Cabaret review
[This performance review will be of interest to my New York City readers.]
Last night some savvy New Yorkers gathered for a special treasure in the city’s ever-varied cultural array. The event was the cabaret debut of Mr. Andrew Strachan at Uncle Charlie’s, a piano bar in Manhattan near Grand Central Station. Mr. Strachan is a young and multitalented Canadian actor-musician who is fast establishing himself in Gotham City.
Andrew Strachan is well traveled, so it was appropriate that the unspoken theme of his presentation was cosmopolitanism. Appropriately, he began with “I Happen to Like New York,” by Cole Porter, and then shifted to an international medley of Noel Coward pieces. For the French there was “La Vie en Rose,” for Latin America “Señorita Nina from Argentina,” and for the old West, “See What the Boys in the Backroom Will Have.”
The texture of the event was varied, with Mr. Strachan occasionally playing some of the several instruments he commands. Twice during the evening he changed places with his excellent accompanist James Greening-Valenzuela, who plays the violin as well as the piano.
Mr. Strachan acknowledges a wide variety of influences, including Noel Coward, Bobby Short, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nina Simone. He blends these varied strands into something uniquely his own, characterized by vocal power, strength of personality, and a suppleness that can modulate into meditative quietness.
Too bad you missed the event! Well, there is another chance because Andrew Strachan is doing an encore performance on Sunday April 5 at 9:00 PM. It will again be at Uncle Charlie’s at 165 E. 45th Street in Manhattan.
Last night some savvy New Yorkers gathered for a special treasure in the city’s ever-varied cultural array. The event was the cabaret debut of Mr. Andrew Strachan at Uncle Charlie’s, a piano bar in Manhattan near Grand Central Station. Mr. Strachan is a young and multitalented Canadian actor-musician who is fast establishing himself in Gotham City.
Andrew Strachan is well traveled, so it was appropriate that the unspoken theme of his presentation was cosmopolitanism. Appropriately, he began with “I Happen to Like New York,” by Cole Porter, and then shifted to an international medley of Noel Coward pieces. For the French there was “La Vie en Rose,” for Latin America “Señorita Nina from Argentina,” and for the old West, “See What the Boys in the Backroom Will Have.”
The texture of the event was varied, with Mr. Strachan occasionally playing some of the several instruments he commands. Twice during the evening he changed places with his excellent accompanist James Greening-Valenzuela, who plays the violin as well as the piano.
Mr. Strachan acknowledges a wide variety of influences, including Noel Coward, Bobby Short, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nina Simone. He blends these varied strands into something uniquely his own, characterized by vocal power, strength of personality, and a suppleness that can modulate into meditative quietness.
Too bad you missed the event! Well, there is another chance because Andrew Strachan is doing an encore performance on Sunday April 5 at 9:00 PM. It will again be at Uncle Charlie’s at 165 E. 45th Street in Manhattan.
Labels: cabaret Andrew Strachan
posted by Dyneslines at 7:55 AM
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