Mary Foster Conklin — Mirrors Revisited (50th Anniversary)

Mary Foster Conklin (l) and Yoshi Walki (r) Photo by Sue Matsuki

Urban Stages Winter Rhythms 2025
Review by Jack Quinn, Publisher

Some concerts clarify material you think you already know. Mary Foster Conklin’s “Mirrors Revisited,” marking the 50th anniversary of Peggy Lee’s 1975 art-album, did exactly that. Presented as part of Urban Stages’ Winter Rhythms Festival, the evening offered a rare chance to hear this song cycle live, pared down, and handled as narrative rather than nostalgia.

Urban Stages’ intimate space placed the musicians in clear view, reading less like a cabaret setup than a working ensemble. Pianist John DiMartino, seated at the Steinway on stage left, served as the anchor, alert and measured. Behind Conklin, Yoshi Waki’s upright bass provided warmth and ballast. To the right, Vince Cherico’s brushed percussion and Sara Caswell’s violin added definition and contrast without calling attention to themselves.

Vince Cherico, drums, in Mary Foster Conklin’s Mirrors Revisited performance at Urban Stages. Photo by Sue Matsuki

At center, Conklin approached the material without impersonation . She treated the songs as dramatic statements rather than repertory pieces, which allowed the album’s internal logic to surface. Entering Mirrors from the inside, the strength of the performance was her decision not to overinterpret the material. She let the songs’ construction do the work. The four-piece band played tightly throughout, with Caswell’s violin especially effective.

“Some Cats Know” unfolded with quiet confidence. “A Little White Ship” was shaped by Caswell’s violin lines, which carried the song forward without emphasis. In “The Case of M.J.,” Conklin narrowed her phrasing toward spoken observation, turning the piece into a concise psychological portrait. Without full orchestration, the material felt more exposed but also more coherent, revealing connections between the songs that can blur on the recording.

“Professor Hauptmann’s Performing Dogs,” often treated as a novelty, registered here as more direct. Cherico’s steady, metronomic pulse stripped away irony and reframed the song as a political parable. “Tango” followed with similar restraint, its tension kept controlled, allowing the underlying threat to remain. DiMartino’s arrangements respected the originals while giving the ensemble room to clarify the album’s literary sources—Tennessee Williams, Jean Giraudoux, Truman Capote—without underlining them.

By the time Conklin reached the bonus track “Is That All There Is?,” the room had gone still. Her handling of the song avoided resignation and stayed reflective, consistent with the tone established earlier in the set. The songs were not pushed toward conclusions. They were allowed to register.

Pianist John DiMartino, Yoshi Waki, Mary Foster Conlon, Vince Cherico, and Sara Caswell. Photo by Sue Matsuki

The evening also reflected Sue Matsuki’s curatorial approach at Winter Rhythms. Her programming favors context over trend and continuity over one-off booking. Presenting Mirrors Revisited this season felt measured—part recovery, part invitation. Winter Rhythms has become a reliable December fixture because Matsuki treats each concert as part of a larger whole, allowing veteran artists and exploratory work to share the same space without dilution.

The only drawback was attendance. The room deserved more witnesses. For those present, the evening offered something rarer than revival: perspective. Mirrors Revisited aimed for clarity rather than spectacle and achieved it.