Take a pair of crowd-pleasing musicians and two baby-grand pianos, place them inside the Milwaukee Repertory Theater’s Stackner Cabaret, and let them loose with a cavalcade of hit tunes. That’s the formula for Piano Men. This latest creation, by artistic director Mark Clements, strikes all the right notes as these performers let loose with a playlist of greatest hits from the 1970s, 80s and 90s.
According to accomplished singer/pianist Steve Watts, who keeps the mood casual while dressed in jeans and a rock concert t-shirt from 1975, the show salutes the keyboardists of piano bars, lounges, clubs and cabarets everywhere. On opening night, he insisted that the atmosphere he longed to create was “a party more than a concert.”
To accomplish this goal, the duo enlisted staff members to collect and compile a list of the audience’s favorite songs, which were then electronically uploaded to the performers’ computer tablets. The pair announced that the show would be constructed from this list, which guarantees that the show will be different every night.
With disarming enthusiasm, the performers (which includes Nygel D. Robinson through Feb. 6, when a replacement steps in) coaxed the audience to join them for almost every tune. Despite the fact that people had to sing through their facial masks, they happily played along with this concept.
After kicking things off with Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September,” the pair moved smoothly through a roster of hits that included songs by Prince, Queen, Whitney Houston and many, many more.
The intimate Stackner Cabaret consists of a multi-tiered cluster of tables. Each table seats between two and eight people, and the place was mostly full on opening night.
The 90-minute show continues non-stop without an intermission, which is a bit of a drawback for encouraging audience participation. It might have been better to let the wait staff wander through the cluster of tables at some point to grab bar orders. That might have “greased the skids,” as they used to say. With this in mind, here’s a tip: order more than one beverage before the show begins.
Audience members happily joined the chorus for a number of songs, which included “America” by Simon and Garfunkel, Madonna’s “Like a Virgin,” and “Roxanne” by Sting. For an inspirational ballad like John Lennon’s “Imagine,” some audience members improvised by slowly waving the faux votive candles sitting on each table.
The pair joyfully led the audience from one tune to another. One of the most boisterous sing-alongs was to Don McLean’s 1971 hit, “American Pie.”
Female songwriters were represented by such hits as Carly Simon’s “You’re So Vain” (1972) and Carole King’s “I Feel the Earth Move (1971).”
Although this show was set in a theater, not a cocktail lounge, Broadway was scantily represented in the playlist. Several tunes were played from Aladdin, Mamma Mia, and Rent. But then, who knows what songs will pop up in subsequent performances?
The two, gleaming black pianos in Piano Men are set against a realistic-looking, weathered brick backdrop. (It appears to have been imported from a nearby alley.) Aside from the set, the show’s visual aspects are certainly heightened by Aaron Lichamer’s lighting design. The lighting effects shifted throughout each tune, as if providing visual mood music to the entertainment.
Despite the energetic abilities of these two musicians, neither appeared to break much of a sweat throughout the entire evening. They seemed very much at home in the Stackner Cabaret, and kept their promise of creating a party for everyone to enjoy.
