Marilyn Maye Maye-den Voyage
Performing Arts
Mar 05, 2013 to Mar 16, 2013
$35 to $45
Official Site
Even if Marilyn Maye didn’t ask the audience to shout a hearty “Hallelujah” during her rendition of Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler’s joyous “Get Happy,” part of her extraordinary new nightclub act “Maye-den Voyage,” now at the swanky 54 Below, they’d be tempted to do so anyway. Maye’s shows are the modern equivalent of revival meeting, and the nearly 85-year-old songstress, with her big belt and even bigger personality, can cure just about anything. Especially a bad mood.
Resplendent in red, Maye spreads sheer joy across the room whenever she’s tackling one of her unrivaled uptempo tunes, like the brassy “Golden Rainbow,” the jazzy “Take Five,” (which also provides a fabulous showcase for musical director Tedd Firth and his trio), a swingin’ “Any Place I Hang My Hat Is Home.” She even turns the great “Blues in the Night” into a tale of triumph over adversity rather than a pity party.
And even if her medleys don’t always connect as well musically or thematically as a purist might wish, it’s impossible not to smile as she works her way effortlessly through snippets of five great Cole Porter songs, including “I Get a Kick Out Of You,” or a quintet of love letters to the Big Apple, ranging from Porter’s “I Happen to Like New York” to Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind,” to Kander and Ebb’s irresistible “New York, New York.” She clearly loves every note and every word, so why shouldn’t we?
But for her all sass and sizzle, Maye shines brightest to me as a storyteller, painting portraits of women longing for love, sometimes winning it, and more often losing (or having lost) it. Her inspired pairing of the gorgeous “Lazy Afternoon” with the lesser-known “Bye Bye Country Boy” – about a visiting singer who wishes the shy young man she spent the week with would rather have him than her so-called “stardom” – is practically a full-length film, while her spot-on versions of “Guess Who I Saw Today,” “Something Cool,” and “My Ship” are each the musical equivalents of perfectly constructed short stories.
Despite the show’s clever title, “Maye-den Voyage” is, admittedly, made up of tunes she’s performed countless times, and which the audience – some of whom have followed her career for 50 years – simply expects from her. So it’s a bit of a relief when she closes the show with her signature tune, Jerry Herman’s anthem of optimism, “It’s Today.” And what could be more fitting? We may not have tomorrow -- so get yourself over to 54 Below tonight!
Author: Brian Scott Lipton
54 Below
Concert Halls/Venues
West 50s
254 West 54th St (Cellar)
New York, NY 10019
(646) 476-3551
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