Our Co-Hosts were the amazing BLUE JUPITER - Diana Preisler, Marty Gasper, Jonathan Minkoff & Jeff Washburn! I cannot even begin to tell you how exciting it was having this group with us. Let's start with some of their press: This world-touring a cappella quartet has been described as “The real deal,” by rock legend, Gene Simmons; "Simply terrific" by Scott Conant of Food Network, “Incredible!” by Jane Pauly from NBC; “Nothing short of magic,” by the Sands Casino Entertainment Department, and “Simply the best music act we’ve ever had at our schools,” by the Connecticut Public Schools Board.
They kicked off the show with a medley of pop songs "Dynamite" and "Sweet Dreams" with incredible vocals, backups and beat-boxing. For their mid-show set they killed it with two classic Broadway tunes presented in a whole new way: "All That Jazz" from Chicago and "Whatever Lola Wants" from Damn Yankees. They closed the evening with an incredibly inspiring and powerful, "Defying Gravity" form Wicked. These guys were worth the price of admission alone and put on a great show.
Blue Jupiter will be taking up residency at Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport during the holiday season. Don't let your travels wear you down! Stop by Terminal B and take in one of Blue Jupiter's holiday sets 11am - 3pm December 1st, 2nd, 8th, 9th, 15th, 16th, 21st, 22nd & 23rd. For more information: www.bluejupiter.com
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| Our Co-Hosts BLUE JUPITER |
Our Salon Spotlight featured MAC & Bistro Award Winner Ritt Henn! Ritt is known for playing bass & ukulele as well as writing songs and performing. He has played for numerous cabaret performers in NYC, including Corinna Sowers Adler, Pamela Lewis, Tanya Moberly & Amy Beth Williams, as well as Tom Jones, Chuck Berry, Martha Reeves & Buddy Rich.
He started his set with his bass guitar strapped to his back, giving us the fun and inspiring, "Happy." He then picked up his ukelele and sang a charming, "Fish Fry and Guava Pie," asking for the audience to join in for the final choruses. This was proof positive that his song was catchy, because the words and music were written by him and most of us had not had the benefit of hearing it before! Incidentally, the song - with its audience participation, and pure & simple performance - reminded me of how healing art can be in a trying time. He finished his set by grabbing his bass guitar one more time to give us a groovy and rather sexy version of his, "House in the Country."
His solo show ORIGINAL SONGS FROM THE GREAT AMERICAN RITT BOOK will be at Don’t Tell Mama – 343 West 46th St, NYC 10036 – November 19th at 7pm. For more information: www.ritthenn.com / www.donttellmamanyc.com
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| Our Salon Spotlight, Ritt Henn! |
Quick Wrap - Classical Corner
The theme is twisted so Mark Janas, our illustrious founder, said he wanted to focus on ways to twist classical music. He told us a few stories about things that he and his friends would do in college to mash-up familiar themes. He also talked about the socio-political importance of parodies and introduced us to the work of Peter Shickele and his fictitious alter-ego PDQ Bach (the 21st son of Bach.) Mark grabbed 3 sheets of paper and began to prepare us for a hilarious presentation of a classical parody. In this preparation, he defined a bunch of classical terms to give us a backdrop for appreciating the parody. He them positioned the microphone near a set of iPhone speakers, and shared an amazing parody detailing how hard it is to appreciate classical music without help from outside support. Without spoiling the joke, here is the parody in its entirety:
Roster of performers for the evening (in order of appearance):
Click link to visit the performer’s website or other links, when available.
All piano accompaniment by Mark Janas unless otherwise noted.
Blue Jupiter
Rian Keating
Rob Davis
Jerome Weinstein
Lea McKenna-Garcia
Barbara Malley (with Matthew Martin Ward on piano)
Sally Darling (with Matthew Martin Ward on piano)
Matthew Martin Ward (also on piano)
David Ballard
Erin Cronican
Dawn Derow
Tanya Moberly (with Ritt Henn on bass guitar)
Ritt Henn (also on bass guitar and ukelele)
Classical Corner
Blue Jupiter
Ira Lee Collings
Zach Wobensmith
Jared Gilmore (also on piano)
Blair Alexis Brown
Sarah Rydell (with Richie Eisenberg on piano)
Richard Eisenberg
Special thanks to tonight’s musicians: Mark Janas, Ritt Henn, Matthew Martin Ward, Jared Gilmore, Blair Alexis Brown, and Richie Eisenberg.
