Shana Bousard & Brian Runbeck
A Swinging Christmas 2019
The Judith Hardes Theater at The Phoenix Theatre Co., Phoenix, AZ, December 13, 2019
Reviewed by Lynn Timmons Edwards
For the past three holiday seasons, Shana Bousard and Brian Runbeck have swung onto a Valley stage with a sleigh full of musical talent, charm, and humor. As part of the Davisson Entertainment Holiday Cabaret Series, this year Bousard, her father Joe, drummer Scott Hay, and singing partner and primary arranger Runbeck, brought the best of their material onto Daniel Davisson’s gorgeous stage for two nights. Looks do matter, and Shana, Brian, and Joe were all dressed to complement the glitter and color of the setting.
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After Joe’s jazz arrangement of “The Mood I’m In,” which sounded like variations on “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” Shana and Brian took the stage with “The Man with the Bag” followed by “Let It Snow!
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Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” and a very funny “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” They turned the tables on the debate over political correctness as Brian tried to send Shana out into the storm before she moved in with her mother and cat who were waiting in the car.
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Cabaret artists here are fortunate when they can work with a gifted accompanist, maybe even a concert-level pianist who can also follow singers. Joe Bousard, now an octogenarian, was a working musician in Phoenix before he made his mark in New York City. He returned to Arizona to “semi-retire” with his family and is still a consummate entertainer. Every lyric is authentic, every pitch is perfect, and we can see how much fun he is having. His energy surges over the piano onto the stage whether he’s taking a solo, as he did with “Santa Claus Is Back in Town,” performing a parody “Holiday Dinner Party” to the tune of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” or adding harmony and a counter-part to a song being performed. Joe and Scott shined on the eleventh-hour medley of “Little Drummer Boy” and “March of the Wooden Soldiers” which was a rhythmic tour de force.
The trio of Brian, Shana, and Joe with drummer Scott have created superb “swinging” arrangements. They can trade off melody and harmony with ease as though the rhythm and voice were a fine-tuned quartet. The patter could have been more personal in order to connect more emotionally with the audience. Brian occasionally brought out his page of kindergarten jokes, which the audience found endearing if not always hilarious.
Brian soloed in his Christmas version of “Glow Worm” and his nefarious “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch.” Shana’s mellow sound and vocal range allow her to in sing any style. She even went low and bawdy on her solo medley of “A Simple (Christmas) Wish”/“I Want It Now”/“I Want to Be Evil.” Rather than don formal costumes to become Rosemary Clooney and Bing Crosby, Shana and Brian said they couldn’t afford to hire them this year but still gave us a trio of their original arrangements. Perhaps a little under-rehearsed, “Fancy Meeting You Here” showed their poise and sense of humor as one after the other went up on the lyrics. Brian need only pick up a pipe to become the spitting image of Bing Crosby.
Favorite moments are hard to choose, but I have to go with their duet of “Twelve Days After Christmas” and their closing medley of “Cool Yule” and “A Swinging Christmas.” Kudos to Davisson Entertainment not only for Daniel’s production-design skills but for bringing Shana and Brian into his cabaret family.
