Gregory & Renee Toroian: P.S… I Love You

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:2 mins read

Gregory & Renee Toroian

P.S… I Love You

Don’t Tell Mama, NYC, August 6, 2017

Reviewed by Bart Greenberg for Cabaret Scenes

Gregory & Renee Toroian

Husband and wife Gregory and Renee Toroian are a study in contrasts: she’s a sunny, perky singer; he’s a cultivated curmudgeon who is a wonderful, versatile pianist. But he is also a reluctant vocalist, complaining about how many songs she forced him to sing, grumbling and mugging to the audience. Actually, he has a pleasant voice, though it doesn’t always blend so well with her more lyrical soprano.

The theme of the evening was love songs, both traditional and less so. Their attitude ranged from deeply emotional to highly sarcastic. Including Renee’s parents’ wedding song, the title number, was a lovely touch. The night’s selections ranged from Broadway classics—the George & Ira Gershwin “Mine” and the Jerome Kern/Oscar Hammerstein “The Song Is You”—to the tremendously moving “Practical Arrangement” from The Last Ship (Sting). There was also the very originally titled “My Life Would Suck Without You” (Max Martin/Lukasz Gottwald/Claude Kelly/Kelly Clarkson). And the distaff half of the team constructed very clever lyrics to create “The Text Song,” utilizing familiar melodies from “Talk to Me, Baby” and “I Won’t Dance.”

Backing up the marital duo were bassist Tom Hubbard, drummer Tony Tedesco, and back-up vocalist Janelle Rintrona, who has a dynamic voice all her own. The Toroians offered up a charming afternoon for all.

Bart Greenberg

Bart Greenberg first discovered cabaret a few weeks after arriving in New York City by seeing Julie Wilson and William Roy performing Stephen Sondheim and Cole Porter outdoors at Rockefeller Center. It was instant love for both Ms. Wilson and the art form. Some years later, he was given the opportunity to create his own series of cabaret shows while working at Tower Records. "Any Wednesday" was born, a weekly half-hour performance by a singer promoting a new CD release. Ann Hampton Callaway launched the series. When Tower shut down, Bart was lucky to move the program across the street to Barnes & Nobel, where it thrived under the generous support of the company. The series received both The MAC Board of Directors Award and The Bistro Award. Some of the performers who took part in "Any Wednesday" include Barbara Fasano and Eric Comstock, Tony Desare, Andrea Marcovicci, Carole Bufford, the Karens, Akers, Mason and Oberlin, and Julie Wilson. Privately, Greenberg is happily married to writer/photographer Mark Wallis, who as a performance artist in his native England gathered a major following as "I Am Cereal Killer."