The Salon Wrap-Up for September 23, 2012 "That Foreign Mystique"

It’s the first weekend of fall, punctuated by pumpkin side lattes and the Broadway Care / Equity Fights AIDS Flea Market. But there’s no better way to spend this kind of evening than with the warm and friendly folks at The Salon open mic!

Co-host Parker Scott!

Tonight’s theme was “That Foreign Mystique” - but the co-host was no stranger to us: the talented and affable Bistro Award-winning, Parker Scott! Parker started the evening with a touching, almost music box arrangement of “Around the World” and “Love Makes the World Go Round.” After a rousing ovation, Parker kicked in his hosting duties by introducing each singer, alternating between asking their, Favorite City, Favorite Cocktail, and Favorite Color. I learned a lot about our Salon guests that I never knew before!

To kick off the open mic portion of the evening, Barb Malley sang “Life Is” from Zorba The Greek by Kander & Ebb. Gary Crawford sang “Open Arms” by the theme-appropriate named rock band, Journey. Edie Stokes brought us a sultry “Angel Eyes” after which, she quipped, “A cad is a cad is a cad in any language.” Edie’s show, “Illusions: All The World’s A Stage” is September 30 at 5:30pm at Don’t Tell Mama.

Jim Speake was next with the inspiring, “What a Wonderful World” originally recorded by Louis Armstrong. You can see “Jim Speake Sings ’Til The Cows Come Home” directed by Lennie Watts, musical direction by Steven Ray Watkins, with special guest Sidney Myer at Don’t Tell Mama September 29 at 5pm and October 3 & 10 at 7pm. Andy Gale, sang an incredibly lovely, “Superstar” recorded by The Carpenters. Andy has some exciting news - he and Mark are reviving their popular “Acting The Song” class - Saturday afternoons starting October 20 for 5 weeks, 1-4pm and only $80 per class. See Mark at the next Salon for more details.

Harold Sanditen came to the stage with the mixed language (French/English) song, “I Wish You Love.” Harold told us a story about being asked to sing this song by his parents, who said they fell in love to it. Once Harold studied the lyrics, he realized that the song was about a couple who couldn’t be in love. So, his father made some clever changes to the lyrics, et voila! - Harold brought us this new-fangled love song tonight. It was lovely! Haolr has a show coming up October 4-5 at the Metropolitan Room called, “Shades of Blue” which originated in London and is now in NYC! Brian Fiehler sang the gorgeous, “A Little Bit of Earth” from The Secret Garden. I sure hope I get to hear him bring more material like that to The Salon.

Oliver Donaldson, a previous student of Mark and Andy’s at Manhattan School of Music, brought us the powerful aria, “Apres un Reve” from Trois Melodies by Gabriel Faure. Joann Sicoli was next, with a Italian/English a cappella performance of “Dicitencello Vilie / Just Say I Love Him.” She’ll be in Italy performing in October, so she asks that if anyone is in that neighborhood be sure to look her up! :)

David Jarvis was back at the piano and mic, singing a charming, ragtime inspired song about a pianist who played on a cruise ship - “Oceana Roll.” Cameron Fadjo was next (with David still on keys) with his deep bass tones singing Cole Porter’s, “In The Still The Night.” He’s working on a she which he hopes will premiere at the beginning of 2013. We’re looking forward to it! David stayed at the piano and welcomed Bob Diamond to the stage with, “When I Look At You” from The Scarlet Pimpernel. Bob was excited to announce that he’d be performing with Cabaret Cares at the Laurie Beechman on Monday night at 6:30pm.

Our trusty server, David Ballard, was next with the Lerner & Loewe ballad, “On The Street Where You Live.” David is excited to announce that he has been accepted into the 2nd Year of the BMI Workshop as a lyricist, and promises that he’ll be premiering some of his songs very soon. Your blogette, Erin Cronican (c’est moi!) brought in, “Somebody Somewhere” from The Most Happy Fella, which is about a young woman who is wooed via letter by an anonymous Italian. Erin is doing a reading of “Willow Road” by Wendy Lockman, directed by Peter Napolitano for a free public performance Tuesday, September 25 at 6pm. Janice Hall, tonight’s Etceterette, sang the amazing Edith Piaf song, “L’Accord Eoniste.” Janice is currently in rehearsals for “James Joyce’s The Dead” in Washington DC.

Classical Corner

Salon Founder and Host Mark Janas started off Classical Corner by talking about the foreign mystique that is all over classic music. In fact, different music from different lands have distinct sounds. He played a few examples: French tunes are known for their color & subtlety - like the French language, they drop outside consonents. German tunes are structural and dramatic, also like their language. Eastern / Asian tunes tend to be made up of small, light pieces coming together (not unlike their cuisine!)

