It’s hard to decide whether to term Maxine Linehan and Tell Me on a Sunday, with the music of Andrew Llkoyd Webber and Don Black and Richard Maltby, Jr.’s lyrics, a dazzling cabaret act, a mesmerizing one-woman theater piece or a smartly staged one-act opera, because all of those fit so well. A dozen and a half numbers dramatically developing the story line without patter or spoken lines, solely in song.  The tale is of a British girl, Emma, a hat designer hopeful who comes to New York to make her way. 

The plot is familiar: she has relationships with a succession of men who won’t make a commitment, then settles into a reasonably comfortable affair with a married man. But Linehan’s performance lifts the show at the Laurie Beechman Theater out of the ordinary. Webber’s music and Linehan’s dramatic vocalizing are a stunningly effective, and truly enchanting.  Linehan captures and communicates the varying emotions – love, hope, despair, discovery – masterfully.  

Her opener, the arrival in New York number, “Take That Look Off Your Face,” gets things off to a fine start.  The melody, with changed lyrics and intent, repeats mid-show, and in yet another metamorphosis at the close.  “Let Me Finish,” a heated argument in song, likewise reprises in changed circumstances.  A refreshing nod to humor, sung during Emma’s sojourn in Hollywood, fits the locale perfectly: “Capped Teeth and Caesar Salad.”

Jeff Talbot directed, Chris Tilley is musical director and pianist with an assist from Sharon Fischman on drums, Summer Boggess on cello, and Jeremy Clayton on wind instruments. 

Maxine Linehan is an Irish lass with theater credits, a 2007 MAC nomination for her debut cabaret performance, and a lovely voice that can belt or bewitch.  She is a captivating performer in a striking portrayal not to be missed. 

Tell Me on a Sunday plays again at the Laurie Beechman Theater on Sunday, May 11^th and Sunday, May 18^th. 

Peter Leavy
Cabaret Scenes
May 4, 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org