Broadway by the Year: The Broadway Musicals of 1997-2006

Broadway by the Year

The Broadway Musicals of 1997-2006

The Town Hall, NYC, May 22, 2017

Reviewed by Ron Forman for Cabaret Scenes

The decade from 1997-2006 is one which most of us know the names of the shows, but are less likely to know the songs featured in those shows. Scott Siegel helped remedy that situation by featuring 24 songs from that decade in the latest edition of his long-running series Broadway by the Year. As is the norm in these shows, Siegel wisely matched a stellar cast of vocalists with selections from two dozen shows. In addition, this edition contained more dancing than usual, featuring three spectacular dance numbers.

Farah Alvin (pictured) displayed her thrilling voice on the opening number “Back to Before” (Ragtime). She would return for two more numbers, including her next-to-closing, a moving “Don’t Cry Out Loud” (The Boy from Oz). Stephanie D’Abruzzo reprised “A Fine, Fine Line,” which she introduced in Avenue Q. Brian Charles Rooney sparkled using different voices for each of his three solo numbers, including a great Frankie Valli sound to end the first act with “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” (Jersey Boys). Rooney teamed with Maxine Linehan to show that there is a place for country music on Broadway with “I Walk the Line.” (Ring of Fire). Linehan rocked the house with “Holding Out for a Hero” (Footloose). There was a Forty Second Street moment when youngster Pedro Coppeti stepped out of the chorus to perform, hilariously, “I Am Adolpho” (The Drowsy Chaperone). After performing “Total Eclipse of the Heart” Dance of the Vampires) in her own voice, Christina Bianco brought down the house by performing it in more than a dozen voices, including those of Bette Midler, Edit Piaf, and Barbra Streisand. Dannette Holden and Jeremy Benton’s “Pick Yourself Up” (Never Gonna Dance) evoked memories of Fred and Ginger, and Danny Gardner, Gaby Cook, and Bobby White brought back jitterbug memories with “It Don’t Mean a Thing (If It Ain’t Got That Swing)”/”Jumpin at the Woodside” (Swing!). Josh Young and The Broadway by the Year Chorus closed the show with “Endless Night” (The Lion King).

Tags: A Fine Fine Line, American Songbook, Avenue Q, Back to Before, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, Bobby Whit, Brian Charles Rooney, Broadway, Broadway by the Year, Broadway Musicals, Cabaret, Cabaret Reviews, Cabaret Scenes, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, CD, Christina Bianco, Clubs, Composers, Dance of the Vampires, Dannette Holden, Danny Gardner, Don’t Cry Out Loud, Edit Piaf, Endless Night, Farah Alvin, Footloose, Forty Second Street, Frankie Valli, Fred and Ginger, Fred Astaire, Gaby Cook, Genevieve Rafter Keddy, Ginger Rogers, Great American Songbook, Holding Out for a Hero, I Am Adolpho, I Walk the Line, It Don't Mean a Thing If It Ain't Got that Swing, Jazz, Jazz Singers, Jazz Vocalists, Jeremy Benton, Jersey Boys, Josh Young, Jumpin at the Woodside, lyricists, Maxine Linehan, Musicals, Musicians, Never Gonna Dance, Nightclubs, NYC, Pedro Coppeti, Pick Yourself Up, Popular Song, Ragtime, Revues, Ring of Fire, Ron Forman, Show Tunes, Singers, Songbook, Standards, Stephanie D’Abruzzo, Supper Clubs, Swing, The Boy from Oz, The Broadway by the Year Chorus, The Broadway Musicals of 1997-2006, The Drowsy Chaperone, The Lion King, The Town Hall, Total Eclpse of the Heart, Venues, Vocalists

Category: Cabaret Reviews, New York City, New York City Cabaret Reviews, Regional