Classical music has always crossed over cultures. To demonstrate this crossover, Mark asked Parker Scott sing two songs. First, he sang an aria from Rodelinda by German composer, Handel, which was actually written in Italian. In it, a king cries out to his queen who he believes he has been lost forever. The second song was from “Eugene Onegin”by the Russian composer Tchaichovsky, which takes place in Russia but has a french character. With help from Janice Hall posing hilariously as Tatiana, Parker sang the aria, “Triquets Couplets.”

Second Act

Co-host Parker Scott opened the second act with the inspiring “Taking The Wheel” from the musical, “It’s Only Life” by John Bucchino. This song opens Parker’s show, “No Expectations” which is running at the Metropolitan Room Sunday, October 7 at 4pm. I highly recommend checking it out - click here to see a promo, if you don’t believe me. :) The final song of his co-hosting set was Ricky Ian Gordon’s “A Horse With Wings.”

Salon Producer, Tanya Moberly, was next with the Indigo Girls folk ballad, “Leeds.” We’re thrilled to announce Tanya’s next show at Don’t Tell Mama, opening Sept 28 at 7pm- “Tanya Lorraine Moberly sings Barbra Joan Streisand with Steven Ray Watkins.” There are discounts for Salon members - be sure to make reservations in advance.

Joan Jaffe brought us the side-splitting (and somewhat filthy) Francesca Blumenthal song “On The Streets of Paree.” Joan has a show coming up - “Joan Jaffe’s Manha-ha-ha-ttan” at the Abingdon Theater as a part of their Sunday Series, October 14 at 7pm. Salon newbie, Dathan B Williams, was next with “Kiteflyer’s Hill” by Mark Nevin. He’ll be appearing as Kent in “King Lear” with the American Bard Theater Oct 18-Nov 4. We’re so glad to have you with us, finally, Dathan!

Lou Iacovino came in with “You and Me” a song that’s brand new for him at The Salon. We love that The Salon can be a place for our regulars to try out new material. Great work, Lou! Next up was Katie Stevenson with “Habanera” from Bizet’s Carmen (which was ably backed up by the choral singers in the room!) She is the host of Opera at Ido Susho on Wednesdays with Matthew Martin Ward, and Saturdays (starting October 6) with Mark Janas. Speaking of, Matthew Martin Ward was next with a French-lyriced version of “Embraceable You.” Matthew is doing musical direction & arrangements for a show called, “Hopelessly In Love: The Lyrics of Tom Toce” directed by Peter Napolitano - Oct 10 at 7pm, and Oct 28, Nov 3 & 10 at 4pm at the Metropolitan Room. Be sure to check it out!

We’re thrilled to have Bill Zeffiro back with us with his new tune, “A Voice in The Blue.” You can always here Bill at La Mediterannae on Tuesday nights. He’s also the musical director for Marissa Mulder’s CD release party October 9 at 7pm at the Metropolitan Room. Richie Eisenberg was back with one of my favorite original tunes of his, “On A Night Like This.” We’re proud to announce that Richie will be out next Salon Presents, on October 24 at 7pm and 9:30pm. More details will be posted soon!

For the final number of the evening, co-host Parker Scott sang the ultimate Edith Piaf tune, “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien.”

Next week features Co-Host Anna Bergman. Our Salon Spotlight will be the always hilarious Joshua Desjardins & Joshua Warr. The optional theme is, “Amour, Amore, Liebe & Love.” Bring any song that celebrates different languages, especially the language of love! 

Remember, any material, on or off theme, is always welcome at Salon.

Next week's co-host, Anna Bergman!

And… before I leave you, just a quick reminder...

HAVE A VIDEO FROM THE SALON? We want to see it!

I’ve created a playlist for Salon performances, and I would love to add yours to it. I’ve taken the liberty to scour YouTube to find what’s already posted. To see what’s currently on the playlist, click this YouTube link (note: if I've added a video of yours that you'd like removed, just let me know!)

To add your video:

Visit the blog and use the search box on the right to find the official “Wrap Up” article from the date that you performed. Leave a comment on that blog article and include the link to your YouTube video - I’ll then get it added to the playlist!

Even better, your link will be viewable by anyone who visits that particular blog post - exciting, huh?

The only rule is that you can only post videos of yourself - please do not post links to videos of other people without their permission.

Thanks, and see you this Sunday!

-Erin Cronican
Blogette for The Salon
Need anything? Please email me.

