Marilyn Maye
54 Below, NYC, October 15, 2022
Reviewed by Bart Greenberg
Marilyn Maye. Johnny Mercer. Tedd Firth—now that’s a winning trio. The reigning grand duchess of cabaret returned to 54 Below for another sold-out run, displaying her shimmering magic of wit, charm, and musicality. Clad in a bugle-beaded pants outfit that resembled Travilla’s designs for the later part of Judy Garland’s career, she easily commanded the stage with her trademark mix of down-to-earth humor and her superb knack of inhabiting songs. In this case they all had lyrics (and sometimes melodies) by the “Sentimental Gentleman of Savannah,” Johnny Mercer, one of America’s master lyricists and occasional composer. As he has been for 15 years, the quietly dazzling Tedd Firth was at the piano, providing music direction, arrangements, and constant support along with two fine musicians: Matt Aronoff on bass and Mark McLean on drums—who made up his trio.
The show included 36 songs, in whole or in part, and kicked off with a breathless medley of “Day In, Day Out” (music by Rube Bloom), “Too Marvelous for Words” (Richard Whiting), “You Must Have Been a Beautiful Baby” (Harry Warren), “Jeepers, Creepers” (Warren), and “Something’s Gotta Give” (music by Mercer). Throughout the evening, there were several very smart medleys built around very specific themes. These included women’s names—“Emily” (music by Johnny Mandel), “Laura” (David Raskin), “Tangerine” (Victor Schertzinger), and “Satin Doll” (Billy Strayhorn)—and a very moving autumn medley—“Autumn Leaves” (Joseph Kosma) and “When October Goes” Barry Manilow). A very sweet ending to the show featured a medley of “Dream” (Mercer) and “Hit the Road to Dreamland” (Harold Arlen) was offered.
This abundance of music did cause some problems.
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Maye had some issues with remembering all the lyrics, occasionally requiring prodding by Firth or the audience. She handled this with great humor (“what was Laura doing?”) and class. One number ended with her announcing she preferred that ending to the one they had rehearsed, winking to the audience and eliciting a great laugh. These moments did not impede the flow of the show, and sthey made the audience adore her even more.
However, when Maye was on, she was definitely on. She demonstrated her knowledge of how and which lyrics to stress and how to stress them for the greatest effect in “Dearly Beloved” (music by Jerome Kern), and “That Old Black Magic” (Arlen) was hypnotizing. She then performed a song by Mercer and “three French guys whose names I can’t pronounce.” “When the World Was Young” (music by M. Philippe-Gerard) was beautifully sung and breathtakingly acted; the bitterness, the sadness, and the yearning of an aging party girl were encapsulated within a few minutes of song. In a totally different mood, she led the enthusiastic audience in the great revenge fantasy “Goody, Goody” (with Matt Malneck). A lovely, still version of “Skylark” (Hoagy Carmichael) with piano alone wooed us and led to her fondly remarking “it’s so nice to have an accompanist.”
Despite the minor glitches, Maye displayed all the talent and techniques that have sustained her over a remarkable career. She will certainly be welcomed back to 54 Below as she keeps going strong.
