Among the things you learn in the formative years of being a writer and editor are two truisms that probably apply for any art form. One is that less can often be more. The other is that when the editor becomes the writer, self-editing is not a good option; you should always have at least another pair of eyes helping you fine-tune your creation.

I thought about this as four talented and attractive women—Mimi Bessette, Andrea Frierson, Nikki MacCallum and Corrina Sowers-Adler—sang “One Day More,” the finale of their recent show Music and Lyrics by Her, a tribute to “incredible songs by incredible women who wrote music that spoke to us as individuals and as a group.” But as well as they delivered the Georgia Stitt tune, it was the 31st song (or partial song) composed by 30 different songwriters (only Susan Werner was represented more than once) in a show just a notch over an hour. By not adhering to the “less is more” theory, the whole of this show was unfortunately not greater than the sum of the parts.

Working off an idea from Sowers-Adler, the four women (all of whom have musical theater experience) self-produced, directed and music directed—probably to save on production costs—but hiring a director and musical director would have been money well spent. Music and Lyrics by Her was broken up into five thematic sections, including a ten-song set on relationships, nine songs paying homage to the singer’s favorites, and a three-song “Garden Medley” so named because three songs happened to refer to a garden or a flower.

Taking the stage wearing variations of a black evening dress, the ladies fittingly launched their three-song opening section with the upbeat “Make Your Own Party” (Zina Goldrich/Marcy Heisler). It was obvious from the start that these women were enjoying themselves and each other, and their voices blended very well together. The vocal arrangements may not have been at the level of, say, Marquee Five’s recent 8-Track Throwback show, but the harmonies were lovely throughout (and pianist John DiPinto did a superb job navigating the women through the multitude of songs). The problem with the show was the structure. With four women singing so many songs, many of which were group numbers, there wasn’t enough time for each singer to reveal her unique performing personality, especially for an audience that might never have seen them before.

For example, in her recent show, Matchmaker, Matchmaker, I’m Willing to Settle, Nikki MacCallum (who is like a singing Sarah Silverman) displayed a terrific comedic sensibility, but you wouldn’t really learn that based on this show. Andrea Frierson has a powerful, gospel-tinged voice, but wasn’t given enough to do here. When she offered just a portion of Phoebe Snow’s “Poetry Man,” and MacCallum sang a truncated version of Janis Ian’s “At 17,” one was left wanting more. As for the represented songwriters, the show would have been stronger had the focus been on the excellence of just a handful of songbooks. Unfortunately, this set had an everything-and-the-kitchen-sink quality to it.

All that said, there were some moments that allowed each singer to shine. Bessette’s rendition of Carol Hall’s “Jenny Rebecca” could make any parent cry. Mimi also knows her way around a country song, and with guitar in hand, she sounded positively Parton-esque on Marshall Chapman’s “Booze in the Blood,” and again on Dolly’s “Joleen,” with the women providing support on the choruses. Sowers-Adler displayed her soaring soprano on Susan Werner’s “In My Mother’s Garden,” and later dazzled with her vocal range and comic ability on Jeanine Tesori and Dick SCanlan’s “The Girl in 14-G,” which was part of her recent cabaret show Stories . . . A Cabaret at the Metropolitan Room. Frierson was mesmerizing on Werner’s “Movie of My Life,” totally inhabiting the mind of an average woman fantasizing about being immortalized on film and in print. During the “relationship” section, Andrea gave Tracy Chapman’s “Give Me One,” a wonderful blues edge, followed by MacCallum on Kate Miller-Heidke’s “Are You F*cking Kidding Me?” After hearing Nikki nail this number, and also Meredith Brooks’s “Bitch,” you definitely want to be her friend on Facebook.

The ladies conjured their best classic girl group sound of the night on Sara Bareilles’s “King of Anything,” sounding almost like Destiny’s Child in the process. But by the time they joined forces two-thirds into the show on “Let’s Give ‘Em Something to Talk About” (Shirley Eikhard) in their homage to songs of the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, I wanted more talk and intimacy and less music. Why did these women identify so strongly with the music and lyrics of these particular songs and the writers who composed them? Perhaps if they perform the show again with some nips and tucks, we’ll find out. Less will definitely be more.

Stephen Hanks
Cabaret Scenes
May 14, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org