By Andrew Gans
21 Feb 2003

UP-N-COMER:

I had the pleasure of attending John McDaniel's solo New York cabaret debut this past Saturday night at the Public Theater's Joe's Pub. While not a star vocalist, the former musical conductor for "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" is a brilliant pianist; he also possesses a very engaging stage presence, someone you enjoy listening to for an evening of music. With a winning smile, great pitch, an appealing and musical sound, an offbeat sense of humor and a down-to-earth appeal (how can you not like someone who dedicates a song to his dog?), McDaniel offered both pop and Broadway tunes during his 60-minute set, including a song from the upcoming musical Taboo, for which he will be musical director. He also astounded with a musical medley of tunes suggested by the audience: cabaretgoers yelled out a list of song titles, and McDaniel strung them together on the spot for a seamless medley.

The other high point of the evening was the introduction of a young singer, who is blessed with one of the most thrilling belt voices I've heard in a while. Her name is Eden Espinosa, and trust me, you'll be hearing a lot more about the 25-year-old singer-actress. Espinosa, in fact, will star in the title role of the Broadway-bound musical Brooklyn, which will premiere this spring in at the Denver Civic Theater. Brooklyn will feature musical direction by McDaniel and direction and choreography by Jeff Calhoun. Espinosa, who made her entrance with a wonderful version of the pop song "Get Here," offered one tune from Brooklyn, "I Still Bleed," a song she doesn't get the chance to sing in the musical. She followed that with one of the most beloved (at least by belter fans) and difficult musical theatre songs, Stephen Schwartz's "Meadowlark." I don't think anyone can touch Patti LuPone or Betty Buckley's definitive renditions, but Espinosa's take was definitely memorable. Her tone is quite beautiful in both her upper register and her enormous belt, and I would love to hear this star-in-the making do an entire cabaret evening!

IN OTHER DIVA NEWS OF THE WEEK: Two Tony-nominated stars of Smokey Joe's Cafe will join the Broadway company of Chicago March 3. Brenda Braxton will succeed Caroline O'Connor in the role of Velma Kelly, and B. J. Crosby will take over for Roz Ryan as Matron "Mama" Morton. Chicago is currently playing the Ambassador Theatre. . . . A host of performers will perform the songs of Amanda Green at a March 17 concert to celebrate the singer songwriter's new CD. Green Piece! Amanda Green & Friends will feature songs from Green's new By Hook Records CD, "Put a Little Love in Your Mouth, The Songs of Amanda Green." Those scheduled to take part in the March 17 evening include Jessica Molaskey, Julia Murney, Norbert Leo Butz, Jonathan Dokuchitz, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Kim Lindsay, John Pizzarelli, Billy Stritch, Mary Testa, The Tom Kitt Band and Green's famous Tony winning mom, actress Phyllis Newman. The concert will be held at the Second Stage Theatre, located in New York City at 307 West 43rd Street. Tickets, priced at $25 ($20 for students/subscribers), are available by calling (212) 246-4422. Concertgoers will also be invited to attend a post performance cast party at the King Kong Room of The Supper Club . . . . Variety reported early this week that Eartha Kitt, who received a Tony Award nomination for her work in The Wild Party, is currently working on a stage musical about her life. Entitled Dare Me, the project will workshop at small venues before arriving in New York. The creative team for Dare Me includes Charles-Randolph Wright (director), Nona Hendryx (composer), Ken Robertson (choreographer) and Darryl Waters (musical director). The Kitt life story will feature several of her hit songs — "Santa Baby," "C'est Si Bon" — as well as reminiscences about her relationships with Sidney Poitier, Orson Welles, James Dean and other luminaries. . . . For those of you diva lovers who missed the fall Funny Girl benefit concert for the Actors' Fund of America, here's a second chance: Many of the cast will reassemble next month for another go-round of the classic Jule Styne musical. The March 10 evening to benefit the Manhattan Jewish Community Center will celebrate the Purim holiday via the songs of Funny Girl. Those expected to take part in the evening include several actors who shared the role of Fanny Brice at the fall concert: Lillias White, Ana Gasteyer, Judy Kuhn and Julia Murney. New additions include Hairspray's Shoshana Bean, Little Shop of Horror's Billy Porter and Paper Mill's Funny Girl, Leslie Kritzer. Peter Gallagher will once again play Nicky Arnstein opposite the throng of Fanny Brices. The all-star concert will be held at 7 PM at the JCC, located in New York City at 334 Amsterdam Avenue at 76th Street. Tickets are priced at $15 for JCC members and $20 for non-members. Call (646) 505-5708 for reservations. . . . Also, don't forget, Ellen Greene, who starred in the original Off Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors, will offer three concerts at the Public Theater's Joe's Pub this weekend. Greene will celebrate her birthday weekend with a new show entitled Torch! that features musical direction by Christian Klikovits. The singer-actress will perform at the intimate boîte on Feb. 22, 23 (7:30 PM) and Feb. 24 (9:30 PM). Her evening of cabaret will feature a host of standards as well as contemporary tunes by Sarah McLachlan, Queen and Jane Siberry. Tickets for Greene's evening of Torch! are priced at $20. Joe's Pub is located within the Public Theater at 425 Lafayette Street, between East 4th Street and Astor Place. Tickets are available at the Public Theater's box office or by calling (212) 539-8776. . . . And, finally, I'll be on vacation next week, so "Diva Talk" will return on Friday, March 7. Have a great, diva-filled two weeks!

