Maria Pedro and Hannah Record

Wifeys 2.0: Full of Passion and Cheese

The Duplex, NYC, April 15, 2018

Reviewed by Chris Struck for Cabaret Scenes

Easily the sexiest show that I’ve seen as a cabaret critic, Wifeys 2.0: Full of Passion and Cheese combined parodies and classics for a number of electric moments. Maria Pedro and Hannah Record, two women in New York with well-trained vocals and killer looks, started off their second cabaret with a Hello Parody about planning said cabaret. Turning on their iPhone screens to illuminate their faces while singing, Record called Pedro from “across the country” to say “Hello, it’s me, I was wondering if you’d like to do a Wifeys 2. I miss you and the big city lights.” Pedro responded, “I’ve been meaning to get back to you, but I’m hungover.”

They were good dancers, too, and their well-coordinated routine made them appear to have a twin-like connection. The connection continued throughout the show and shined especially brilliant in a parody of “A Whole New World” about Record earning her Equity card. As Record’s voice rang out describing her new card, “Shining, shimmering, splendid,” Pedro, the one who already had a card, made sure to pump the brakes. This launched them into an old Michael Jordan/Mia Hamm bit, “Anything You Can Do,” but this time the two challengers pushed each other on their vocal talent and their relationship status. When Record flipped out at her “boyfriend” on breaking up gently, Pedro was the first one to say, “I think I won that one.” Impressively, they accentuated each other’s strengths here, too. Pedro’s strength at the top of her range was matched (or perhaps exceeded) only by Record’s ability to hold a note for what felt like a minute. Well done, girls.

The “sexy” kicked up a notch when Record pulled a “random” guy out of the crowd, whom Pedro “duplicated” for a “reverse” strip tease to the Def Leppard classic, “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” As the duo put on more clothes, they danced to the song, only to “discover” that the two twins were actually gay! The twins, Ian and Matthew Fairlee, stayed on to sing “Two Nobodies in New York” (Jeff Bowen), which asked the difficult questions about show business, like “What if this dialogue were set to music?” Pedro’s “Making Love Alone” (Cheryl Hardwick and Marilyn Suzanne Miller) made for a fitting “climax” to the evening. She might have left a thousand years of disappointment and longing in the dust with her ability to bite down and belt out the lines, “must romance be abandoned as it’s fanning its own flame” and “one can still make love alone.”

Drew Nichols met the standard as pianist and music director.

These two girls are a lot of fun to watch perform and hopefully have confidence left over to share.