The Salon Wrap-Up for September 16, 2012 - "Whatever Quirks - Quirky Songs, Songwriters and Subjects"

Greetings Saloners and fans! I’m posting this in my apartment in Toronto! Ain't technology wonderful?  Now that that’s established, on to the wrapup for last Sunday’s Salon, co-hosted by…

Annie LeBeaux! Annie is a singer-songwriter of quirky, funny songs and was a hilarious hostess, guiding us through the theme “Whatever Quirks – Quirky Songs, Songwriters & Subjects.” Annie first plunked out tunes at a piano – an old one in the basement of her mom’s old Victorian home in Massachusetts – at age four and was thankfully given piano lessons a few years after. As she stated, “you always know where you are when sitting at a piano.” Annie will be music directing at the Theater of the New City soon, and has several CDs under her belt to sell and listen to! After providing some piano ambiance (she is often for hire on cruise ships and clubs as a pianist), Annie started out the evening’s quirktactular theme (Mark Janas playing piano) with an Alan Arkin song (who knew he wrote songs? Not I! Nor the fact that he co-wrote “The Banana Boat Song”…) - a sweet song of simple appreciation entitled “I Like You.” 

Mark Janas, who was wearing an incredibly quirky loud striped shirt and polka-dot tie, took to the piano as Annie invited Jim Speake to the stage; Jim sang “The Rainbow Connection” (what’s more quirky than a song sung by a frog?) and was happy to inform us of a new show – “Jim Speake Sings ‘Til The Cows Come Home” with special guest Sidney Myer - opening September 22nd to 29th and then October 3rd and 10th at Don’t Tell Mama. Carly Ozard next sang the fun “Falling Out of Love Can Be Fun” from Miss Liberty by Irving Berlin, a perfect song that fitted her big brassy Broadway voice. Lawrence A. Floreky (not to be confused by any other Lawrence A….) sang “Luck be A Lady” from Guys and Dolls, and claimed his Harry Potter-esque round glasses were “about as quirky as I can get”. Lawrence is currently working on songs and arrangements with Eric Comstock, so keep an eye out for his name! Joann Sicoli, and a simple black and silver ensemble, questioned us from Sweet Charity with “Where am I Going?” and cleverly incorporated Salon and Etcetera, Etcetera into the lyrics. She’s working on a new show come the beginning of 2013!

Carly Ozard

The Brooklyn version of quirk came to the mic next as Barb Malley did a rendition of Cole Porter’s oddest song, “Miss Otis Regrets,” this time brandishing a bright (orange toy) gun as a prop. Natasha Castillo, adorably dressed in pink and lace, made us think twice about befriending her with “I Want More,” the little-girl-turned-vampire song from Lestat. Her show, “Anything But Ordinary,” directed by Lennie Watts with musical direction by Steven Ray Watkins, hits The Duplex on November 2nd, 10th and 16th.  Next, the “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” Charlotte Patton cleverly sang from last week’s theme, but somehow it still fit this week’s as well! Her last show “Looking For Love in the 21st Century” closes tonight, Weds the 19th at The Duplex, but she is starting a new play, “Kissing the Witch” at Access Theater in early October!

Barb Malley

Next up was Bistro Award-winner and Co-Host of the Salon next week - Parker Scott! Parker first honored me by singing a sweet, simple chorus of “Starlight Express,” the last song he sang on his cruise ship job. He then sang the gorgeous Emily Dickinson-lyric’d “Will There Really Be a Morning,” music by Ricky Ian Gordon. In addition to co-hosting the Salon this coming Sunday, Parker’s next show will be at The Metropolitan Room on October 7th. Our waiter, the always on-hand-with-the-drinks-order, David Ballard sang the song “I Believe,” from probably the quirkiest show on Broadway today – The Book of Mormon. Then it was my (Sierra Rein’s) last time at the Salon bat, singing quirky composer Hector Coris’ “My Moment,” melisma offering a window to my soul – did you see it?!? I’m working in Toronto and will be working on board the Disney Cruise Ship “Magic,” and thankfully have the great Lynsey Buckelew to take over for me in Marquee Five while I’m gone.  Next up was Arianna, who had us rooting for all the tongue-twisting countries coming out of her mouth throughout the beloved Animaniac’s song “Yakko’s World” (lyrics by Randy Rogel).

We then had the Salon Spotlight, which highlighted the jazzy-sweet vocals of Shaynee Rainbolt, with the quirkmaster Bill Zeffiro at the piano. She is featured in this month’s Cabaret Scenes and has her show “Two For The Road” every Friday in September, 9:30pm at the Metropolitan Room, featuring musical direction/piano and vocal duets with Donn Trenner. Shaynee, with her bright red hair and saucy ‘tude, is certainly quirky, and one can argue Jazz made quirks out of all music when it was first introduced onto the scene! She started out her set with “No Moon at All,” a high jazz number, but then brought the mood to a quiet stillness with the soft and haunting ballad “Easy to Remember,” a song that can be found on her CD, “At Home.” She then swung it into high gear, with Bill Zeffiro’s help, on the positive song “Lucky To Be Me.”

