Melinda Doolittle, a finalist on season six of American Idol, made her NYC debut last night to a medium size audience that roared with approval. Feinstein’s seemed an unlikely venue, but Miss Doolittle was intent on doing a cabaret show, and where better to do so?

Ms. Doolittle’s show had a simple theme—love and all its ruminations and pleasures—employing a number of standards and show tunes to explore the terrain. A cheerful “Hooray for Love” (brilliant lyrics by Leo Robin to Harold Arlen's music) helped set the pace for the show, which never lagged as Melinda winsomely shared her “plight” of being “quite single,” without ever becoming maudlin or tiresome about it.

It is always surprising when a performer given such public exposure is still as unsophisticated as Doolittle is. She gave of herself wholly if not always wisely. Her colorful and often volcanic voice (think Sarah Vaughan crossed with Aretha Franklin) was stuck with somewhat repetitive arrangements; many starting out straight and leading into a gospel-like conclusion that was not always appropriate for the material, i.e. “My Funny Valentine,” Cahn/Newman’s “The Best of Everything,”

She was best when she could freely belt out a tune (“Don’t Rain on My Parade”). Her jazz phrasing was not in the pocket as she took some inappropriate breaths during her overly dramatic rendering of the whimsical “My Funny Valentine.” Possessing a serviceable vocal technique, it could be refined by more focus and point on her longer notes, controlling the breathiness and excess vibrato that a singer of her caliber does not need to employ. Extra attention to the lyrics while gently expanding her ribcage for support would probably fix that in an instant.

In an extremely telling and touching moment, Melinda mentioned some of the cruelty she has endured (possibly concerning her appearance, which happens to be very attractive if not “cookie cutter”) as she closed out the show with The Color Purple’s triumphant and stentorian “I’m Here.” The strongly moving lyric extolled the virtues of finding peace and strength within one’s circumstances, however daunting—a perfect ending for a promising debut.

Melinda is at Feinstein's through Saturday, November 21.

Melody Breyer-Grell
Cabaret Scenes
November 17, 2009