Baker dubbed her as a “Chanteuse Dangereuse,” for it was there that she was beginning to really showcase her French song repertoire. “I was fascinated with Edith Piaf,” she explains. And with a French mother, who was always correcting Aimee when necessary, the transition was an easy one; after all, in school she had earned the French Medal.

It was in 1955 that Aimee headed south of the border to South America for a year during which she performed with Baker. Then it was off to Hollywood for a frustrating, aborted film debut.



“I was to play Hannah Williams, wife of Jack Dempsey the fighter,” she says. “The movie was about him and his life. They sent me for acting lessons, a makeover to be a brunette [she is a natural red head]. I sat around Hollywood and they never came to an agreement with the estate so I went back to Vegas and made a music group. We played the Vegas, Reno, Tahoe circuit for seven years. Then rock and roll came along. I played the lounges with Sonny and Cher, we were lounge performers.”

It was in 1962 that Aimee, by then married, had a baby. Sadly, the marriage was short-lived; the union disintegrated when the baby was just seven months old. However, that did not deter the diva from her destiny. As she says, “Things were just starting to happen.” However, not in her musical career. She wasn’t a rock singer and that was the scene then.

“All I knew was showbiz, I asked an agent to teach me the business,” she says. “I was working in a cocktail lounge at the airport to pay the bills.”
She eventually opened Aimee Entertainment in 1962, which is still an active endeavor, while working small jobs on the side. As she says, “Once a ham, always a ham.” In the meantime, the business took off and she was booking jobs for entertainers out on the coast.
She also got herself married again, this time to an aerospace engineer who sadly died in 1991. Together the two had a child in 1968.
It was while handling legendary singer Tony Bennett that she was inspired to take up her singing and accordion career once again.


“He persuaded me to go back to singing,” she says. “I began working local clubs like the Gardenia in Hollywood. I did some television and films. I was in ‘The Way We Were’ with Barbra Streisand and did ‘Tall Tail’ with Patrick Swayze. I played a one-eyed saloon keeper, we became friends, it is such a shame he died.”


Other credits include television’s “Laverne and Shirley,” where she played an accordion singer, and more recently, “My Name is Earl,” where she was a one-woman band, complete with cymbals on her knees. A more current appearance is in a Yoplait yogurt commercial for the Web.
But it is her current stint with famed Carol Channing, Joanne Worley and Carol Cook that most intrigues her these days.

“It is the most exciting thing in my life now. We are trying to bring art back into the schools, we are trying to get together a show in Provincetown next year,” she says. That said, she was the commissioner of arts in Los Angeles county for 15 years, during which time Aimee founded the Americana Dance Theater, a non-profit company through which children are introduced to the forgotten people of show biz, one of which is the DeMille dynasty, showcasing the late William DeMille, the first president of the Academy of Arts and Sciences, and his niece Agnes deMille [sic], another of Aimee’s clients, who appeared in such films as “Oklahoma,” “Paint Your Wagon” and “Ballet to Broadway.”

Aimee is now involved in working with John LeBold, a former Hollywood costumer, who lives in Brewster, to present an exhibition of his costume collection next year in Doylestown, Pa.

A visitor to the Cape since childhood, Aimee built a house in Provincetown in 1997 on Beach Point where she came to regroup after her late husband died.
“It is a comfort,” she says. “When I am here in the house I am in a different world.
I hope to retire here. I just love it so. I have wonderful memories.”
In the time being, Aimee is enjoying time with her focus planted firmly on enjoying life and the here and now.
“I focus on doing the things that I love. If it’s not fun I don’t do it, it’s not important to collect things… but people,” she says with her candid wisdom.
mnorth@provincetownbanner.com

This was sent to me last night. I'm going to see Leslie Orofino on November 5th. Please let me know if you would like to join us!

