Steven Brinberg

Simply Barbra: 80th Birthday Tour

Chelsea Table + Stage, NYC, July 18, 2022

Reviewed by Bart Greenberg

The fabulous Barbra Streisand (or at least, a reasonable facsimile thereof), regally descended the magnificent, curved staircase at the glamorous Chelsea Table + Stage, making a true diva entrance. The excellent music director Christopher Denny accompanied her stroll down the stairs with the impact of a full orchestra from just the piano, which was the perfect way to launch the return of Steven Brinberg to the cabaret stage. He’s funny, campy, and assured, and his ability to create the aura of Barbra remains undiminished. Added to this celebration were brief visits from other celebrities, as well as two fantastic guest stars.

Of course, Brinberg offered a mix of Streisand standards with some new surprises. Among the former were a perfect “The Way We Were” and “Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star Is Born)” and among the latter was “Hello, Dolly!,” which cleverly involved the males seated at the ring side tables. He also showed his major vocal range in “The Rainbow Connection,” which also involved some audience participation. There was also a selection from Barbra’s “future” album, Songs I Forgot to Record: a moving “Till There Was You,” although for one verse “you” was replaced by “Hugh.”

The first of Barbra’s special guests was Nikita Burshteyn, star of the recent Off-Broadway show Romeo & Bernadette. This charming, boy-next-door looker brought his soaring tenor to “Lucky to Be Me,” along with a deep understanding of the lyrics. He then dueted with the diva on a passionate “I Have Dreamed.” There’s little doubt that this singer will be heard from in the future.

The second guest was Julie Benko, currently appearing as the standby for Fanny Brice in the current Broadway production of Funny Girl. She got around the contractual ban that kept her from singing anything from that show by offering a pert and delightful rendition of one of the real Fanny’s songs, “Second Hand Rose”; this gave her a chance to acknowledge her beaming parent with the lyric, “father paid for 10 cents on the dollar.” This was topped by one of the most famous duets of all time, “Get Happy”/“Happy Days Are Here Again,” which almost never works, because who can top Judy Garland and the real Barbra? Brinberg and Benko may not have done better, but they sure came close.

Brinberg also took the opportunity to show off his strong ability to imitate of other celebrities. One of those was a recreation of Barbra’s recent duet with Anthony Newley (made possible by the magic of sound editing), on “Who Can I Turn To?” The number required the Brinberg to bounce back and forth between the top and the bottom of his range to create the illusion of the two stars singing together; it was both a technical and an emotionally touching feat. He also offered up a more traditional parade of carbon as he sailed through “Come Back to Me,” which included Eartha Kitt, Ethel Merman, an uncanny Bette Davis, and an unlikely Gillian Anderson as Margaret Thatcher. Oh, and there was a less-than-fond version of Yves Montand (Streisand’s co-star in this case in On a Clear Day You Can See Forever).

This was a splendid evening featuring both veteran and new performers, all of whom displayed their wide range of talents in a lovely setting. Clearly, the real Barbra would have approved.