Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – DON’T TELL MAMA keeps the flame alive on Restaurant Row

• By drediman
• December 23, 2020
• No Comments

Last week, I mourned the loss (again) of most of live and in-person entertainment in New York, scant as it was. This sad circumstance was almost completely dictated by the mandatory citywide halt of all indoor dining due to the onset of the second wave of COVID-19. Although indoor entertainment has been technically banned since March, some musicians and cabaret performers were able to work under the guise of “incidental entertainment” while clientele dined at such venues as Birdland Jazz Club, Blue Note Jazz Club, Ellen’s Stardust Diner, and West Bank Cafe. So with the recent directive to once again shutdown indoor dining, especially during the chilly months of winter, it’s little surprise that these enterprising venues and the hustling entertainers they hosted would throw in the proverbial towel altogether.

But then there’s Don’t Tell Mama. Indeed, one of the most valiant holdouts was this longtime establishment on Restaurant Row (i.e., 46th Street between 8th and 9th Avenues). Thanks to some motivation, grit, and ingenuity, the storied cabaret club (way back when, I used to sneak out and revel in watching Seth Rudetsky insightfully and hilariously interview Broadway stars there on Wednesday afternoons!) was able to continue to keep its doors – or rather sidewalk – open to service cabaret and drag performers and their dedicated fans, despite the ban on indoor dining. How? By using the stoop. Yes, you read correctly. Snow or shine, performances were able to continue on Don’t Tell Mama’s well-salted stoop while audiences drank and dined under a heated tent on the adjacent sidewalk and a little bit of 46th Street. Happily, the logistics of the setup worked out rather smoothly, and the sight-lines turned out better than you’d expect from the makeshift solution.

Attention must also be paid to the performers who committed to doing their thing exposed to the wintry elements. In addition to the fabulous Paige Turner’s holiday show We Really Need a Little Christmas! (you can read my thoughts on her act here), I was also able to catch the gorgeous Nicky Doll (a competitor on Season 12 of RuPaul’s Drag Race) and the oh-so-talented Cacophony Daniels perform in their respective cabaret shows, Cover Girl! and Stoo-Pourri with Cacophony. All three drag queens used the new environment to their advantage, building in amusing banter to accommodate the occasional passersby and using the stoop to theatrically frame their acts. But most importantly, their spirited performances reminded of the potent performer-audience connection that can only be forged during in-person shows. It’s a unique, intoxicating bond that I miss very dearly.

But this is a team effort, and this immeasurable gift of live and in-person entertainment during these truly trying times wouldn’t have been possible without the generous support of the village – Don’t Tell Mama’s dedicated management, scrappy but reliable sound and light personnel, and always welcoming waitstaff. Don’t Tell Mama is currently on holiday break, but I suspect that it will once keep the flame alive on 46th Street soon enough.

DON’T TELL MAMA
Located at 343 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036