Donna McKechnie
Take Me to The World: The Songs of Stephen Sondheim
54 Below, NYC, April 21, 2025
Reviewed by Jacqueline Parker
Photo by Bill Westmoreland
There was an unmistakable thrill at 54 Below, the kind that grows in a room full of people eagerly awaiting the same thing. We were there for the gal who thrilled us in A Chorus Line and tickled us in Company: Donna McKechnie. Dressed in black, with a sequined jacket that underscored her innate personal sparkle, she took to the stage with the same girlish charm and verve that have made her a legend. Intentionally or not, her first selection “I’ve Got You to Lean On” seemed directed to her audience. A tender rendition of Sondheim’s favorite song, “Anyone Can Whistle,” followed. As she moved around the stage playfully singing “Lovely,” we wouldn’t have been surprised if she had broken into a full-fledged dance routine from A Chorus Line. The same energy and vitality that propelled her to stardom and a Tony Award in 1976 was still evident. She told stories about Sondheim and said that he had given us lyrics to live by. When she and her two co-stars from Company were in rehearsal and improvising their number, sensing that something wasn’t working and trying to fix it, Sondheim had walked in unexpectedly. He loved what he saw and demanded that they do the number just as they just had done it.
Throughout the show recollections of her previous well-known performances worked their way into the evening. As the young Cassie struggling to make her way in her career choice, she tugged at our hearts when she sang plaintively and passionately “give me a chance.” How many people were inspired by that performance one had to wonder. Here she was again, singing as earnestly and passionately as she had then, but now with the wisdom that comes with time.
Her performance of “Too Many Mornings” came from the heart of Cassie the woman, as did her “Send in the Clowns,” which she delivered so effectively; she acted it more than she sang it. A highlight was her take on “Losing My Mind” in which she exuded every ounce of emotion that this song contained.
McKechnie showed a vulnerability throughout her performance; it’s part of her charm to sense that no matter how bold the song’s message was, she tried to mask the hint of insecurity that often lurked underneath. This quirk just endeared her more to the audience.
In the perhaps lesser-known Sondheim song, “Take Me to the World” from Evening Primrose, McKechnie managed to imbue her interpretation with the girlishness of Cassie and her own maturity and delivered a memorable conclusion to a sensational show. She knows how to charm, and her enthusiastic and appreciative audience was grateful. She concluded with an encore of her opening number, which seemingly reminded her audience of how important they were to a performer and especially to her.
