West 43^rd Street overflowed with Cole Porter’s songs on the anniversary of his birth. Directly across the street from the theatre housing the revival of his 1934 hit, Anything Goes, a one-night-only concert at The Town Hall ended with that show’s title song. Andrea Marcovicci and Jeff Harnar, who’ve previously plowed prolific Porter’s fields, sang solo and, more briefly, in tandem. Porter means endless cleverness and/or passion, both polished. The two-act night was a glut. Classics dominated.

Miss Marcovicci, clearly relishing romanticism, rich words and the histories (she called the writing “preordained”), became the oeuvre’s advocate. Alas, if her work were a trip on a ship, you could say not all was smooth sailing, the vessel occasionally began to pitch (if you get my “drift”) with some rough waters, navigated by sometimes switching between singing, then suddenly speaking phrases. But, at her best, she brings focus, understanding, depth and integrity, with appropriate elegance. Though she generously praised violinist wunderkind Aaron Weinstein (deservedly so), her joyful sashaying/skirt-swirling/smiling at the audience as he played upstaged him.

The Harnar hallmark: charm and gentlemanly joy; his deft deliveries of the word play with the many, many choruses of “It’s De-lovely” and “Can-Can” can not be faulted. He even added extra Porter-esque lines for present-day name-dropping—Lady Gaga, et. al. The singers duetted playfully, especially in “Well, Did You Evah!”  Longtime his-and-hers Musical Director/ pianists Shelly Markham (hers) and Alex Rybeck (his) were in fine form with classy, bright, easy-to-love settings.

Rob Lester
Cabaret Scenes
June 9, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org