In episode 10 of the amazing podcast Patrick and Vonia bring us an interview with two powerhouses of the NYC cabaret scene! Bridget Everett has a standing gig at Joe's Pub, travels the country opening for Amy Schumer (as well as being on Inside Amy Schumer), and is currently working on a solo musical with Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman. Maude Maggart is one of today's most compelling international concert artists, she is a part of an acclaimed show business family: her grandfather was the star vocalist for the Harry James Big Band, her grandmother and parents were Broadway stars and her sister is Fiona Apple, and she recently made her debut at Cafe Carlyle.
Bridget Everett
She studied opera, she trained her voice and has a great appreciation for classical musical, but also for Chardonnay. She left Arizona when she was 27, moved to New York and landed a children's theatre tour. She auditioned for Broadway every once and a while but she didn't really feel like there was a place on Broadway for her. She has a fierce relationship with karaoke, the only outlet she had to sing at one time. Once while singing karaoke, an artistic director of a cabaret club saw her doing karaoke and told her she should book a show and the rest fell into place from there. New York is a very expensive town in which to live, however, and Bridget does still wait tables uptown and then go and do her show downtown on occasion to fill in the money gap.
On stage, she plays a character and it feels out of body for her and almost a superhero version of herself. Her shows are like conversations with the audience, so she tries to tell stories that the audience will connect with, and that will transition well into a song. She writes, or co-writes, all of her own songs, and interestingly enough she has a Beastie Boy, Adam Horovitz, in her band. He has helped Bridget gain exposure, encouraged her to write her own songs, introduced her to some amazing new people, and there is much more on the horizon.
Downtown cabaret is blossoming with so many exciting things happening right now. The shows are inexpensive to see and the star quality is amazing! Some of the downtown venues include: Joe's Pub, Dixon Place, Laurie Beechman Theatre, The Duplex, among others. Cabaret shows are incredible and well worth the money for the level of entertainment they provide! Go see a show next time you get a chance.
Follow Bridget on twitter for more amazingness and hilarity!
Maude Maggart
She just made her debut at the Cafe Carlyle, a dream come true for her given its status as such a legendary and intimate stage. She defines cabaret as "an intimate space, usually with no windows, one or more performers and it is an open space to define what you want it to be as the performer". For her cabarets, she typically chooses more obscure songs from little known black and white movies and musical theatre productions before the big coming of theatre in the 1940's.
She discusses her beginnings at LaGuardia High School, including how Andrea Marcovicci became her mentor. She helped Maude understand how to put together an elegant and intelligent act. Maude discusses her grandparents' and parents' work in the business and how that has influenced her work in cabaret.
What's the next step for her after the Cafe Carlyle debut? She says she would love to take the show to other cabaret theatres and of course her upcoming album. The album is taken directly from a show she performed at the Algonquin, "Speaking of Dreams". The show centered around the idea of dreams and how love exists in a dream state and vice versa. It is all live and recorded at the Algonquin Oak Room.
She ends the podcast with a story about Marshall Barer when she stayed at his house on her way through New Mexico. It is an amazing story and completely worth the listen!
Check out Maude's website for more information.
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