Let it be said that I am a fan of the Gershwins, and that their niece, Alexis Gershwin, fashioned an inarguably appealing song list from the treasure trove that was available to her. Accompanying her at the Metropolitan Room were a piano, bass, sax and drums, plus a trio of backup vocalists, all under the aegis of a musical director. So, how could things go wrong?  Unfortunately, in several ways. 

 There was so much going on, the program lost its focus.  It was too much show – too much orchestration, too much backup singing and too much vocal theatricals – for the intimacy of a cabaret room.  Even “Fascinating Rhythm” was lost in the melée. Dizzying rather than delightful.  Too much going on all at the same moment.

However, it was more than just too much show.  While it may be that Alexis Gershwin has a pleasant voice, it was almost impossible to separate her singing from the overpowering instrumentation or from the singing of the regrettably mismatched trio. Alexis seemed carefully coached in the appropriate emotions to match the lyrics.  But she overshot the mark, with renditions that were so very dramatic they seemed to be possible parodies.  One example: when singing “The Man I Love,” Alexis was so breathless that she came across as a starry-eyed teenager rather than a mature, yearning woman.

One other missed opportunity.  Alexis surely must have interesting anecdotes about uncles George and Ira.  A laundry list of the famous names who visited them hardly scratched what should have been some fascinating tales of music's stellar brother act.

Possibly the program's conception was to play in a 1500-seat theater or auditorium, and everything was exaggerated to compensate for the distance to the furthest seats.  Or possibly those who created it didn't appreciate the charm of cabaret's intimacy.  Perhaps the next time around — with that choice song list that included “S'Wonderful,” “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” “How Long Has This Been Going On?” and “Embraceable You” — Alexis Gershwin and her musical director would cut back to a piano and a bass, add some interesting info about the family, minimize the vocal dramatics, and let us appreciate Alexis, the songs, and the brilliance of her subjects.   

Peter Leavy
Cabaret Scenes
May 22, 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org