Melissa Errico
’Twas the Night AFTER Christmas: A Winter Party with Billy Stritch
54 Below, NYC, December 26, 2024
Reviewed by Alix Cohen
Photos by Conor Weiss
If you’ve ever had Melissa Errico put her hand on your shoulder and sing a couple of lines to you as she wends her way through the audience, you’ll immediately understand what draws people to her. She exudes warmth and accessibility. Tonight, with her daughters in proud attendance, this Broadway and cabaret veteran presented herself as a mom.
Errico virtually bounced on to the stage wearing plaid flannel pajamas. Every part of her body was hyper-animated as if it were a just-shaken champagne bottle; even her speech erupted in spurts. A whooshing arrangement of “Jingle Bells” (James Lord Pierpont) segued into Stephen Sondheim’s (beautifully enunciated) “Everybody Said Don’t.” I admit to not understanding this choice.
“What is the night after Christmas? You’re done, and you can have a real party with those you love,” she said as she welcomed us. A story about themed holidays at her house—this year, the Three Graces—was imaginative and loving. “Sleigh Ride” (Leroy Anderson/Mitchell Parrish) was an exuberant duet with MD/pianist Billy Stritch. “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” was tender, and Stritch’s solo showed gilt-edged sentiment.
“Childhoods are made from memories, so I’ve been looking for memory songs,” Errico explained. Sondheim’s “I Remember” from the teleplay Evening Primrose had a lovely arrangement and a wistful vocal. Like many of the night’s selections, it touched on the season rather than the holiday. “White Christmas” (Irving Berlin), written, we were reminded, in California in July, was gentle and dancey; drummer Eric Halvorson’s brushes suggested snow falling from branches. The audience sang along.
“Holiday Feeling” (Joe Guercio/Bill Jacob/Patty Jacob), Stritch told us, was a Steve Lawrence/Eydie Gormé song. The duet featured familiar, old-fashioned repartee: “Let’s kiss ’cause it’s the season, dear/Let’s kiss, who needs a reason, dear?” Later, “Small World” (Jule Styne/Sondheim) seconded this sentiment with another two-hander performed with affectionate chemistry. Errico made it flirty as she looked over her shoulder part of the time.
When Errico left the stage to change into “concert clothes,” Stritch playeded two solos. “Just Another New Year’s Eve” by Barry Manilow and Marty Panzer (leave it to this artist to unearth something obscure) was cottony and understated; and unlike what we may think of as Manilow material. “Winter Weather” (Ted Shapiro) then led into “Song for a Winter Night” (Gordon Lightfoot) with Stritch’s signature, born-to-it easy swing.
Errico returned in an opulent Mrs. Santa Claus gown—a role to which she aspires—winding her way through the room and connecting with the audience. “Christmas Waltz” (Sammy Cahn/Styne) was just right. Following suit, “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” (Frank Loesser) was performed straight up, unembroidered, and appealingly bashful.
“The world is very confused, so we’re going to take refuge here” introduced a determined “The Best is Yet to Come (Cy Coleman/Carolyn Leigh). Errico closed with a duet on Hugh Martin’s “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas”—somewhat after the date—and introduced the burgeoning vocalist Ava Arkin, who acquitted herself with poise and cheer.
Take down the stockings for another year; Melissa Errico and Billy Stritch have ended the holiday on an upbeat note. Oh, and if anyone’s casting the underrepresented Mrs. Santa Claus…?