Shaynee Rainbolt

Mark Janas’ Classical Corner this week featured the composer Franz Liszt, the Hungarian “rock star,” and Calle Toivino, a Finnish friend of Mark’s who can be found playing the organ at Christ Church in Brooklyn as well as in the halls of the Manhattan School of Music, where he is getting his Doctorate. Liszt, who famously had hotel keys of amorous ladies thrown at him from the audience, took a trip to Spain and Portugal in 1845, and by 1863 offered a difficult piece of music, inspired by variations on the dance music of the areas. Calle took to the piano to play this piece, “Rhapsody Espagnol,” a mind-bogglingly hard piece full of “blind octaves” that turned his fingers into a blur at times. I’ve sung at Christ Church many times, and this was the first time I was able to hear Calle’s marvelous piano playing skills – it was marvelous! Calle has a recital at Carnegie Hall on October 11th, 8pm, with his sister playing on cello (quite a talented family!!!) – catch him next month if you can!

Before finishing the first act, we all took a moment to wish Bill Zeffiro a Happy Birthday, which occurred the previous day on Saturday. Happy Birthday Bill!!!

The quirkiness of the evening continued as Annie LeBeaux grabbed a seat at the piano and regaled us with a Shel Silverstein ditty entitled “You’re Still Gonna Die” from her Vaudeville-themed CD. This had us laughing and questioning our mortality at the same time. After giving us a sample of her first song written, “The Milk and Honey,” she quickly dismissed her amateur past and moved into the suggestive “These Things Happen,” where only the minds of the audience filled in the sexual blanks. She finished her top set with “Don’t You Hate It When…”, a Second City 20th Century TV Show song in which the patience of the audience involvement was tested – luckily for her, the Salon audience was all too eager to play along!

The Qolorful, Quirky Annie LeBeaux!

Mark returned to the piano to play for Salon Producer Tanya Moberly, who sang the always-unique lyrics of Tori Amos’ “Silent All These Years.” Her Barbara Streisand-themed show opens at Don’t Tell Mama on September 28th, but will be featured each month after, so pick one and go! We then had the wonderful Quirk Queen herself, Mary Lahti, bless us with an amazingly short rendition of what she called the “Dysfunctional White Blues.” As short as it was, she left the stage with us all in stitches. She’s working on her debut show, which hopefully will be full of equally hilarious musical gems. Kathy Ann Skyler, playing for herself on guitar, played the very quirky original piece “Just Don’t Tell”…and I won’t tell you how much it made us laugh! Birthday Boy Bill Zeffiro sat at the piano and mic and sweetly sang Noel Coward’s “Come the Wild Wild Weather,” wishing me a bon voyage from friends near and far. Let’s just say there were tears…

Kathy Ann Skyler on guitar

Terese Genecco, along with Bill at the piano, then sang Bill’s swingin’ granule of “Universal Truth,” the 2012 MAC Award-winning song! Terese can often be seen at the Iridium Jazz with her Little Big Band.  Bill stayed at the piano to play for Lea McKenna Garcia, who sang her own lyrics to the new song "Home to Me," with music by Zeffiro; it was a song worthy of a “City of Angels”-esque musical, with a dark bluesy 1940’s vibe. Then, Robert Hicks took over for Bill and played his original work, “Burgers for Lunch,” a swinging uptempo song about food, featuring Robert’s expert scatting. After Robert sang, Mick Bleyer (whose shorts alone got him into the quirky category) performed “On the Street Where You Live” from My Fair Lady in a gorgeous baritone, and then jazzed up the repeat after as Mark lifted the tone in the instrumental break! It was awesome. Mick, and Marquee Five, will be performing in a benefit performance with Elaine St. George in New Jersey on October 20th. After Mick sang, Mark Janas grabbed the mic to join in a chorus of "Happy Trails to You"...to me!...which is apparently a tradition with him when friends go away for a long time. Finally, Annie LeBeaux concluded the evening with “Please Call Me Back” a rolling R&B ballad by Tom Waitts.

NEXT WEEK! The optional theme for the evening is “That Foreign Mystique.”

Remember, any material, on or off theme, is always welcome at Salon.

Our Co-Host will be Bistro Award Winner Parker Scott! Parker will be appearing with Wells Hanley in "No Expectations" at The Metropolitan Room – 34 West 22nd St, NYC, 212-206-0440 – on October 7th at 4pm. For more information: www.metropolitanroom.com.

-Sierra Rein
Blogette for The Salon
Please email me.

Update from Producer Tanya Moberly - September 18, 2012

SALON – that unique, MULTIPLE AWARD WINNING, Weekly Open Mic Event, created and hosted by Mark Janas returns to Etcetera, Etcetera - 352 West 44th Street, NYC 10036 – on Sunday, September 23rd from 7-10:30PM! (Sign-Up Begins at 6:15.)

The optional theme for the evening is “That Foreign Mystique.”

Remember, any material, on or off theme, is always welcome at Salon.