And thank you to Jared Gilmore on lights and sound, and our amazing waitstaff who always handle the demands of a full house with grace and style.
Ongoing Shows:
Monday nights (7pm): Opera Open Mic at Shangai Mong with Mark Janas and Matthew Martin Ward, 30 West 32nd Street, NYC. www.shanghaimongnyc.com
Monday & Wednesday nights (8pm): Bill Zeffiro performs weekly at La Rivista, 313 West 46th St, NYC.
Upcoming Shows:
Tuesday, November 15, 2016 (7pm): Amy Beth Williams is bringing her show "Carried Away" (directed by Tanya Moberly) to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
Friday, November 18, 2016 (7pm): Amy Beth Williams is bringing her show "Carried Away" (directed by Tanya Moberly) to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
Tuesday, November 22, 2016 (7-11pm): Dawn Derow is celebrating her birthday with "The Dawn Derow Birthday Show" at 157 Carroll Place, 157 Bleecker St, NYC.
Tuesday, November 22, 2016 (7:30pm): Rob Davis is performing in "Grateful For..." at Pangea, 178 2nd Ave, NYC.
Wednesday, November 30, 2016 (6:30pm): Rian Keating is bringing his show, "As All the Seasons Fall: Songs of Sentimental Melancholia" to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
December 1-11, 2016: Many Salon singers are appearing in the Winter Rhythms Concert Series - the full schedule can be found on their website www.urbanstages.org at Urban Stages, 259 West 30th St, NYC.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016 (7pm): Marnie Klar is bringing back her show "Tuned In" (directed by Tanya Moberly) to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016: Dawn Derow is appearing in "Songs for a Winter's Night" at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, 407 West 42nd St, NYC.
Tuesday, December 6, 2016 (7:30pm): Rob Davis is performing in "Grateful For..." at Pangea, 178 2nd Ave, NYC.
Wednesday, December 7, 2016 (7pm): Tanya Moberly brings "Tanya Moberly Sings Loggins with Watkins" to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
December 8 - 22, 2016 (various times): Erin Cronican is appearing as Lady Macbeth in "Macbeth" with The Seeing Place Theater at the Paradise Factory, 64 East 4th St, NYC.
Friday, December 9, 2016 (7pm): Tanya Moberly brings "Tanya Moberly Sings Loggins with Watkins" to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
Friday, December 9, 2016 (7pm): Matthew Martin Ward is presenting a revival of his musical, "The Lady in Penthouse B", starring Erin Cronican and Adam B Shapiro, at Urban Stages' Winter Rhythms Festival, 259 West 30th St, NYC.
Sunday, December 11, 2016 (6:30pm): Rian Keating is bringing his show, "As All the Seasons Fall: Songs of Sentimental Melancholia" to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
Sunday, December 11, 2016 (7pm): Urban Stages Winter Rhythms Concert ~ From All Of Us To All Of You: Seasonal Songs & Disney Too! Come hear Salon friends at this great concert series lasting from December 1-11th. Winter Rhythms Concert Series information can be found on their website www.urbanstages.org at Urban Stages, 259 West 30th St, NYC.
Tuesday, December 13, 2016: Sally Darling is appearing in "Totally Noel [with a bit of Sally]", with music director Matthew Martin Ward, at Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, NYC.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016: Matthew Martin Ward is playing with Christine Pedi at 54 Below, 254 W 54th St, NYC.
The Salon is taking the next two Sundays off - we will NOT be here November 20 or 27. We will be back December 4 with the theme- "Mother Nature" with your Co-Host, Barb Jungr.
See you then!
Erin Cronican
Blogette for The Salon
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