Monday night, March 23rd, I (as usual!) headed to Birdland for another great Cast Party. The room was practically bursting at the seams with talent, which made for a really fun night! Christina Bianco, who just finished performing in Forbidden Broadway, delivered a high-energy "The Song Is You," cabaret diva KT Sullivan gave us a sneak peak of her new Dietz & Schwartz show (which just opened at the Algonquin), singer/songwriter David Goldman did my FAVORITE song of his, "Sorry Said The Moon," William Blake brought the house down with "Come Rain Or Come Shine," oh, I could go on and on! Another standout was singer/songwriter Zoe Lewis, who was visiting from Provincetown, MA, and did a fun, quirky song called "That Thing," which featured an amazing recorder solo (who knew that recorders could sound so cool?!) by Roxanne Layton. Host Jim Caruso was his usual entertaining, witty self, and Tedd Firth (piano), Steve Doyle (bass) and Steve Bakunas (drums) did a great job of backing everyone up!
On Wednesday, March 25th, I headed over to the Time Out NY Lounge to catch theSet NYC, which is a monthly variety show featuring up-and-coming performers in nearly every genre. On the night I went, there were a few singers (host RedWine, jazz/blues singer Anna Fiszman, and 22-year-old singer/songwriter Melanie Fontana), a few comedians (Liz Miele and Rob O'Reilly), a magician (Nick Ignazzi), and a dance team (Frida, Moncef and Ronja, who all hail from Sweden). Each set lasted about 10 minutes, and because the lineup was so varied, the time absolutely flew by! I spent a few minutes after the show chatting with Pim, who is one of the producers of theSet NYC, and he said that they work very hard to scout new talent in the city and provide a supportive atmosphere to allow these talents to showcase themselves and grow. Kudos, then, to Pim and the other founders/producers (R. Lai, L. Mordis, and R. Taliver) - from what I've seen, it looks like they are doing a terrific job of achieving their goals! I'll definitely be heading back for future performances - with no cover, no minimum, and a whole boatload of talent, it's a hard deal to beat!
Where I'm going this week...
Monday, March 30th: Cast Party at Birdland! Hosted by Jim Caruso, this fantastic open mic is THE place to be on Monday nights! It usually begins at 10:00, but this week it's starting at 11:00. As always, if you want to sing, be sure to get there early to sign up!
Tuesday, March 31st: Terese Genecco & her Little Big Band at The Iridium. I'm so looking forward to this - Terese is a fun, high-energy, Rat-Pack-style entertainer who always puts on a great show. She'll be joined on Tuesday by her top-notch 7-piece band, which is helmed by Barry Levitt at the piano. Sets are at 8:00 and 10:00.
Wednesday, April 1st: Metrojam at the Metropolitan Room. This monthly open mic, hosted by Joe Bachana, is a great place to sing, network, and enjoy some great entertainment. In honor of the date, this Wednesday's Metrojam will have a special "April Fool's" theme!
That's all for now have a great week and check back for another update next Friday!
Pictured: Shawn Ryan
