It was a fiery intro of bop jazz drum rhythms in the '30's classic, "Big Noise From Winnetka" that accompanied charismatic Christine Ebersole, who happens to be a big talent from Winnetka. She blazed into a vigorous follow-up of, "Ding, Dong The Witch is Dead," starting a tour de force performance for Ebersole's third year at the Café Carlyle.
Very 1950's chic in her little black dress and pearls, if you glanced down at her shoes though, you saw crimson stilettos, sparkling and "hot." The diverse talents of the Tony-Award winning actress and singer, shone just as radiantly in this flawless show. With the John Oddo band behind her, Ebersole swung, scatted and swooped to full speed with, "On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe." "Life Is Just a Bowl of Cherries" built from an easy swing to audacious gusto.
She has a voice that is just glorious, an uplifting soprano that can drop down to torch temperature for standout passion in, "Can't Help Lovin' That Man" and communicate the poignant joy she felt first holding her two adopted babies in, "If I Were a Bell."
Two songs from the 1930's reflected the recognition of innocent love in, "You Forgot Your Gloves" from The Third Little Show and then recalled young love's early disappointments with, "Blame It On My Youth." Ebersole's most evocative moments in this show, however, sprang from her triptych of nostalgia. "When the World Was Young" and two songs from Grey Gardens, "Another Winter in a Summer Town" and "Drift Away," were pure bravura.
A quirky sophisticate with a sense of humor, Ebersole recalled how, while visiting Washington D.C. recently, she began imagining some political bigwigs trying out a cabaret show. Hillary Clinton, for example, might use her State Department diplomacy experience to belt out a red-hot-mama take on Sophie Tucker's, "You Can't Deep Freeze a Hot Mama ('Cause You Can't Get Her Temperature Down)." And going back to those red shoes, according to Ebersole, the key to eternal youth may be clicking those stilettos three times and heeding the message of her encore, "Young At Heart."
Kudos also to musical director/pianist John Oddo, bassist David Finck, Jim Saporito on drums and Charles Pillow adding spice on reeds. Christine Ebersole's director was Scott Wittman.