This has to be said. I saw last night one of the most exciting blues singers in decades.
Her name is Leslie Orofino and she was brilliant. She gave meaning to a lyric like nobody has and with a sense of humor that made the night one of the most enjoyable one in years.
I see a lot of Cabaret but very few will match up to this woman's presentation. The party I was with was so taken by her that he couldn't stop thanking me. It was like a magic night in Cabaret and musically I had a ball listening to her. The woman sings, The woman acts and the woman has meaning with her profound understanding of what she is singing about.
I couldn't wait to get home and email to all my friends. I was so impressed by her performance. And yes I want to see her again, and a gain.



A skeletal frame is all that's left of the main building at the Pocono Playhouse in Mountainhome after a 1 a.m. Friday fire gutted that building and damaged two others.

No one was injured, and the fire is under investigation.


For 62 seasons, Playhouse brought culture and star luster to Poconos Film, TV stars filled Pocono Playhouse marquee Located on Playhouse Lane off Route 390, the landmark community summer theater is owned by Philadelphia-area resident Ralph Miller, who has owned two other theaters targeted by what authorities called arson.

Barrett Township Fire Chief Kevin Ayers said a neighbor reported Friday's fire.

"By the time we got on scene, the fire had already burned three-quarters of the way through the main building," Ayers said. "The biggest challenge for us was having to bring water from a half-mile away to fight the fire."

A state police fire marshal was called in to determine the fire's cause and exact point of origin.

Miller, who owns also the Bucks County Playhouse in Bucks County, owned the Woodstock Playhouse in New York, destroyed in a 1988 fire, and the Falmouth Playhouse on Cape Cod, Mass., destroyed in a 1994 fire.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives determined both fires were set by an arsonist using kerosene, but no arrests were ever made in either case.

In December 2002, Miller said kerosene was kept in the theaters for the heaters.

"To imply that somehow kerosene was brought into the building for subversive purposes is just not true," he said. "The bottom line is the insurance company paid half the claim. If I was a suspect, the insurance company would not have paid."
Miller was at the Pocono Playhouse fire scene Friday morning, waiting with Barrett Township police for the fire marshal to arrive.

He declined to comment at the time, but said he would be available for comment by phone later in the day. He did not return a Pocono Record phone call Friday afternoon.


Neighbor Edna Reisenwitz said she was asleep when the fire started.

"Someone came and woke me up and told me I should call 911 because the ashes were falling on my car," Reisenwitz said. "When I looked out, the fire was from the front of the main building) all the way to the back. It's terrible."


Her next-door neighbor, Bob Vogt, said, "I heard my wife and daughter talking on the phone, saying the theater was on fire. I looked out and saw the flames."

Having breakfast nearby at the Mountainhome Diner on Route 390, Buck Hill Falls couple Ed and Dawn Kendall recalled once seeing the musical "Chicago" at Pocono Playhouse. Dawn Kendall said she first heard about the fire when getting her hair cut prior to having breakfast.

"It's an unfortunate thing," she said. "Sometimes people in our neighborhood would make an outing to go see a show there. I think it had some good support, especially the children's theater. Local children have performed there throughout the years."

Ed Kendall said, "That main building didn't appear to be very well-maintained. There have been a lot of cases in the Poconos of buildings becoming dilapidated and then burning down. I call it urban renewal in the Poconos.
"If they don't rebuild the Playhouse, I have a feeling it will just sit there," he said.


Diner employee Jackie Jasko said, "My grandchildren played munchkins in 'The Wizard of Oz' there. At least we'll have that as a memento. It's devastating."
Pocono Playhouse opened its 62nd consecutive season this past summer with the popular Disney hit, "High School Musical 2." Other shows included "Godspell," "Little Women," "A Chorus Line," "My Fair Lady," "Kismet," "Camelot" and "Nunsense A-Men!"

The Playhouse also had a Children's Theater series with "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," "Jack and the Beanstalk," "Cinderella," "Beauty and the Beast," "Pinocchio," "The Wizard of Oz" and "Annie, Jr."

