Marilyn Maye
Feinstein’s/54 Below, NYC, October 28, 2021
Reviewed by Ron Forman
Photo: Kevin Alvey
At age 93, Marilyn Maye is still the brightest star in the
galaxy of cabaret performers. Like many in the SRO audience at Feinstein’s/54
Below, I have seen her perform on many occasions. She never fails to impress
with the power of her voice, her command of the stage, and her amazing energy.
Her themed medleys are very entertaining as are her off-the-cuff remarks
between numbers. Her body language and hand motions make every number her
personal property. She is the consummate pro. In this show she was
backed by three of today’s best musicians—music director Tedd Firth (piano),
Tom Hubbard (bass), and Mark McLean (drums)—who never get in the way of her
vocals. Each are given the opportunity to show off their talent with solos.
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Maye opened with “Look to the Rainbow,” leading into her rainbow medley, which included “Over the Rainbow” and ended with a very fast “Golden Rainbow” featuring a super-fast solo by McLean. She followed with a very warm “Look for the Silver Lining.” After that she went into a very funny monologue about life during the pandemic lockdown, which led nicely into her “smile” medley, beginning with “When You’re Smiling” and ending with the phrase, “I love to see your smiling face.” Her medley of “Autumn in New York,” “Autumn Leaves,” and “When October Goes,” ended with her holding the note on the last “go.”
She stopped the show by getting a standing ovation for her dramatic performance of Frank Loesser’s “Joey, Joey,” then changed the mood with another Loesser song, a rousing “Luck Be a Lady. “Guess Who I Saw Today” is one of her signature numbers and it ended with her pointing at the audience with the final “It was you!” When the applause died down, she got another standing ovation with her heart-breaking performance of Alan and Marilyn Bergman/Billy Goldenberg’s “Fifty Percent.” She ended the show with a “New York “medley, beginning with “I Happen to Like New York,” and intertwining “New York State of Mind” throughout the medley. Her encore, “It’s Today,” which included half a dozen high leg kicks, left everybody in the audience feeling as though they had just been to a wonderful party as they kept applauding and applauding.
