Bay Area Cabaret Founder and Executive Producer Marilyn Levinson said, “The new season will welcome the exciting debut of new artists alongside the heartfelt return of stars special to the Bay Area Cabaret family all in the splendor of the elegant and legendary Venetian Room. With all of these absolutely fabulous artists, I look forward to sharing their singing, their stories and their talent and creating new memories for all of us who cherish this artform.”
Bay Area Cabaret first presentation was Meow Meow with post-modern diva Meow Meow, the alter ego of Melissa Madden Gray. Unusual in that Meow Meow modern cabaret choosing an in-your-face 20th century Weimar style that challenges and provokes audiences. She plays on her unique appearance, looking like a windswept Joan Collins. Strutting onstage as the diva she is, Meow understatedly mentioned “It’s a lot, I know”. She play with the lighting tech, providing her own queues, often to mask he taking a gulp on wine straight out of the bottle or chewing hard candies. She’s a natural comedienne which endears the audience, but she truly shines when she sinks her teeth into her wildly eclectic material. From her Pink Martini days she offered “I Lost Myself (I’m Hungry…and that ain’t right) written by composer/collaborator Thomas Lauderdale as well as a co-written “Hotel Amour” from her same titled CD. Her delivery mesmerizing and emotive. Kurt Weil and Bertolt Brecht are represented by “Pirate Jenny” from Three Penny Opera, boldly performed entirely in German. Same with 1929’s “Surabaya Johnny”, performed rather than just sung, understanding the context of the material. Quoted: Steve Murray, Broadway World www.broadwayworld.com
CAROLE J. BUFFORD, Sunday November 20, 2022 at 5 p.m.
Carole J. Bufford is the recipient of Broadway World’s “Vocalist of the Year,” a Mabel Mercer Foundation award winner and the recipient of adoring praise from the Wall Street Journal and New York Times (“The real thing: You know it when you see it.” – Stephen Holden.) Her new hit show, Vintage Pop!, explores how the style and sound of pop music developed over the years spanning the decades of the 1920s to ‘80s.
CATHERINE RUSSELL, Sunday, February 26, 2023 at 7.30 p.m.
Back by popular demand, Grammy Award-winning jazz artist Catherine Russell returns with selections from her newest album Send for Me, along with reprisals of a few wildly popular numbers from Harlem on my Mind (“The Right Key/Wrong Keyhole,” “I Can’t Believe that You’re in Love with Me”. The peripatetic singer continues to be in demand across the nation performing at leading jazz festivals (SFJAZZ included), Tanglewood, the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and Carnegie Hall.
JULIE BENKO AND JASON YEAGER, Sunday, April 16 at 5 p.m.
Who is this season’s star Broadway audiences can’t stop talking about? Funny Girl’s multi-talented standby- to-breakout star, Julie Benko! Watch her assume the role of Fanny Brice every Thursday night on Broadway
JOHN PIZZARELLI AND JESSICA MOLASKEY, Sunday, May 14, 2023 at 7.30 p.m. (Mother’s Day)
John Pizzarelli and his wife Jessica Molaskey take the stage of the Venetian Room for a beloved tradition, performing songs made popular by the late Bucky Pizzarelli, along with familiar selections by contemporary singer/songwriters.