The year was 1911, one century ago, the birth year of Ginger Rogers, Lucille Ball and Roy Rogers, recording star Buddy Clark, and the centennial of the birth of pianist/composer Franz Liszt. They were among music-makers celebrated in a cabaret evening organized and hosted by the effervescent KT Sullivan and presented in the Metropolitan Room. “It was a very good year,” KT noted, quoting Ervin Drake’s song, as Drake, himself only eight years shy of a century, beamed from a booth.

The show was virtually non-stop music. It opened with KT, in soubrette style, singing Irving Berlin’s “Everybody’s Doin’ It,” written in the 1911-1912 period. She followed with her lovely rendition of Shakespeare’s verse, “Take O take those lips away,” set to music by Dick Hyman. Why that song in the show? It had been recorded by Maxine Sullivan, who was born in 1911 – a factoid uncovered by the evening’s musical director, Jon Weber.

The entry curtain parted and in strolled Craig Rubano, unmiked, singing “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” ending onstage in a duet with KT. Why that song? Its music was written by 1911-born Walter Kent. (The lyrics are by Kim Gannon ). Craig was a key researcher of much of the information swirling through the evening.

Nancy McGraw took the stage to pay charming tribute to Ginger Rogers with such songs as “Pick Yourself Up” and “Piccolino” (Irving Berlin), “We Can’t Get Along” (Yip Harburg/Johnny Green) and “But Not For Me” (the Gershwins).  Following her was the ever-dapper Gregory Moore, celebrating singer Buddy Clark’s career with crooning renditions of several of his hits. Among them was “Linda,” written by Jack Lawrence. (Revealed Gregory: the real-life Linda was, at the time, the one-year-old daughter of Lawrence’s attorney, Lee Eastman; Linda Eastman grew up to marryBeatle Paul McCartney.) Backing Gregory were Weber plus the gifted, jazz-playing Anderson Twins, Peter and Will, on saxophone and clarinet.

1911 was also the birth year of Frank DeVol, composer of the theme music for many television shows, including My Three Sons, Gidget and The Brady Bunch, all offered in a piano medley by Weber. Up next: pert Jenna Esposito, with a musical tribute to Lucille Ball, including “Hey, Look Me Over,” from Ball’s Broadway show, Wildcat.

The world of classical music was represented by works of Franz Liszt. The performer: Moscow-born pianist Konstantin Soukhovetski, playing Richard Wagner’s “Liebestod” (which Liszt had transcribed) and the “Lost Love Duet” from Richard Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier, which had its premier in – yes –1911.

The final act was a show within the show: a multi-song tribute to Roy Rogers by Tim Sullivan. Numbers included Rogers’ theme song, “Happy Trails” (complete with yodeling), “Red River Valley” (in a duet with sister KT) and “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” with the audience chiming in enthusiastically to represent the snapping of a cowboy whip.

The curtain came down on 1911 (after two hours) with a rousing rendition, by all within singing distance, of “Alexander’s Ragtime Band,” Irving Berlin’s first big hit, written in… all together now… 1911.

Peter Haas
Cabaret Scenes
November 11, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org