If you are looking for an evening of entertainment, relaxation and good music, while you quaff your two-drink minimum, Bistro Award winner (for Outstanding Debut) Deb Berman is an excellent choice.  A woman d’un certain age (as the French put it), which she admits to reluctantly and whimsically, she offers in this, her second show, a selection of songs that reveal the virtue of doing things All in Good Time. A song by that name, written for her by Barry Levitt and Peter Napolitano, is about things one wishes time to bring, a polite variation on “My Simple Christmas Wish” by David Friedman.

There were surprises in the show, such as the lyrics to “Take Five,” written two years after the music (by Paul Desmond) by Dave and Iola Brubeck.  The phrasing and slow tempo of “It Might as Well Be Spring” guaranteed there would be no confusing this rendition with Margaret Whiting’s recording. A jazz singer, Berman’s occasional scatting was relaxed and easy and would not bother anyone who did not care for this particular kind of singing.  The Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” was delivered in an unusual arrangement, again, avoiding obvious comparisons.  Some of Berman’s numbers, such as “How About You?,” were attached to little skits, and in this instance illustrated the awkwardness of two people getting to know each other at a dating service. Berman is funny, and her mobile face and comfortable contact with her audience enhanced the humor.

Berman can invoke a soprano voice when she wants to, but in this show her songs were delivered in a much lower register, so that sudden shifts into high soprano for a couple of phrases were a little harsh and jolting.  Also, her sensitive version of “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was” suggested a layer of emotional vulnerability she kept under wraps in the humorous moments, perhaps hiding behind her whimsy.

Sean Harkness did more than accompany Berman on the guitar.  This excellent musician played solos, sang with Berman, and bantered with her. The show was directed by Susan Winter.

Deb is at the Metropolitan Room, Nov. 2 at 7 and at Don't Tell Mama Dec. 6 & 20 at 7.

Barbara Leavy
Cabaret Scenes
October 25, 2010
www.cabaretscenes.org