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SUE'S VIEWS, REVIEWS & NEWS by Sue Matsuki
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In today's column, Sue gives her top 10 cabaret picks from the time she began writing reviews for CABARET HOTLINE ONLINE in November, 2010. She recommends a shows coming up inthe next few weeks, and has some great news about several cabaret events she and MATSUKI PRODUCTIONS are presenting in NYC and Connecticut, including a special course/workshop she will be offering in February & March.
Last night at Don't Tell Mama, I saw art in Cabaret again. To be clear, this was more like a theatre piece done in a Cabaret room but it reminded me of the shows we used to see back in the day and also reminded me of how wide the Cabaret Umbrella is. The word that comes to mind when I try to think of an adjective to describe Alissa, the show, her voice, her concept, her puppetry, her puppets and tech crew, her Musical Director (Steven Katz), her Director (Warren Kelley), Bobby Kneeland's work on lights/sound is a resounding... STUNNING! I was literally breathless trying to tell my husband about the show when I got home. Column: 10/8/10 
Zoe Lewis is affectionately known as "the band in a body". What I want to say to you all is the next time this gal comes to town, if you do not see her show, YOU will be missing one of THE most joyous, creative, brilliant singers/ songwriters/musicians of our day. Many of you commented on the tunes that I did in my last show, "Aware" and "Prince of Love". You raved over Hector Coris's and Joan Crowe's renditions of "The Day Snow White Said the F Word" and on Joan's version of "Eyelashes"... Zoe is a wealth of great, fresh, new material and you can pick these tunes up but you have to see her and hear her first to know what tunes speak to you. I am hard pressed to find a tune that I DON'T want to do! She's really that good folks! Column: 11/15/10
Firstly, every single voice that sang this evening should be in a Broadway show and a few of them are. I predict that Scott Evan Davis will have a show on Broadway in 10 years time (5 if he makes the right connections). He himself is a lovely, sweet man and a fine singer who told us the most wonderful stories of how songwriting literally just came to him which, if he can write a script as well as he can write music, IS the Broadway show he should write. There was one highlight after another and with only 11 tunes in the show, Scott's stories on how the songs came to be became equally as compelling as his tunes making it just a wonderful night of Cabaret with show tunes featured. Column: 1/17/11 
If you think you are a jazz singer, come to see Gabrielle Stravelli and see what the real deal is and then ask yourself if what you do is jazz. She is not a huge scatter in terms of how she sings but she does scat very well. It is a tool in her arsenal of jazz techniques. What she does do though is play with time; she bends melodic lines; she allows space to "speak"; she has a dead on tone that goes right to the nucleus of a note and she has the ability to still interpret a lyric while using all these jazz tools and styling effects. She's more connected to her lyrics on her ballads but she always knows what she's singing about. In a word, she is IMPRESSIVE! Column: 5/2/11
SPECTACULAR SHOW! Interesting, beautifully sung, intelligent ... a MUST SEE! If you want to see how to put a show together in a way that is worthy of an Off-Broadway run (for just $20!) and hear a voice from the heavens sing it, please mark your calendars today to make sure that you do not miss Eric Michael Gillett in this amazing show. My favorite line in the entire show was in "What a Song Should Say" where he sings: "We should be IN the song." While this simple phrase is used in a different context in the song, I heard him loud and clear because he is, in fact, always and completely "IN" his music. He's an inspiration to me as a singer. PLEASE see this show. It is one of my top 10 shows all year (and ya'll know how many shows I see!) STUNNING WORK! Column: 6/27/11
If you do not think you know Russell Garcia, you do. Google him. If you have ever heard the big band arrangements of Mel Torme, Ella Fitzgerald, Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong, Frances Faye, Judy Garland, Anita O'Dea, Oscar Peterson Jr. and hundred of others ... you know this man. If you were at the Iridium last night, not only would you have gotten to know his music, incredibly presented by Shaynee and Terese with a band that can only be described as "from the heavens", you would not have missed a show of a lifetime. Ladies, what you pulled off here is a BIG DEAL. Amazing. What a show! What a concept which all started from Shaynee trying to research a song called "Go Slow" which was done by Julie London which led her to Julie's arrangement which led her to contact Mr. Garcia. A CD, a CD show tour and shows all around the world including in New Zealand, they landed at the Iridium last night to celebrate Mr. Garcia's 95th Birthday. Tonight we were T-R-E-A-T-E-D to one of the best shows I have seen all year. Column: 11/7/11 
What can anyone say about Mark Nadler that hasn't already been said by reviewers from every major publication that I can now say here on Cabaret Hotline to make you understand just want a phenomenon Mark Nadler is? A program of all Cole Porter only made this evening that much more enjoyable because Mark's love of music and for this composer in particular was clear from the moment he took the stage. His knowledge of all of the people he chooses to tribute is always the most informative patter you could ever hope to hear in a show BUT, the difference here is that Mark just delivers it like it's all right off the top of his head. (It probably is because, if you know Mark, you know he is a walking encyclopedia of knowledge, musical and otherwise.) He is truly one of THE most talented and intelligent men I have ever had the privilege of knowing. Column: 11/21/11)
I just returned from Julie's opening night of her new show at Feinstein's and it was just SO totally charming. It's a collection of fabulous tunes (many original songs by NY's best writers) about life and family and winter through a child's eyes and then through a parent's eyes and then through a lover's eyes ... it was so haunting at times and then side splittingly funny in the very next moment. Julie has become not only one of the best voices in the business (she's always been a wonderful singer) but she is now one of the best actresses as well. She knows her way around a lyric and gets every single nuance and/or joke that a song has to offer. The other thing that Julie is, is the "IT" girl for original songwriters. She's a standard maker." Column: 11/28/11 
Yes, he gets TWO spots because, well, the man is a genius! How's THAT for a review?! This is an AMAZING piece of theater and it will be coming back for 3 dates at 
Matsuki Productions, Inc., Sue Matsuki & The Palace Danbury Theater Present: THE NEW YORK INVASION - AN EVENING OF NEW YORK CITY AWARD WINNING TALENT on Saturday, February 4th, 2012 at 8:00 pm at 
Also: Saturday, March 3rd, 2012 at 8:00 pm at 
Also: Saturday, April 14th, 2012 at 8:00 pm at 
HOLD THE DATE! SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25th 2012 at 5:30 pm at 