Don’t Tell Mama, an establishment perfectly suited for an intimate theater experience, has a 42-year (Whoa!) legacy of spotlighting the finest talent– both new and established– in the New York City cabaret world.  That legacy is literally displayed on one iconic wall of the venue, via vintage black-and-white posters, reminding us of the decades’ worth of legendary performers who have graced the Don’t Tell Mama stage.  In the official press release for his new one-man, autobiographical show Life of the Party?, the charismatic singer Christopher Collette describes himself as “a relatively new face on the New York cabaret and nightclub scene” and “an old-school crooner”.  After watching the first performance of Collette’s three-show run on Saturday, November 30th, it’s clear that this is this is just the beginning of a singer’s long relationship with New York’s colorful cabaret and nightclub scene… and that “old-school” NEVER goes out of style. (More about that later…)

For starts, Collette has packed an excellent playlist into the show’s one-hour runtime, giving the audience a smart and inspired combination of some familiar, long-beloved classics and many crowd-pleasing musical gems just begging to be heard again, all chosen to augment his own personal story.  Bright Star (from Steve Martin and Edie Brickell), for example, becomes a song about starting life anew and following one’s creative destiny after a breakup.  Collette even throws the Miley Cyrus self-empowerment bop Flowers into his mix– and, as anyone who was present that night would agree, he imbued the song with elegance and class.  For cabaret aficionados (like me) who believe that they’ve heard every last song in the proverbial “cabaret closet”, Collette proves in his new show that there are always more great showtunes waiting to be heard again.  An example is the show’s funny, smart opener, Sugar & Booze, written by comedian Ana Gasteyer and Nicholas Williams.  This should-be new holiday classic really set the mood for the night; after all, December 1st (AKA the start of the Christmas shopping season…) was only a few hours away.  Equally as joyous is Make Your Own Party, by Zina Goldrich and Marcy Heisler.  The song is something of a spiritual musical cousin to Cass Elliot’s Make Your Own Kind of Music; it’s subtly joyous and quietly inspirational.  When pianist Michael Raab (Raab is also Musical Director.) and guitarist Ted Stafford joined the singer with background vocals, the song really went up to a new level.  

A little later in the show, Collette gave the audience what I’d consider one of the “secret weapons” of the cabaret world: Fred Barton’s Pour Me a Man. In contrast to Barton’s famously over-the-top renditions of the song (The last time I had heard the song, Barton was in full Miss-Gulch-from-The-Wizard of Oz drag…), Collette offered a more, shall we say, “gentlemanly” take, even though the song’s deliciously dirty lyrics (“What good is whiskey? I’ve been through the best in the bar; whiskey ain’t got whiskers wrapped around a cigar!”) kept the audience laughing and gasping at the same time. Of course, a cabaret-savvy audience will recognize many of Collette’s selections, such as I’m Throwing a Ball Tonight by Cole Porter.  The song, which originally appeared in the 1940 musical Panama Hattie, made some references which may be lost on the “kiddies” nowadays (“I asked the Lunts; And Grace Moore, Bert Lahr, Mae West, and Father Divine; I invited Gracie Allen…And of course I asked Fanny Brice!”)  Collette’s version kept the rambunctious spirit of the original but updates the song’s guest list to include a “Who’s Who” of modern celebrities, from Sutton Foster to Barbra Streisand to Ms. Gaga.  He even threw in an oh-so-timely reference to the witchy women of Wicked. 

Despite the show’s title, Life of the Party? isn’t solely about… well, partying. When singing about the irreplicable feeling of a new relationship, Collette chose The Carpenters’ We’ve Only Just Begun.  My marker of how well an artist performs this song is how grandly they can deliver the crescendo of the lyric “Talking it over just the two of us. Working together day to day…!” It would seem to be pointless for many artists to try to replicate Karen’s irreplaceable voice for this song, especially for male artists. Yet, as with every other song, Collette truly makes it his own. Sadly, that aforementioned new relationship, as the audience learned, didn’t lead to a happy ending: Despite the lovely setting of palm trees, sunny skies, and mountains in Palm Springs, the seemingly utopian vibe of California Dreaming sadly gave way to loneliness (Out Here on My Own), forbidden desire (It’s Alright With Me), separation (You Can Have the TV), and post-breakup grief (Will the Sun Ever Shine Again).  Thankfully for both Mr. Collette and the cabaret world at large, Collette eventually moved back East to New York City, which he realized was his forever home.  As with every other of Colette’s choices, the singer picked the perfect anthem for this segment of his life story– yet another unearthed musical bauble, West End Avenue from Stephen Schwartz’ 1974 The Magic Show.  Out of the seemingly infinite amount of songs inspired by The Big Apple, it’s almost astonishing now well the lyrics (Again, this song was written 50 years ago) hold up: “You pack up your boots and blue jeans and your records and your pride;And you tell yourself you ventured and you tell yourself you tried; So it’s back to the surly doormen and the canopies you go,; And the buses seem to chuckle and the towers seem to crow ‘We told you so.’”

Of course, the song selections, personal backstory of the artist, or the singer’s charming “old school” (ie classy) persona would mean nothing without talent. And Christopher indeed has talent. He knows his own range, and he expertly stays within that range. I didn’t hear one missed note or strained lyric throughout his entire delivery.

The final segment of Life of the Party? was a musical tribute to his audience and to the cabaret scene at large. (Yes, some people are indeed given a shout-out!) I won’t give too much away, but I will say that it was a fine way to send off the crowd at Don’t Tell Mama. Be sure to RSVP to this “Party”!

Christopher Collette’s Life of the Party? continues on Thursday, December 5 at 7:00 PM and Sunday, December 8 at 5 PM. Award-winning cabaret artist Michael Kirk Lane directs; Philadelphia-based Michael Raab serves as musical director; and guitarist Ted Stafford rounds out the musical creative team.  There is a $20 music charge ($15 for MAC members) and a $20 food and beverage minimum (must include 2 drinks) per person, cash only. Don’t Tell Mama is located at 343 W 46th Street, New York City, 10036.