Stephanie Pope
Simple Joys
Josephine’s Cabaret at Club Café’s Napoleon Room, Boston, MA, December 30, 2025
Reviewed by John Amodeo
Photo courtesy of the performer
There are cabaret shows where you know that the minute the performer hits the stage that you are in the hands of a pro, and Stephanie Pope’s show Simple Joys at Boston’s Napoleon Room was one such show. Hitting the Napoleon Room’s small stage, all smiles and sequins and striking a signature Bob Fosse pose, Pope assured us instantly that we were going to love this show, and love it we did.
A veteran of 11 Broadway shows, Pope could have rested on her laurels with an entire program of songs from her Broadway career. Instead, early in the show she gave us her “Resume Medley,” a highly entertaining and spritely mashup of tasty tidbits from Sweet Charity, Big Deal, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Kiss of the Spider Woman, and Pippin among others, peppered with patter about the shows and her roles. This Herculean effort was aided well by musical director/pianist Ian Herman, who had a carnival on the keys. Pope quipped, “Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way,” after which she delivered a beautifully varied program filled with songs that delighted us in one way or another. The show, called Simple Joys, which she had recently done at 54 Below in NYC and will perform again in Puerto Vallarta January 14 & 18, was nuanced and alternated between lots of show-biz pizzazz, and small personal moments that drew us in.
While her warm alto voice could fill an auditorium, she would dial it up or down as needed for the Napoleon Room’s intimate cabaret space. At times she sounded like Gwen Verdon or Chita Rivera, two performers whose shoes she has had to fill at one time or another. Her voice perfectly matched her Fosse-like moves, as minimal as she kept them on the small stage. Her black-sequined body suit showed off her dancer’s figure and long legs, making it no mystery why she was a Fosse favorite.
She displayed impressive vocal dexterity (and lyric memory) on the relentless David Wheat/William Loughborough list song “Better Than Anything,” that was even more impressive at the brisk pace Pope and Herman set. She channeled Eartha Kitt’s aspiring bad girl with “I Want to Be Evil” (Lester Judson/Raymond Taylor) with sinister aplomb, and took us for a ride on the “A Train” (Billy Strayhorn). It was perfectly paired with “Drop Me Off in Harlem” (Duke Ellington/Nick Kenny), before and after which she regaled us about her proud upbringing in East Harlem (also known as “Spanish Harlem”). This allowed her to seamlessly segue into Tito Puente’s “Oye Como Va” nicely blended with “Spanish Harlem” (Jerry Leiber/Phil Spector). With these numbers, Pope easily turned the burners up to sizzle and stayed there.
The big show-biz numbers were nicely balanced with some quiet one in which she drew us in. Adapting her show for the season, Pope talked about her Catholic upbringing and Christmas, which led into the sweetest pairing of “Oh Little Town of Bethlehem” (Phillips Brooks/Lewis Redner) and “Who Would Imagine a King” (Mervyn Warren/Hallerin Hilton Hill); the latter of which was recorded by Whitney Houston for the film The Preacher’s Wife. Her delivery of “Pure Imagination” (Lesley Bricusse/Anthony Newley) was sweet enough to have come right out of Willy Wonka’s factory. During these tender intimate moments, you could hear a pin drop, so rapt was the audience.
Pope wouldn’t leave us without a bit of irreverent humor as she poked fun at her time as Rivera’s standby in Kiss of the Spiderwoman with her own parody lyrics to the title song. It was clever and hilarious, and Pope respectfully lampooned Rivera, the consummate professional, who almost never missed a performance, much to Pope’s chagrin.
With Simple Joys, Pope showed she is still at the top of her game. After four decades in show business, she no longer needs to prove herself. Her thoughtful and intriguing program was combined with informative and deeply personal patter that was warmed by her genuine smile and her connection with the audience. Her aptly titled show indeed filled the room with an abundance of simple joys.
