“Nightlife” takes on a new meaning in Deanna Neil’s new cabaret Enter Night: An Exploration of Bedtime, which recently ended its run at Don’t Tell Mama. Combining lullabies, pop songs and Broadway standards about dreams and sleep with intimate interviews, Neil painted a complete nocturnal portrait.

From a smoky a cappella “Didn’t Leave Nobody but the Baby” to a gentle “Wigenlied” by Brahms (in German) to a hot “Summertime” by Gershwin, Neil flowed effortlessly from brassy belter to lyric soprano as needed. Songs about nightmares and dreams (Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” and Aerosmith’s “Dream On”) let her rock out, and her quietly intense “In The Still of the Night” was accompanied only by David Romano on bass. Musical director Brian Gelfand sang backup while accompanying on piano, and Dan Vonnegut maintains the jazzy vibe on drums. Jessica Redish’s elegant direction made certain that a show about sleep was never soporific.

Jena Tesse Fox
Cabaret Scenes
April 17, 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org