The songs of Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, written for Broadway shows over two-dozen years starting in 1919, were marked by the sophistication, wit, and often the poignancy of Hart’s lyrics, combined with the soaring, singable melodies of Rodgers. To sing their songs well, a performer needs an understanding of Hart’s way with words – the tales they tell, the frequent wistful currents underneath, and a delight in their intricate internal rhyming – plus an appreciation of Rodgers’ warm melodies. Such a singer is Andrea Marcovicci, who has brought all these qualities together, plus notes on the personal lives of the two collaborators, to a new eight-week run at The Algonquin Hotel’s Oak Room. The show – and Andrea herself, in a form-fitting black dress and a jacket – are simply lovely. Offering the duo’s all-time familiar songs as well as several unknown ones, and telling the stories behind many of them, she performs with her familiar gift of singing to a roomful of people as if she were wooing each one individually. An added attraction on occasional Thursday nights is a visit on stage by Helen Marcovicci, Andrea’s mother, formerly a professional singer in her own right. Musical arrangements and pianistics by Shelly Markham, with expert accompaniment by Jered Egan on bass, complete the music-making.

Andrea Marcovicci appears at The Oak Room Tuesdays through Saturdays through January 12. 

Peter Haas
Cabaret Scenes
November 15, 2007
www.cabaretscenes.org