Mary Catherine Ward
Falling in Love with Love
Moonshine at Club Café, Boston, MA, November 8, 2026
Reviewed by John Amodeo
If you need help understanding the ins and outs of love, you could have gone to licensed clinical social worker Mary Catherine Ward for a therapy session. But better yet, you could have attended her recent cabaret show at Club Café’s Moonshine, Falling in Love with Love, which would have saved you a therapy session and been a whole lot more enjoyable. In one hour and 14 songs, Ward explored many shades of love: yearned for, gained, lost, jaded, seductive, collegial, romantic, and maternal. This beautifully constructed show was directed by John O’Neill, who helped keep things brisk and fresh.
Looking fabulous in a striking cobalt-blue pant suit, Ward entered the stage as though she had been shot out of a cannon. She launched headlong into a high-octane version of “The Lady Is a Tramp” (Richard Rodgers/Lorenz Hart), which showcased her commanding alto that can easily belt to the back row. She was backed by the Tom LaMark Quintet, which fired on all cylinders here, with piano, bass, drums, trumpet, and saxophone, especially with Mike Monaghan’s dynamic saxophone solo. This was an auspicious start.
Ward continued the vibrant mood with “Send for Me” (Ollie Jones), a buoyant yet laid-back New Orleans-style blues number in which her droll delivery showed us her mischievous side. There wasn’t much patter in the first third of the show, which initially felt more like a concert partly due to her singing to the fourth wall instead of making eye contact. But this is a mere quibble and easily remedied. Ward is the real deal, and any show of hers delivers the best in cabaret and then some.
As the show progressed, she began to confide in us with stories about her own love life’s rocky start with “Beginner’s Luck” (George & Ira Gershwin), which she comically claimed she lacked. She smoothly segued into how she landed love (and a husband) at 40; she then slid into a most tender version of “Isn’t It Romantic?” (Rodgers & Hart) where her sultry voice washed over us like a warm wave. Ever nimble, she pivoted 180 degrees with her title song, another Rodgers & Hart standard, “Falling in Love with Love,” to cover the less savory sides of love. She waxed seductive on “Moonglow,” (Will Hudson & Irving Mills/Eddie DeLange), a mood further enhanced with backup from the horn section provided by Dave Burdett’s teasing trumpet and Monaghan’s sensual sax.
The highlight of this journey through the undulating landscape of love was when she spoke of unexpected motherhood, after having been married late in life. Here, we luxuriated in a moving “With a Song in My Heart” (Rodgers & Hart) honoring her son Max. Her smile radiated as she beamed broadly enough to embrace the whole room. She aptly included the verse that proclaimed “a new kind of love at first sight.” As if we couldn’t sigh any further, she later offered a heartfelt “We Fell in Love Anyway” (Mike Reid/Naomi Martin) that was paired nicely with “Come Rain or Come Shine” (Harold Arlen/Johnny Mercer) and dedicated to her adopted son Daniel Alexi. These were memorable moments that will linger indefinitely.
Ward showed her eternal gratitude to the other mothers in her neighborhood with “Let’s Be Buddies” (Cole Porter) paired with “Love Is Here to Stay” (the Gershwins) to thank them for their support while she was both working and raising her kids, resulting in lasting friendships. On the subject of friends, Ward invited her friend Mark Roderick to join her on stage where he serenaded us with the beautifully reflective “When Joanna Loved Me” (Robert Wells/Jack Segal) written for Tony Bennett. Roderick’s emotional commitment here was captivating, enhanced by Burdett’s sweet and silky trumpet line weaving throughout and LaMark’s delicate and nimble fingers on the keys. Roderick switched from sentimental to slyly playful in a multi-tuned “friendship” medley with Ward They showed off their comic sides throughout, especially where they affectionately sparred in “Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)” (Irving Berlin). To her circle of lady friends, many of whom were in the audience, she sizzled her way through a fierce “A Lady Must Live” (Rodgers & Hart), where she and the band kicked into high gear. Ably rounding out this dynamic band were Dave Landoni on bass and George Darrah on drums, who helped propel things like a train going downhill on greased rails. If music were combustible, we’d have had to call in the fire department.
For her encore, Ward lowered the temperature with a wistful “How Are Things in Glocca Morra?” (Burton Lane/E.Y. “Yip” Harburg), somewhat of a signature song for this Irish lass that left traces of her final notes floating in the air well after she finished.