Our Co-Host will be Bistro Award Winner Parker Scott! Parker will be appearing with Wells Hanley in No Expectations at The Metropolitan Room – 34 West 22nd St, NYC, 212-206-0440 – on October 7th at 4pm. For more information: www.metropolitanroom.com

Salon continues every Sunday …

September 30th:
Theme: Amour, Amore, Liebe & Love
Co-Host: Anna Bergman
Salon Spotlight: Joshua Desjardins & Joshua Warr

October 7th:
Theme: Anything Goes
Co-Host: Tanya Holt
Salon Spotlight: Corinna Sowers Adler

October 14th:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Natalie Douglas

October 21st:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Nina Hennessey

October 28th:
Theme: All Souls Night
Co-Host: Janice Hall

Salon is an ongoing open entertainment event in which singers, writers and musicians share their talent with each other and audience members.

There is a $10 cash cover collected at the door and a $15 food/drink minimum (cash or credit) per person. (For more information about Etcetera, Etcetera's delicious menu: www.etcetcnyc.com. A 20% gratuity is added to all checks.) There are no reservations; seating is on a first come/first served basis, Doors open and sign up begins at 6:15pm. The evening begins at 7:00, has a 15-minute break at 8:30 and ends promptly at 10:30. If you would like to sign up to perform, see one the evening's 'Etceterettes' to fill out a card with your name, the name of your song, whether or not Mark will be playing for you and any upcoming events you'd like to promote. We do not present performers in order of sign-up, however, indicating requests as clearly and as early as possible as far as time restraints are concerned always makes everything much more possible. ALWAYS BRING SEVERAL SONG SELECTIONS to avoid duplication. All types of material, on or off theme are always welcome at Salon. We enthusiastically welcome instrumentalists, poets, playwrights, essayists, comics, illusionists and performance artists. Please limit your selections to three or four minutes in length (including introductions). Please also bring clear, complete charts for Mark to read. Sitting on the piano is not allowed, nor is flash photography. Please turn off all noise making devices and give performers your undivided attention.

Visit our website at www.markjanasthesalon.com, our blog at http://markjanasthesalon.blogspot.com/ and look for us on Facebook!

Thank you to our sponsors Dr. Garrett Bennett & Father Jeffrey Hamblin, MD!

Looking forward to seeing you all Sunday, September 23rd!

Thanks,

Tanya Moberly
Salon Producer

Update from Producer Tanya Moberly - September 16, 2012

SALON – that unique, MULTIPLE AWARD WINNING, Weekly Open Mic Event, created and hosted by Mark Janas returns to Etcetera, Etcetera - 352 West 44th Street, NYC 10036 – TONIGHT -  Sunday, September 16th from 7-10:30PM! (Sign-Up Begins at 6:15.)

The optional theme for the evening is “Whatever Quirks! – Quirky Songs, Songwriters and Subjects”

Remember, any material, on or off theme, is always welcome at Salon.

Our Co-Host will be Quirkmistress Annie LeBeaux! Annie is a brilliant composer/lyricist and is a beloved Salon member and longtime performer here in New York and in far-flung climes. She has also been musical director for over 70 shows including October's upcoming show at Theater for the New City! For more information, look for Annie on Facebook.

Annie LeBeaux

Our Salon Spotlight will feature MAC and Bistro Award Winner Shaynee Rainbolt! Shaynee will be at The Metropolitan Room - 34 West 22 nd St NYC 10010, 212-206-0440 - September 14th, 21st and 28th at 9:30pm with the legendary Donn Trenner. For more information: www.shayneerainbolt.com / www.metropolitanroom.com.

and

Salon continues every Sunday …

September 23rd:
Theme: That Foreign Mystique
Co-Host: Parker Scott

September 30th:
Theme: Amour, Amore, Liebe and Love
Co-Host: Anna Bergman
Salon Spotlight: Joshua Desjardins and Joshua Warr

October 7th:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Tanya Holt
Salon Spotlight: Corinna Sowers Adler

October 14th:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Natalie Douglas

October 21st:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Nina Hennessey

October 28th:
Theme: All Souls Night
Co-Host: Janice Hall

Salon is an ongoing open entertainment event in which singers, writers and musicians share their talent with each other and audience members.

There is a $10 cash cover collected at the door and a $15 food/drink minimum (cash or credit) per person. (For more information about Etcetera, Etcetera's delicious menu: www.etcetcnyc.com. A 20% gratuity is added to all checks.) There are no reservations; seating is on a first come/first served basis, Doors open and sign up begins at 6:15pm. The evening begins at 7:00, has a 15-minute break at 8:30 and ends promptly at 10:30. If you would like to sign up to perform, see one the evening's 'Etceterettes' to fill out a card with your name, the name of your song, whether or not Mark will be playing for you and any upcoming events you'd like to promote. We do not present performers in order of sign-up, however, indicating requests as clearly and as early as possible as far as time restraints are concerned always makes everything much more possible. ALWAYS BRING SEVERAL SONG SELECTIONS to avoid duplication. All types of material, on or off theme are always welcome at Salon. We enthusiastically welcome instrumentalists, poets, playwrights, essayists, comics, illusionists and performance artists. Please limit your selections to three or four minutes in length (including introductions). Please also bring clear, complete charts for Mark to read. Sitting on the piano is not allowed, nor is flash photography. Please turn off all noise making devices and give performers your undivided attention.

