Warm, passionate and compelling, Sheera Ben-David unleashes the dramatic underpinnings of the songs comprising her latest show, Come Summer. Featuring selections like the sensual, "Blame It On the Summer Night" (Strouse/Schwartz) and the quirky honesty of "I Miss the Mountains" (Kitt/Yorkey), Come Summer is the closing show of the Algonquin Hotel's Oak Room current season. Without a false step and never losing focus, Ben-David's interpretive musical power attacks each tune with keen expressiveness. She shares narrative snapshots of her life, linking remembrances of early theatre camp days and current forays to Coney Island, with the summertime ambiance of her songs.

With wide telling eyes, a mass of curly hair, and a rich full-bodied voice, the 30-something Ben-David relays intense theatrical and vocal distinction. In Jobim's "Waters of March," each phrase is well considered and delivered with clarity and understanding. She sinks into the languor of "Lazy Afternoon" (Moross/Latouche) and the dreaminess of Jerry Herman's "Ribbons Down My Back." She faces a young girl's future in "At the Crossroads" (Bricusse), and "Something's Coming" from West Side Story is all energetic promise. Potently, Ben-David embraces the animation of Cole Porter's "Too Darn Hot," and "A Summer in Ohio" (Jason Robert Brown) is a study of relentless frustration. Striding purposely across the small stage space, Ben-David portrays a sidewalk hawker in the super-charged "Step Right Up" (Tom Waits).

One weak choice is "Something Cool," Billy Barnes' urbane lament of a been-around gal, who stops in a bar for a drink and maybe something more. It is one of those songs best suited to an older woman, although Ben-David has pointed out that she uses her own experiences, sometimes traumatic, to convey the song's message from a younger viewpoint. While she delivers "Something Cool" with poignancy, the melancholy depth is lacking. On the other hand, Ben-David unearths the inspiration and motivational core in John Bucchino's "This Moment," which seems to speak to her directly.

Much of the show's appeal is credited to the exciting, creative piano accompaniment by Sheera's brother, Adam Ben-David, currently the musical director of Jersey Boys on Broadway. Mat Fieldes joins them on bass with Damien Bassman on drums. The show was neatly put together by musical director, Eric Michael Gillett.

Sheera Ben-David made her Algonquin Hotel debut in 2006, after coming in second in the Oak Room Young Artist Competition. For that show, she won the 2007 Ira Eaker Back Stage Bistro Award for Special Achievement. This is her second show at the Oak Room this season.

Sheera Ben-David and Come Summer is at the Oak Room through June 28.

Elizabeth Ahlfors
Cabaret Scenes
June 17, 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org