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Tony Bennett

Sue Matsuki and the Heartbeat of Winter Rhythms

November 17, 2025

At Winter Rhythms, the lights warm, the lobby hums, and Sue Matsuki runs Urban Stages with the grace of a mentor and the stamina of a producer who loves every beat of the work. More than 150 artists gather for 11 nights of music, community, cookies, and the unmistakable generosity that defines this festival. [more]

David Cassidy … Some Questions Answered

July 22, 2025

Some 30 years have passed since I ghost-wrote David Cassidy’s autobiography, “C’Mon Get Happy.”  The book continues to sell, and I continue to get questions from David’s fans.  If I so much as mention him on Facebook—perhaps offering a toast to his memory on his birthday—people will message me with inquiries.  I tried to answer some of the questions I got with a lengthy article that I wrote for this publication five years ago, “David Cassidy: Behind the Scenes.”  But I still continue to get all sorts of questions. [more]

ON THE TOWN… WITH SWEENEY TODD… AND A SPIRITED SPELLING BEE…

March 18, 2025

Once or twice a year, I like to recognize exceptional work at the high-school or college level. The students of New York’s Frank Sinatra School of the Arts have outdone themselves with a masterly production of Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd.” If you can get a ticket, go! It’s brilliant theater. And Connecticut’s Staples Players’ presentation of “Spelling Bee”--with some charming artists-to-watch and one extremely special surprise guest—had me beaming. [more]

ON THE TOWN WITH CHIP DEFFAA… AT CONCERTS HONORING BETTY BUCKLEY AND TONY BENNETT

November 9, 2023

This fall, I saw two of the most rewarding tribute-type concerts I’ve seen in recent years—one a glittering (if overlong), star-filled salute to “the Voice of Broadway,” Betty Buckley; the other a sincere tribute to the late master song-stylist Tony Bennett by young students from the school that he founded (and told me he was so proud of). Both of these very different events gave me some moments I’ll never forget…. [more]

REMEMBERING TONY BENNETT

July 25, 2023

He sang all his life. When New York's Triborough Bridge (known today as the RFK Bridge) opened in May of 1936, Tony Bennett--then a boy singer from Astoria who loved the work of Al Jolson and Eddie Cantor--sang at the opening. Mayor Laguardia, he recalled, patted him on his head! [more]

On the Town with Chip Deffaa: “Rent” at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts: An Appreciation

April 7, 2022

This production was an ensemble success—which is what Jonathan Larson was hoping to achieve—so I’d like to mention every member of the company.   Not just the leads, whom I very much enjoyed  (Logan Spaleta,  Brendan Dugan,  Lily Resto-Solano as an appealingly amiable “Mimi Marquez,” Justin Nicot as the insouciant “Angel Dumont Schunard,” Monica Malas making the most of  the role of “Maureen Johnson,” Tsehai Marson as her frustrated girlfriend “Joanne Jefferson,”  Luke Studley Roberts as “Tom Collins” (who falls for “Angel”), and Matthew Macneal as landlord “Benjamin Coffin III”), but every member of the ensemble: Olivia Summer, Nicholas Martell, Miekayla Pierre, Ben Gluck, Sophia Longmuir, Gabriel Paredes, Isaac Wilson, Isabella Soleil Smith, Daniel Stowe, Jaiden Torres, Monica Malas, Ellistair Perry, Zune Misrra-Stone. [more]

BAAND Together Dance Festival at Lincoln Center

August 20, 2021

It’s unlikely that New York City will ever see these five troupes sharing a stage again.  This was a festive occasion despite being uneven in tone and not particularly representative of at least two of the large dance companies. Pretentious program notes were fortunately only available online so that they couldn’t mar the visceral enjoyment of several of these works in Program One. ... Each evening of the BAAND Together Dance Festival will feature a different program with contributions from each of these five wonderful dance companies. [more]

TheaterScene.net Cabaret Honors: A First Annual List

February 23, 2015

The eclectic world of cabaret is unique in the entertainment industry. It allows artists' to connect with an audience in an intimate setting. Today, the clubs are ripe with new, rising and mature talents and the beginners who want to make it. But, who are today's torchbearers? Who will make their mark? And, who will take cabaret into its next phase? Time will tell. [more]