Visit our website at www.markjanasthesalon.com, our blog at http://markjanasthesalon.blogspot.com/ and look for us on Facebook!

Thank you to our sponsors Dr. Garrett Bennett and Father Jeffrey Hamblin, MD!

Looking forward to seeing you all Sunday, September 16th!

Thanks,

Tanya Moberly
Salon Producer

PS If you would like to add a name to our mailing list please email Tanya.

-Sierra Rein
Blogette for The Salon
Please email me.

The Salon Wrap-Up for September 9, 2012 "Relationships: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly"

The house was PACKED as we welcomed the inimitable, Multiple MAC Award Winner Dana Lorge back to The Salon. On the heels of her wildly successful “Wednesday Night at The Iguana”, Dana is currently searching for a new venue for and will let the world know the minute she finds one. In the meantime, we were dazzled by her talents both on stage and as an amazing co-host

Co-Host Dana Lorge

Dana kick off the show with a bang with her parody, “The Man That Isn’t Gay” to the tune of “The Man That Got Away.” Next up - what do you do with a philandering type? Natasha Castillo told us in her country power ballad, “Before He Cheats” recorded by Carrie Underwood. Natahsa has a show, “Anything but Ordinary,” coming up at The Duplex - November 2, 10, and 16 with Steven Ray Watkins and directed by Lennie Watts.

Bobbie Horowitz told us that she wrote a book, “Dating For Seniors” - then sang a hilarious song about her run-in with “Maurice The Plumber.” The moral of the story - don’t mess with Bobbie! Corinna Sowers-Adler, a fabulous performer who has also been a Salon co-host, was back with the gorgeous pop song, “Nothing To Lose But Your Heart.” She said that this song is new to her repertoire - it’s wonderful that we’re some of the first to hear it! Corinna has a show coming up, “By Request” on October 13 - make sure you get out to see her!

Singer/songwriter Sunny Leigh (with Barry Levitt on piano) was next with an on-theme song which talked about the “good” that happens when a “bad” man from an “ugly” relationship finally leaves - “Get Out Of Town”. Sunny has a show coming up with Barry Levitt which will be announced once details are finalized. Lou Iacovino crooned and charmed us all with his rendition of “You Stepped Out of a Dream”, also with Barry Levitt.

We were delighted to welcome back Helena Grenot to the stage, with her performance of Barry Levitt & Peter Napolitano’s original tune, “All In Good Time” (which Helena said she swiped from Deb Berman. I guess all’s fair in love and cabaret!) Janice Hall (with Matthew Martin Ward) came up and sang one of my personal favorite’s of hers, the clever and sardonic, “I’d Rather Be Doing This” written by Matthew Martin Ward with lyrics by Peter Napolitano.

Matthew Martin Ward stayed at the piano and mic to perform Billy Joel’s “Summer, Highland Falls.” He wasn’t sure if the song exactly fit “the good, the bad and the ugly”… more like “the manic and the depressive.” Either way, the crowd loved the simplicity of the performance. Salon Board Members Nicholas Levin and Stephen Wilde were next, with Stephen at the mic singing Nick’s tune, “Director’s Cut” - hilariously detailing how to make a favorable montage of a relationship, keeping only the good stuff. Oh, if only…

Randie Shane came to the stage with Sean Harkness on guitar, and gave us the driving, folk ballad (which I did not catch the name of, but it was beautiful!) We were thrilled to invite up next week’s co-host, Annie Lebeaux, who sang her adorable original tune, “How Soon is Soon?” Bob Simonello, in only his second time ever, gave us the gorgeous and touching, “Old Friend” by Gretchen Cryer & Nancy Ford from I’m Getting My Act Together and Taking It On The Road. We’re thrilled to have you with us, Bob!

Jacqueline Hashimoto was next, with a powerful, “My Foolish Heart” - a popular song by Ned Washington and Victor Young, written in 1949. We then welcomed your Blogette for the evening Erin Cronican (me!) to the stage, where I sang “Speak Low” from One Touch of Venus. I recently finished my Off-Broadway debut in The Seeing Place Theater’s production of Danny and the Deep Blue Sea. More details can be found on my website.

This week’s Classical Corner was a real treat. Mark Janas invited up Rachel Policar, a student from Manhattan School of Music, to give us some gorgeous tunes matched to our relationship theme. Even more impressive than her beautiful voice was that she made everything seem so easy!

“The Good” - Rachel started with “Moonfall” from The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

“The Bad” - She continued with an aria from the German writer, Goethe.

