Alan Cumming
Is Not Acting His Age
Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts
Scottsdale, AZ, November 12, 2022
Reviewed by Lynn Timmons Edwards
Fifty-seven-year-old multi-award-winning singer/actor Alan Cumming has a lot on his mind these days about aging. He has crafted a cabaret act to share his very personal stories and opinions by weaving together songs that showed off his character voice and acting chops. He was backed by four talented musicians on piano, drums, trumpet, and cello, for whom he showed immense appreciation. His opening number, “But Alive” (Lee Adams/Charles Strouse), featured his own lyrics set to the melody from the Broadway show Applause. Parody continued with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller’s “Is That All There Is?” as he connected the chorus made famous by Peggy Lee with tales of his experiences in theater and film.
The rarely performed “Everything” (Rupert Holmes/Paul Williams), which I recalled from the 1976 version of A Star is Born, made perfect sense coming from Cumming. He talked about Club Cumming in New York City and shared a fun story about the night Emma Stone came into his Club with Billie Jean King and Paul McCartney after a McCartney concert. He asked McCartney if he wanted to sing, and he said “No! I just sang for three hours! But I’m happy to accompany you and Emma.” So, Cumming and Stone put on their “Disney princess” by performing some Disney songs backed by McCartney on harmonica.
He followed up with “When We Were Young” (Adele and Tobias Jesso, Jr.), which gave him a moment of introspection. After that he performed a medley of Disney music of “How Far I’ll Go” (Lin Manuel Miranda from the animated film Moana) and “Part of Your World” (Howard Ashman/Alan Menken from the animated film The Little Mermaid). He likened growing up in rural Scotland to feeling like a Disney Princess.
Cumming committed to every note and every lyric. His approach was to build his songs quickly to a very intense level and then dance with his hips and feet stating “I’m all in.” An evening about aging needed to touch on the subject of death, and Cumming shared three losses from which he has learned life lessons: His dog Honey taught him that quality of life is to be valued over quantity. Florence Henderson, with whom he bonded while co-hosting Carol Channing’s 95th birthday party in Palm Springs, left him with the wisdom to never leave your vodka behind. Sean Connery, whom he called the “King of Scotland,” left this world with his final words to Cumming, “Goodnight Sweet Prince.”
He sat at the piano for his original song “I Want to See You,” a comedic and dramatic piece about a friend who indulged in too much plastic surgery. He then told a very funny story about having been told that his character in Cabaret, the Emcee, was being made into an official Broadway Christmas ornament only to learn months later that he’d been replaced by Glenn Close’s Norma Desmond from Sunset Boulevard. Apparently, he was too thin, and they were worried about breakage.
Cumming’s show wound down with well-chosen medleys. “Time” (Dillie Keane) was paired with “Love and Love Alone” (John Kander/Fred Ebb from The Visit). The pairing of “How Did We Come to This” (Andrew Lippa from The Wild Party) and “Maybe This Time” (Kander & Ebb from Cabaret) was an even stronger choice that allowed Cumming to sum up his years of experience in and out of relationships along with his sexual dalliances. He could have taken more time to speak/sing some of his material and to use his softer tones for the musical story telling. As with all good cabaret performers, his quiet singing drew us in, and then he switched to a high volume before the finish.
There is nothing better than a cello to supplement cabaret accompaniment, and it was used well on Billy Joel’s “Where’s the Orchestra?” His closing medley coupled “It Was a Good Time (Rosy’s Theme)” (Mack David/Maurice Jarre/Mike Curb) woven together with “Falling in Love Again (Can’t Help It)” (Friedrich Hollander/Sammy Lerner). Here Cumming managed to find an even deeper source of energy to direct at his audience.
Some of us have had the privilege of seeing Cumming in one of his two Broadway runs as the Emcee in Cabaret. Others have seen him in films, and most of us may remember his iconic character Eli Gold in the CBS hit show The Good Wife. He is aging like a fine wine, and he has brought his many talents, his sense of humor, and his wisdom as a performer and as a person to cabaret.
