Tony Messina’s entry, cigarette in hand and singing “Everybody Loves Somebody,” was followed with “Oh Marie” and Messina pouring himself a generous drink of Macallans Scotch.  More than a tribute, this show was an attempted recreation of the Rat Pack vocalist. The Metropolitan Room audience reveled in Messina’s velvety-voiced emulation, and given the go-ahead, joined in singing “Volare,” “That’s Amore” and “Memories are Made of This” with unbridled gusto.

Messina is an easy-going entertainer, comfortable with his audience, possessor of an admirable voice and a crowd-pleaser.  That said, it required that night’s dyed-in-the-wool Dean Martin groupies to relish the show.  Martin was overplayed to the point of parody.  Messina’s jokes, many of them possibly Martin’s own, were heavy-handed.  “My 85-year old grandmother didn’t even need glasses.  She drank right from the bottle.” 

The jaunty vocalist benefited from an equally good-spirited audience.  The show, chock full of familiar Martin tunes and loaded with anecdotes, would be a dream for a country club audience, but short of being a Dean Martin groupie, not a New York cabaret room.  Considering Messina’s positive qualities, and there were many, a show where he sings and performs as Tony Messina might be very good indeed.

Peter Leavy
Cabaret Scenes
November 5, 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org