“The Ugly” - And she finished her set with an amazing aria from the Offenbach opera, The Tales of Hoffmann about a man who falls in love with a wind up doll he thinks is real. Her performance included some hilarious moments when she would run out of energy, and producer Tanya Moberly would have to sunup on stage and “wind up” the slumped doll again.

Rachel got a rousing standing ovation, as well she should have. She was amazing - what incredible talent. And she helped promote what I think the purpose of Classical Corner is each week - to help Salon-goers develop their appreciation for classical music and its influence in what we’re doing today. I’d say that goal is consistently achieved!

Before we went on break, we all wished Lars, our server, a very happy birthday!

Second Set

Dana Lorge was back to kick off the second set, with Barry Levitt in tow. Her first number was “Exit Right” - a hilarious number from Steve Ludvak’s Songs From An Unmade Bed. Before her second song, Dana quipped about getting a dimmer, prettier light, for which technician Tommy Shull complied… by turning the lights off. I don’t think I’ve seen Dana so delightfully shocked - it was a riot! Only in cabaret can that kind of improvisation work so brilliantly. The audience was appropriately warmed up, then, for the gorgeous ballad, “Lies of Handsome Men”, recorded by Cleo Laine. She then cut through the sweetness with all kinds of comedic jabs about dating, which had the audience in fits of laughter. To finish out her special set, Dana pulled out a bullwhip and handcuffs and sang, “I Don’t Know How To Love Him”… and then turned it into a charming medley of “Do It Again” and “Satisfy me One More Time.”

Salon Producer was next with an amazing moving, “Unusual Way” from Maury Yeston’s Nine. Tanya wanted to make sure we all came out to see The Concerts at Tudor City Greens, this Wednesday at 6:30pm at South Park. More info at www.tudorcitygreens.org. She also has her own show coming up at Don’t Tell Mama, opening Sept 28 - “Tanya Lorraine Moberly sings Barbra Joan Streisand with Steven Ray Watkins” - I can’t wait!

Don Rebic & Christine Reisner came to the mic next to sing the fun and sassy duet, “Defenses Are Down” and then segued into “When My Sugar Walk Down The Street.” Impressively, Christine whipped out her violin and played an instrumental duet with Don on the piano - we love it when folks show their multiple talents on our stage! They also used their stage time to announce that they just got engaged! Congrats to the happy couple.

David Rigano brought up his brother, Paul Rigano, and they sang the title song from their musical web series, “Just A Couple.” They have a show September 18 at Don’t Tell Mama to fundraise for the series - it’s so wonderful to see a young writing team blending musical theater with the medium of film. Can’t wait to see how it turns out! Bob Diamond (with David Jarvis at the keys) was next with a fun and rousing rendition of “Can That Boy Foxtrot.”

David Jarvis stayed at the piano as his husband, Cameron Fadjo, came to the stage and pledged his everlasting love to… Dana. A call and response ensued throughout his performance of the 60s inspired song, “Do You Love Me?” David then got to sing his own song, where he lamented - “Right Church, Wrong Pew.” Next up was Salon regular Barb Malley, who said her song was a mix of all three parts of the theme - “What I Did For Love” from A Chorus Line. Barb reminded us that she’s doing a series of YouTube videos where she sings inappropriate songs in inappropriate places - we’ll be sure to post a link when it becomes available!

Steve “The Whistler” Herbst was next - he started by whistling the theme of “The Good, The Bad and the Ugly” (with some improvised accompaniment from Mark Janas.) He then shared his lovely voice with us by singing, “Tell Me On A Sunday” from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Song and Dance,

Carly Ozard sang a strong and sassy “Always a Bridesmaid” from I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change. It was wonderful to welcome this talented gal to her very first Salon! Next up, Salon regular Mark Levy pulled up a stool and sang “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore,” complete with the appropriate rasp in his voice. The delightful Corky came to the stage with Barry Levitt on the keys, singing, “He’s Funny That Way.”

We welcome Gary Crawford next, with Barry Levitt on the keys, with a song about a person he quipped - “The Good, The Bad And not quite ugly enough to leave”… “Too Close for Comfort. In all the way from Philadelphia to sing at The Salon was Earl Levit, who brought us surprisingly dramatic and touching “I Only Want To Laugh.” Jim Speak (with Mark Janas back at the piano) sang a delightful and warm “Here’s To Life.” Jim has a bunch of shows coming up at Don’t Tell Mama, September 22, 29 and October 3 and 10th.

Bruce Clough (with Barry Levitt back at the piano) was next on the stage with the powerful and dramatic “Next!” from Jacques Brel. Joey Infante (with Barry Levitt) was at the mic next with a haunting and beautiful, “My Boy” recorded by Elvis Presley. Mike McDonald, Joey’s partner of 33 years, came to the mic next to sing “Wearing My Shoes” - a “revenge” song that he wrote for Joey in a rare moment of major conflict between the star-crossed lovers.

