Dreams really do come true! At least this one did for British songstress Melanie Stace!

Back home in England, as a young girl, she dreamed of singing on stage in a New York club. After only a year in New York, with green card in wallet, and extensive TV and musical theater experiences behind her in London, she’s realized her dream, appearing at the Metropolitan Room!

Her superb quartet started things off with an impressive instrumental of George and Ira Gershwin’s “Fascinating Rhythm.” Then, with the support of her musicians, who played as if they’ve all been together for years—Doug Oberhamer on piano, Greg Chudzik on bass, Eric Halvorson on drums and Tony Romano on guitar—the tall, slim, doe-eyed Ms. Stace took the stage, looking quite ravishing in a sleek spaghetti-strapped black sheath with a white feathered flower on her shoulder…things were getting fascinating indeed!

And then came the voice—incredibly powerful, often siren-like, extremely engaging and enormously expressive. Opening with “The Singer,” a relatively obscure, bright, upbeat song by Walter Marks, she followed it with a song of quiet yearning in James Taylor’s “Don’t Let Me Be Lonely Tonight.” Both quickly revealed her skills as an accomplished actress and dancer who starred in British national tour of Gypsy, Crazy for You and Aladdin.

In a beautiful, heartfelt tribute to the Gershwin brothers, she combined “How Long Has This Been Going On?” with “Embraceable You” and finally “Someone to Watch Over Me.” With original phrasing, and by adding an extra note here and there, she made these classics her own and demonstrated an authentic jazz sensibility as well.

Calling her set list “eclectic” and clearly able to sing in multiple genres, she explained that she got her start as a showgirl in Italy. She sang both the Italian and English versions of “Never, Never, Never,” a song made popular by the great pop singer, Mina. She then literally became that showgirl and gave a riveting rendition of Rodgers and Hart’s “Ten Cents a Dance.” By the end of the song, my feet, as well as my heart, ached!

Although at times her voice was capable of overwhelming the intimate atmosphere of the Metropolitan Room, during her “mirrored ball” segment, with her audience totally charmed and in the palm of her hand, she added a cozy, bluesy vibe to her set by combining Sammy Cahn/Axel Stordahl/ Paul Weston’s “I Should Care” with Vernon Duke and Ira Gershwin’s “I Can’t Get Started” to great effect. That pairing led seamlessly into a thrilling version of Billie Holiday’s trademark song, “God Bless the Child.”

And there was more! Her versatility takes her voice wherever the song needs her to go and, after a fun-filled rendition of “Stuff Like That There” and a pensive “1942,” written by country singer-songwriter, Byron Hill, she expressed her great affection for both Clooneys—Rosemary and George—with a gut-wrenching “Love, You Didn’t Do Right by Me.”

By the time she ended with “Birth of the Blues” the room was hers and she had established herself as a major contender for New York debut of the year!

Hopefully she will just keep on dreaming because my guess is many more of those dreams will be coming true very soon!

Melanie is Steppin’ Out one more time on July 24 at 9:30 pm at the Metropolitan Room.

Lynn DiMenna
Cabaret Scenes
July 14, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org