REMINDERS

Betty Buckley in Concert:

May 31 at Benaroya Hall in Seattle, WA

Liz Callaway in Concert:

March 3 at the Wintergarden in the NYC World Financial Center in New York, NY
May 16 Broadway Showstoppers in Philadelphia, PA

Barbara Cook in Concert:

Feb. 28 and March 1, 2, 6-9 at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, CA
March 21 at the Flynn Center in Flynn, MI
March 28 at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, NJ
Sept. 7-8 at the Ravinia Festival in Chicago, IL
Sept. 13 at the Tulsa Opera House in Tulsa, OK
Sept. 20 in Bethlehem, PA; concert with Marilyn Horne
Oct. 3 at Symphony Hall in Boston, MA; concert with Marilyn Horne
Nov. 22 at Carnegie Hall in New York, NY

Patti LuPone in Concert:

March 27 at the East County Performing Arts Center in El Cajon, CA ("Matters of the Heart")
March 28-29 at the McCallum Theatre in Palm Desert, CA ("Matters of the Heart")
March 30 at the Ham Auditorium at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas, NV ("Matters of the Heart")
April 5 at the State Theatre in New Brunswick, New Jersey ("Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda")
Aug. 5 at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia, PA ("Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda")
Nov. 7-9 with the Houston Symphony ("Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda")

Maureen McGovern in Concert

March 4-15 at Feinstein's at the Regency in New York City
April 12-13 at Center Stage—Osher Marin JCC in San Rafael, CA
April 14-19 at Founder's Hall, Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa, CA
May 30 - 31 at the Palmer Events Center with the Austin Symphony Orchestra in Austin, TX
June 7 at Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis, MN

Christiane Noll in Concert

April 5 Springfield, MA with Springfield Symphony
April 9 Florida Philharmonic with Peter Nero
April 21 Florida Philharmonic with Peter Nero
May 24 Williamsburg, VA with the Virginia Arts Festival
Aug. 28 San Diego, CA with San Diego Symphony
Aug. 29 San Diego, CA with San Diego Symphony
Aug. 30 San Diego, CA with San Diego Symphony
Oct. 11 Chattanooga, TN with Don Pippin
Dec. 31 Des Moines, IA with Des Moines Symphony & Brad Little

Well, that’s all for now. Happy diva-watching!

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