Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – Divas of distinction: JOAQUINA KALUKANGO, MELISSA ERRICO, and KLEA BLACKHURST strut their stuff in song

• By drediman
• February 17, 2025
• No Comments

This holiday weekend at various venues across the city, I had the opportunity to catch some wonderful nightclub acts from a trio of truly distinctive divas. Collectively, they proved that the art of cabaret continues to be alive and thriving in New York. Here are my thoughts, as always.

JOAQUINA KALUKANGO: AN EVENING WITH JOAQUINA KALUKANGO
54 Below

This past Saturday at 54 Below, Joaquina Kalukango — one of the most fascinating of Broadway’s current crop of leading ladies (Paradise Square, Slave Play, Into the Woods, Jelly’s Last Jam) — celebrated her birthday during her third and final show at the popular Midtown cabaret club. Simply entitled An Evening with Joaquina Kulakango (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED), her debut 54 Below show highlighted the Tony-winner’s astonishing versatility, as exhibited both in her song selections and vocal song stylings. Indeed, the eclectic set was comprised of both Broadway show tunes (e.g., the title song from Purlie, medleys from both Godspell and the rarely-heard score of Raisin, “I Feel Pretty” from West Side Story) and crowd-pleasing offerings from the popular songbook (e.g.,”The Devil Went Down to Georgia”, “Both Sides Now”, “To Make You Feel My Love”). Some memorable moments included the chance to hear Kalukango show off her rich, rarely-heard soprano in Armando Zeferino Soares’s “Sodade” and her gutsy intensity, particularly in a chilling “Last Midnight” from Into the Woods and a predictably ferocious “Let It Burn” from Paradise Square (the musical that brought Kulakango her Tony Award). Throughout, she sang with captivating intent, a quality which translated to her appealing banter.

MELISSA ERRICO: I CAN DREAM, CAN’T I?
Birdland Theater

A bit more frivolous and breezy than Joaquina Kulakango’s show at 54 Below was Melissa Errico’s I Can Dream, Can’t I?, the singing actress’s new act for her annual Valentine’s Day weekend residency at the subterranean Birdland Theater (RECOMMENDED). It’s been gratifying to witness the evolution of this singing actress over the years as a cabaret artist. Not only has Errico has gracefully transitioned and bloomed from Broadway leading lady (My Fair Lady, High Society, Dracula) into a confident nightlife chanteuse of personality and distinction, she’s also become a notable song historian in her own right — an animated academic keeper of the songbooks of the likes of Rodgers and Hart and Legrand and Bergman, both of whom were featured prominently in this recent cabaret act (alongside Cole Porter, Johny Mercer, and Oscar Levant). She clearly loves these songs — Errico’s passion for the material was infectious as she giddily launched herself into songs such as “Lost in His Arms”, “Lady Is a Tramp”, and “What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?”. Indeed, her enthusiasm manifested itself in the way she wielded her easygoing, flexible soprano, which can swing fast and loose as much as soar the heights of buttery romanticism.

KLEA BLACKHURST: ONE OF THE GIRLS
Chelsea Table & Stage

Then over at Chelsea Table & Stage for one night only, Klea Blackhurst brought her easily recognizable brand of old school Broadway brass to One of the Girls (RECOMMENDED), the veteran cabaret performer’s loving homage to Broadway legend Jerry Herman and his enduring musical legacy. The first thing you’ll notice about Blackhurst is her irrepressible personality and her outsized voice. Indeed, the woman is a belter of the first order, her instrument a combustible combination between Ethel Merman and Angela Lansbury’s. Ever the knowledgable “insider” storyteller, her show intimately chronicled Herman’s career and the evolution of her relationship with the legendary composer/lyricist. Although there were occasional glitches in her banter, Blackhurst’s heart and exhilarating belt were passionately in the right place. The set list was an expertly curated mix of Jerry Herman’s greatest hits — “It’s Today” from Mame, “I Am What I Am” from La Cage aux Folles, “Put on Your Sunday Clothes” from Hello, Dolly!, “I Don’t Want to Know” from Dear World, “Time Heals Everything” from Mack & Mabel — as well as tantalizing lesser known material from deep in Herman’s treasured trunk of songs (e.g., a number brought back into Hello, Dolly! especially for Ethel Merman’s run in the show, a song handpicked especially by Herman for Blackhurst).