In its heyday, the Pocono Playhouse had been host to star-studded performances which featured the likes of Betty Grable, Ted Knight, Steve McQueen and Shaun Cassidy.


The theater building had changed little since New York native Rowena Stevens, who wanted to provide the Poconos with quality theater, opened the playhouse on July 7, 1947.

Pocono Record writer Howard Frank, Online Managing Editor Marta Gouger and archivist Janis Dahlman contributed to this article.
Don't forget to contribute to the DR. CAROL CHANNING & HARRY KULLIJIAN FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS: http://www.carolchanning.org/Foundation.htm

With grateful XOXOXs for your support!

Richard Skipper

Follow me on Twitter @RichardSkipper





HERE IS WHAT AUDIENCES ARE SAYING ABOUT MY WORK:


Had a ball at the Iguana on Wednesday. You and Dana were fabulous. Paul loved that you did a number from "Sugar." He loves that score.
Rochelle Chamlin


I just love your Carol. She is so captivating by mixing a vibrant, riotous rapporté with touching moments of nostalgic storytelling and song. Her courage to charge into the audience and take no prisoners is brilliant.
The audience feels teased, exposed and tickled, but never insulted nor humiliated. Carol's quick wit and warm charm win every heart in the house.
John Tidd, After recent Malibu gig




Richard - hearing you this past Wednesday nite at The Iguana VIP Lounge pull out of your back pocket a wonderful ballad as 'Old Man River' was so enjoyable! You sang with such tenderness and feeling. You really stopped me dead-in-my-tracks. I always see you exhibiting such energy and excitement in your emceeing duties that to hear you sit and hold court in that spotlight was thrilling for me and the entire audience. You are truly the "consummate entertainer".
Love, Jillian Laurain


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NYC


Now a night out in NY to see a show at a VERY AFFORDABLE price!
Dana Lorge and I have
now put their OWN spin on The variety show format and are now hosting every Wednesday night in
NYC at The Iguana VIP Lounge (http://www.iguananyc.com) in the heart of
NYC (240 West 54th Street 8-11PM/with an intermission).
WEDNESDAY NIGHT OF
THE IGUANA!
Each week
will showcase 5 entertainers.

Barry Levitt returns on keyboard and Saadi Zain on bass!
on bass. Time: 8 - 11:00 p.m.
Cover: $10 - no food or drink minimums – but remember – the food is great!


CASH ONLY PAID AT THE DOOR! This is a nice night
out with the family!

A
"throw back" to the variety shows we grew up with.
For more info, please call 845-365-0720 or visit _www.RichardSkipper.com_

RESERVATIONS A MUST!!!!!!!!


212-765-5454. No one admitted before
7:30.








October 7th: Edd Clark, Marianne Meringolo, Wendy Russell, Marcus Simeone, Maureen Taylor

October 14th: Kelly Esposito- Broelmann, Barbara Gurskey, Robert Hodge, Jonathan Long, Andrea Mezvinsky-Kolb , Martin Vidnovic

October 21st: Esther Beckman & Stearns Matthews, Leslie Orofino, Susan Winter

October 28th: Jenna Esposito returns!, Laurie Krauz & Wicked’s very own Walter ONeil, Angela Schultz, Mauricio Villa-Lobos!


November 4th: Arianna, Moira Danis, Elaine St. George, Daryl Glenn, Lynn DiMenna

December 2nd: The debut of The Marquee 5 (Mick Bleyer, Adam Hemming, Vanessa Parvin, Sierra Rein, Julie Reyburn) singing selections from their upcoming revue, "We Can Make It...The Songs of Kander & Ebb" and Hector Coris!

December 9th: Richard Holbrook, Josh Zuckerman, Helena Grenot, Jillian Laurain

December 30th: Linda Fields, Ritt Henn, Annie Hughes

Keep checking http://www.richardskipper.com/schedule.html