Darlene Popovic: Weapons of Mass Distraction

Steve Murray | November 7, 2016

Darlene Popovic

Weapons of Mass Distraction

Feinstein’s at the Nikko, San Francisco, CA, November 2, 2016

Reviewed by Steve Murray for Cabaret Scenes

Darlene Popovic

Everyone, whether they knew if or not, needed a distraction from the putrid character of this year’s election campaign. And there’s no one more up to the task than San Francisco’s own Fanny Brice, the inimitable Darlene Popovic. Through smartly chosen songs, a few sight gags and some well-written banter, Weapons of Mass Distraction is the vehicle for Popovic to showcase her considerable comic skills and, for a brief time, whisk us away from out stress and concerns.

Popovic opened with “Laughing Matters” (Dick Gallagher/Mark Waldrop from When Pigs Fly). The song requests that we all keep our humor. Irving Berlin’s clever “The Secret Service” from 1962’s Mr. President is followed by “Just Leave Everything to Me” (Jerry Herman, added to the score of Hello, Dolly! for the film). Popovic sings it from Hillary Clinton’s perspective and when she sings, “I’ll discretely use my own discretion/I’ll arrange for making all arrangements/I’ll proceed to plan the whole procedure/Just leave everything to me!,” we all get it.

Written and directed by F. Allen Sawyer, with excellent support by Musical Director Joe Wicht, her songs are well chosen and include some seldom-performed comedy numbers that are Popovic’s bread and butter. She mines the humor from nuggets, like “Vodka” (George Gershwin/Herbert Stothart/Oscar Hammerstein/Otto Harbach) sung in a heavy Russian accent, Cole Porter’s “Nobody’s Chasing Me,” and Johnny Mercer and Gene DePaul’s “Whatcha-Ma-Call-It.”

Popovic, who cleverly utilizes special lyric material, introduced special guest Tom Orr, San Francisco’s master wordsmith, for his take on “Bitch Slapped,” sung to the tune of Cy Coleman/Carolyn Lee’s “Witchcraft.” My set highlights were a hilarious cover of Irving Berlin and Edgar Leslie’s “Sadie Salome, Go Home,” a Jewish man’s lament over his girlfriend’s choice to become a bawdy burlesque dancer. The 1909 specialty song was popularized by Fanny Brice herself and performed with a Yiddish accent. It’s perfect for Popovic’s comic styling, as is the crazy “I Don’t Remember Lovin’ You” (Harlan Howard/Bobby Braddock), a 1982 country hit for John Conlee. As the woman who can’t remember her husband, kids, or drinking herself insane, Popovic is positively charming and very believable.

Her forays in musical theater have won her many awards and blend seamlessly into her cabaret shows and CDs. There are not many singers performing the songs included in this smart show, and we’re better off for her doing so.

Tags: “I Don’t Remember Lovin’ You, American Songbook, Bobby Braddock, Broadway, Broadway Musicals, Cabaret, Cabaret Reviews, Cabaret Scenes, Carolyn Lee, CD, Clubs, Cole Porter, Composers, Cy Coleman, Darlene Popovic, Dick Gallagher, Edgar Leslie, F. Allen Sawyer, Fanny Brice, Feinstein's at the Nikko, Gene DePaul, George Gershwin/Herbert Stothart, Great American Songbook, Harlan Howard, Hello Dolly, Hillary Clinton, Irving Berlin, Jazz, Jazz Singers, Jazz Vocalists, Jerry Herman, Joe Wicht, John Conlee, Johnny Mercer, Just Leave Everything to Me, Laughing Matters, lyricists, Mark Waldrop, Mr. President, Musicals, Musicians, Nightclubs, Nobody’s Chasing Me, Oscar Hammerstein, Otto Harbach, Popular Song, Revues, Sadie Salome Go Home, San Francisco, Show Tunes, Singers, Songbook, Standards, Steve Murray, Supper Clubs, The Secret Service, Tom Orr, Venues, Vocalists, Vodka, Weapons of Mass Distraction, Whatcha-Ma-Call-It, When Pigs Fly, Witchcraft, Yiddish