Joann Sicoli brought us a dark and stormy bilingual (Italian/English) ballad, “I Who Have Nothing.” We were lucky enough to have Salon Board Member, Bill Zeffiro, at The Salon tonight, who premiered his brand new tune (finished today!) “Voice in The Blue.” (IT was so new, in fact, that he decided on a song title when I asked him for the details!)

Kevin McMullan, pretty in a blue shirt and a tan hat, sang “Minnie the Moocher” a call-and-response song with the audience which kicked this Salon up a few notches. The talented Sarah Rice was next, singing the glorious Celtic tune, “I’ll GIve My Love An Apple”, which Sarah says is a traditional riddle song that all school age children in Ireland sing. You can see Sarah next in “Sondheim Unplugged” at 54 Below at the end of the month. And thus ended our standing room only Salon!

Next week's co-host, Annie Lebeaux!

Next week the optional theme is ”Whatever Quirks – Quirky Songs, Songwriters & Subjects” with our delightful and talented co-host, Annie Lebeaux. Bring in any song that is odd, strange, silly or starts with a Q. Looking forward to seeing you then!

And… before I leave you, just a quick announcement...

HAVE A VIDEO FROM THE SALON? We want to see it!

I’ve created a playlist for Salon performances, and I would love to add yours to it. I’ve taken the liberty to scour YouTube to find what’s already posted. To see what’s currently on the playlist, click this YouTube link (note: if I've added a video of yours that you'd like removed, just let me know!)

To add your video:

Visit the blog and use the search box on the right to find the official “Wrap Up” article from the date that you performed. Leave a comment on that blog article and include the link to your YouTube video - I’ll then get it added to the playlist!

Even better, your link will be viewable by anyone who visits that particular blog post - exciting, huh?

The only rule is that you can only post videos of yourself - please do not post links to videos of other people without their permission.

Thanks, and see you this Sunday!

-Erin Cronican
Blogette for The Salon
Need anything? Please email me.

Update from Producer Tanya Moberly - September 4, 2012

SALON – that unique, MULTIPLE AWARD WINNING, Weekly Open Mic Event, created and hosted by Mark Janas returns to Etcetera, Etcetera - 352 West 44th Street, NYC 10036 – on Sunday, September 9th from 7-10:30PM! (Sign-Up Begins at 6:15.)

The optional theme for the evening is “Relationships – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly!”

Remember, any material, on or off theme, is always welcome at Salon.

Our Co-Host will be the Glamorous and Hilarious, Multiple MAC Award Winner Dana Lorge! Dana is currently searching for a new venue for her wildly successful “Wednesday Night at The Iguana” and will let the world know the minute she finds one. For more information, you can find Dana on Facebook.

Salon continues every Sunday …

September 16th:
Theme: Whatever Quirks! - Quirky Songs, Songwriters & Subjects
Co-Host: Annie LeBeaux

September 23rd:
Theme: That Foreign Mystique
Co-Host: Parker Scott

September 30th:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Anna Bergman
Salon Spotlight: Joshua Desjardins & Joshua Warr

October 7th:
Theme: TBA
Co-Host: Tanya Holt

Salon is an ongoing open entertainment event in which singers, writers and musicians share their talent with each other and audience members.

There is a $10 cash cover collected at the door and a $15 food/drink minimum (cash or credit) per person. (For more information about Etcetera, Etcetera's delicious menu: www.etcetcnyc.com. A 20% gratuity is added to all checks.) There are no reservations; seating is on a first come/first served basis, Doors open and sign up begins at 6:15pm. The evening begins at 7:00, has a 15-minute break at 8:30 and ends promptly at 10:30. If you would like to sign up to perform, see one the evening's 'Etceterettes' to fill out a card with your name, the name of your song, whether or not Mark will be playing for you and any upcoming events you'd like to promote. We do not present performers in order of sign-up, however, indicating requests as clearly and as early as possible as far as time restraints are concerned always makes everything much more possible. ALWAYS BRING SEVERAL SONG SELECTIONS to avoid duplication. All types of material, on or off theme are always welcome at Salon. We enthusiastically welcome instrumentalists, poets, playwrights, essayists, comics, illusionists and performance artists. Please limit your selections to three or four minutes in length (including introductions). Please also bring clear, complete charts for Mark to read. Sitting on the piano is not allowed, nor is flash photography. Please turn off all noise making devices and give performers your undivided attention.

Visit our website at www.markjanasthesalon.com, our blog at http://markjanasthesalon.blogspot.com/ and look for us on Facebook!

Thank you to our sponsors Dr. Garrett Bennett & Father Jeffrey Hamblin, MD!

Looking forward to seeing you all Sunday, September 9th!

Thanks,

Tanya Moberly
Salon Producer