54 Sings Broadway’s Greatest Hits

Post author:Jacqueline Parker
Post published: October 28, 2026
Reading time:3 mins read

54 Sings Broadway’s Greatest Hits

54 Below, NYC, October 17, 2026

Reviewed by Jacqueline Parker

Is there any other way to describe an evening of music that begins with the three lovely angels from Kenya (triplets, actually) known as MOIPEI, than heavenly? Their voices melded together in a rousing opening of Cole Porter’s highly appropriate “Anything Goes” that made one ponder just how prescient he was with many of his lyrics, here nearly a century old. They were dressed in matching style, differentiated only by color.

Matthew Drinkwater was unusually expressive in his rendition of Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe’s “Come to Me, Bend to Me” from Brigadoon. It seemed such a real and heartfelt plea that I felt like rooting for him. If MOIPEI was heavenly, then Ryan Knowles’ version of “16 Tons” (Merle Travis), originally made popular by Tennessee Ernie Ford, came hellishly close to a growl.

Returning to the celestial theme, two performers were truly sublime in their song choices and deliveries: Ben Jones and William Michals. Jones took on two famous musical soliloquys, affecting a slight British accent when he portrayed Professor Higgins from My Fair Lady in “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face” (Lerner/Loewe). One has perhaps become accustomed to the rather arch interpretation of this song by the original Higgins, Rex Harrison. Since he couldn’t really sing, he delivered the song in a speak/sing manner, which was effective at the time. Jones took the song a bit further, this time portraying an intellectual truly befuddled, and profoundly so, by this conundrum known as love. Jones ripped back the scrim covering the heart of this character in near tears at the end, but oh how wonderful it was to see Higgins in the full distress that only love can wreak.

Later in the evening he approached that grandaddy of them all, “Soliloquy” from Carousel (Richard Rodgers/Oscar Hammerstein II). Here he did the same thing, delving deeper into the heart of a man speaking to himself without pretense, yet revealing a deeper emotional connection to his conundrum. Jones held nothing back in the performance of these two numbers.

William Michals brought his extraordinary baritone to two songs from that golden era of Broadway musicals: “They Call the Wind Maria” from 1961’s Paint Your Wagon (Lerner/Loewe) and “The Impossible Dream” from 1965’s Man of La Mancha (Mitch Leigh/Joe Darion). Dorothy Parker once said upon being introduced to Orson Welles that “it was like meeting God without dying.” Hearing Michals deliver these two powerful numbers was like hearing God sing without dying. His rich sound invaded the heart and brought us back to the ‘60s and all the idealism that was seemingly rampant at the time.

Mark T. Evans as music director/pianist was superb, and kudos to that great champion of the Great American Songbook Scott Siegel (who created the series and serves as its host) for his work in keeping this music alive and vibrant.

Tags: American Songbook Association, Paint Your Wagon, Frederick Loewe, My Fair Lady, Dorothy Parker, composer, The Impossible Dream, Carousel, I’ve Grown Accustomed to Her Face, Soliloquy, Joe Darion, Mitch Leigh, They Call the Wind Maria, Ben Jones, Clubs, Rex Harrison, Matthew Drinkwater, ASA, Ryan Knowles, MOIPEI, Jacqueline Parker, Scott 54 Sings Broadway's Greatest Hits, 16 Tons, Merle Travis, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Professor Higgins, Mark T. Evans, William Michals, Cabaret Scenes, Cole Porter, 54 Below, Scott Siegel, Broadway, Cabaret, Broadway Musicals, Richard Rodgers, Alan Jay Lerner, American Songbook, Anything Goes, Lyricist, Brigadoon, Come to Me Bend to Me, NYC, Oscar Hammerstein II, Orson Welles, Man of La Mancha, CD, Reviews, Cabaret Reviews, Lerner and Loewe

Jacqueline Parker

Like Ethel Merman, lifelong New Yorker Jacqueline Parker began her career as a stenographer. She spent more than two decades at the city's premier public agency, progressing through positions of increased responsibility after earning her BA in English from New York University (3.5 GPA/Dean’s List). She won national awards for her work in public relations and communication and had the privilege of working in the House of Commons for Stephen Ross, later Lord Ross of Newport. In the second half of her career, Jacqueline brought her innate organizational skills and creative talents to a variety of positions. While distinguishing herself in executive search, she also gave her talents to publishing, politics, writing, radio broadcasting and Delmonico's Restaurant. Most recently, she hosted Anything Goes! a radio show that paid homage to Cole Porter and by extension the world of Broadway musicals and the Great American Songbook. Other features of the show were New York living, classical music, books, restaurants, architecture and politics. This show highlighted the current Broadway scene, both in New York and around the country through performances and interviews with luminaries including Len Cariou, Charles Strouse, Laura Osnes, Steve Ross and Joan Copeland. Her pandemic project was immersion into the life, times and work of Alfred Hitchcock, about whom she has written a soon-to-be-published article. Jacqueline has been involved in a myriad of charitable causes, most notably the Walt Frazier Youth Foundation, St. Patrick's Cathedral, Sisters of Life, York Theatre, and the New Jersey Shakespeare Festival. She is a proud Founder of Hidden Water. Her greatest accomplishment is the parenting of her son, a lawyer specializing in mediation. She has many pretend grandchildren, nieces and nephews, on whom she dotes shamelessly, as well as a large circle of friends to whom she is devoted. Her interests in addition to theater and cabaret are cooking, entertaining, reading, and spending time on Queen Mary 2.