The opening number in Deborah Stone’s new show String Theory is the aptly named Here to Love You by Michael McDonald. As the song chosen to kick off this truly flawless show, it couldn’t be better choice. Although the song was first made famous by the Doobie Brothers in 1976, its lyrics couldn’t be timelier in such socially turbulent times: “Well, let me just go down as saying, that I’m glad to be here; Here with all the same pain and laughs everybody knows.”  If that wasn’t relevant enough, one of the other lyrics is “Some men think they’re born to be king…!”  Hmmm… (BTW, the audience truly LOVED that line…) Here to Love You is followed by the underheard Chaka Khan gem This Is My Night, which pretty much says it all in its name. Stone truly makes her version a rival to the original.  This was indeed Ms. Stone’s night.   In fact, Stone’s musical introduction says more about the healing power of live performance and the joys of performing in just those two songs than in other artists’ entire shows.  Deborah is a visually stunning performer with both a high level of confidence and a refreshing yet rare lack of vulnerability– except, one could argue, when she shares some of her enviably challenging notes during love songs.  As a singer, she boasts an impressively unblemished voice and an equally impressive range; Her lush take on the eternally favorite More Than You Know is probably the show’s finest example of that.  In her previous performances, Stone has musically explored several genres, whether it be the cool elegance of jazz and blues  or the timeless cultural appeal of ’60’s pop hits .  But just what defines String Theory, which delighted the wall-to-wall audience at The Green Room 42 on Thursday, February 20th? Directed by Lina Koutrakos, the show features a wide variety of songs which cross the lines of both genre and generation. As the singer reveals early on in the show, it is a true collaboration between herself and her musicians: Sean Harkness on guitar, Tom Hubbard on bass, and Daryl Kojak on piano. Stone herself picks up the guitar as well.

String Theory may be a lot of things, but one thing it’s definitely NOT is just another collection of familiar cabaret staples.  While there are a few familiar gems from our favorite composers through the years, Stone also honors her fellow contemporaries in the cabaret world with a few well-chosen musical standouts. One of these was Amanda McBroom’s Hot in Here, which was a bona fide audience-pleaser with its unabashed sexiness. She honors her friend and the show’s director Lina Koutrakos with Lina’s ultra-smooth and ultra-sexy Oh My My, a number that stands out with its vividly naked emotion. But perhaps the most provocative of Stone’s tributes to her friends was the phenomenal A Better Place by Tracy Stark, a song which can make the listener celebrate and cry for lost loved ones in equal doses.  In an evening full of impressive heights, this song was undoubtedly the emotional highlight of String Theory.

Just as Stone shows her appreciation for a wide variety of music, she also shows a wide variety of personas which she takes through that music. She can be funny, as she shows with the crowd-pleaser In These Shoes; she can play “Earth Mother” very well, yet she can just as easily be the sophisticated (but NEVER world-weary…) diva. She is sexy enough to sing about “waking up in last night’s makeup” or that “tell-tale after-love blush” with conviction… but also be smart enough to warn us, “Be careful of the good times!” (Any nightlife veteran will know EXACTLY what she means!)  Stone’s rapport with her band no less than fascinating to see and hear, especially for the true “jam” of Can’t Get Next to You.  

In attendance that night was a seemingly endless roster of Stone’s fellow peers in show business. This included
Tracy Stark, Gretchen Reinhagen, Jeff Harnar, Diane D’Angelo, Sue Matsuki, Susan Mack, Sidney Myer, Eileen Auwarter, Matthew Martin Ward, Geoff Stoner, Harry Althaus, Michael Rider. Jacqueline Draper, Meg Flather, Eva Steinberg, Kati Neiheisel, Gregory Toroian,  Laurie Krauz, Scott Barbarino, Goldie Dver, Jeanette Miller, Leslie Warren, and many others.

I won’t give too much away, but I WILL say that Deborah perfectly summarizes the vibe of the show, as well of her love for her audience, with the oft-redone classic by Vincent Youmans and Billy Rose, Without a Song:

“I’ll never know, what makes the rain to fall
I’ll never know, what makes the grass so tall
I only know, there ain’t no love at all
Without a song…”

Visit http://www.Deborah-Stone.com for more!

Photo by Takako Harkness.