Miss Coco Peru: The Taming of the Tension

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:3 mins read

Miss Coco Peru

The Taming of the Tension

Birdland, NYC, October 15, 2017

Reviewed by Bart Greenberg for Cabaret Scenes

Miss Coco Peru

Miss Coco Peru stormed the stage at Birdland, before a packed house, already going 100 miles an hour belting out “I Touch Myself,” recorded by the Australian rock band Divinyls (with two of its members having contributed to writing it), a dual tribute to New York City and masturbation. Yes, it was that kind of show. Those who have experienced this drag performer in the past know that she is a brilliant storyteller whose shows begin with scattered comments and observations which slowly coalesce into a strong story. 

The main theme of the evening is rings: rings of friendship, rings of emotional connections, and even a class ring that becomes quite important to her story. From a wise lizard she encountered in Spain, to meeting the idols she listened to as a kid in the Bronx on her cast recordings, to her mother’s yard sale, it all comes connected.

Peru also wields an impressive voice, singing live to recorded tracks of a wide range of material, from a touching “Somewhere That’s Green” to a powerful “What I Did for Love.” The songs all were chosen wisely and fit neatly into her story, even as she encouraged the audience members to “write the script of your life.”

A wonderful section of the program dealt with her previous appearance at Birdland where she shared the dressing room with Chita Rivera. Her description of their backstage conversations and the lessons she learned from the Broadway legend were both hilarious and touching—given special impact by the presence of the lady herself in the audience laughing harder than anyone.

Oh, and there was one more ring for the evening.
https://lightsailed.com/homeschool/wp-content/languages/new/domestic-violence-research-paper.html

With joyous audience participation of patrons  shaking their rings of keys at appropriate moments, Peru belted out “Ring Them Bells,” complete with the original Fosse choreography.

https://lightsailed.com/homeschool/wp-content/languages/new/best-resume-writing-service.html

Chita led the standing ovation.

https://lightsailed.com/homeschool/wp-content/languages/new/dissertation-writing-service.html

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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 & Noble, 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."