Divamensch

I've fallen behind on my CDAs, my apologies. Here goes: Anthony Head, died at 72. We first saw him on a series of Nescafe commercials but I fell in love with him on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He also had a juicy recurring role on Ted Lasso. Here's a highlight reel of his work on Buffy. Is it time for me to watch that whole series again...? My brother Howard alerted me to the death of David Hockney, age 88. He was one of the most celebrated painters of the second half of the 20

Today I'm doing one of my song-in-review features only instead of different recordings of the same song I'm giving you a progression of the same song. The song is one of the great jazz standards, "Body and Soul," music by Johnny Green and lyrics by Edward Heyman, Robert Sour and Frank Eyton. I was shocked to go to Wikipedia and see that it was written for English actress Gertrude Lawrence, favorite of Noel Coward and creator of Anna in The King and I. Not who I expected to be

I'm branching off in a new direction for the 1974 Tonys. They had four hosts that year for the ceremony and they fit nicely into two pairs: Diva: Florence Henderson and Robert Preston Mensch: Cicely Tyson and Peter Falk I think Henderson and Preston would appreciate being called actors but let's face it, they have more of a show biz razzle dazzle quality than Tyson and Falk, who are serious straight legitimate actors through to their bones. Here's a clip from the opening of t

I had this song stuck in my head on Tuesday morning and thought I'd share it with all y'all. Gerry and the Pacemakers were another band of four guys from Liverpool, also managed by Brian Epstein and produced by George Martin. Like that other group that we all know. This song sounds like a number of early Beatles songs, not particularly distinguished but a well-made pop song. I think part of the reason Gerry and the Pacemakers didn't become the Beatles is that they're not as c

Julie Harris won the 1973 Tony for Best Actress in a Play for The Last of Mrs Lincoln. Who could be less of a diva than Mary Todd Freaking Lincoln? Are you familiar with I'll Eat You Last: A Chat with Sue Mengers? It's a one-woman play that Bette Midler did on Broadway in 2013, playing Hollywood superagent Sue Mengers. One of Mengers's first clients was Julie Harris. Harris was up for the role of Mary Todd Lincoln in a TV movie and the producers gave her a pass, saying they w

I heard Accord Treble Choir in concert on May 30, 2026. This is my third or fourth time hearing them and the concert was so amazing, I’m hearing every concert they do from now on. It had me asking myself: what is it that makes a great classical music concert? I see three primary elements: the quality of the music chosen, the level of the performance, and that most elusive element, thoughtful programming. Accord scores on all three points. The music had lots of variety, music

Years ago I was at Gracious Home on 62nd and Broadway (which has since closed) buying cleaning fluid for my humidifier. The store was on the ground floor and two floors below ground. I took the escalator down to the bottom floor and got what I needed, I'd been there before so I knew exactly where it was. I took the escalator back up to the ground floor, paid for it, and left. Why is this story worth sharing? I was totally captivated by the song that was playing on the radio i

The two leading ladies of Follies were both up for Best Actress in a Musical in 1972. Alexis Smith played the brittle, glamorous Phyllis - - Dorothy Collins played the tragic, frumpy Sally. Diva: Phyllis Mensch: Sally Alexis Smith was the winner.

I saw Can I Be Frank? at the SoHo Playhouse on May 24, 2026. It’s a one-man play written and performed by Morgan Bassichis. My friend Frank (no relation) saw it twice last year. He raved about it, said it was one of the best shows he’d seen that year. I was able to get a cheap ticket ($38) and am so glad I did. The show is based on and with original material by performance artist, comic, and singer/songwriter Frank Maya. I’d never heard of Maya, I imagine very few people have

Karen and I saw *Vanessa* at Heartbeat Opera on May 20, 2026. This was one of the cultural events I was most looking forward to this season, for three reasons. First, I've loved *Vanessa* since the 80s. I think it was one of the first opera recordings I bought on CD. An amusing side story: my friend Bill is an opera fanatic, even more fanatical than I. He and his wife had me over for a listening party sometime around 1989. I browsed through his shelves looking for a recording

I think lots of people my age (if they think of Della Reese at all) think of Della Reese as the costar of Touched By An Angel. I never watched that show - - I think of Reese as a singer. I am CRAZY (and I mean crazy) for her album Della Della Cha Cha Cha. "Daddy" is my favorite song on that album. I don't think I've heard anyone else sing it and frankly don't want to. The squeak she adds at the end of the word "daddy" sends me straight to the moon. This is also pretty amazing

The 1971 Tony awards were head-to-head between two shows in many of the musical categories - - No, No, Nannette versus Company. Diva: No, No, Nannette Mensch: Company No, No, Nannette is pure nostalgic escapism. Lots of color and feathers and tap dancing. Company still has plenty of pizzazz but it examines real issues confronting people in contemporary society.

I was saddened to read in The NY Times this morning that English soprano Felicity Lott had died at the age of 79. I was especially sad that I never got to hear her in person. She had a clean, clear voice and refined musical intelligence that was perfect for the Mozart, Strauss, and song repertoire. She had an early affinity for the French language and was particularly effective in French songs. Coincidentally I just watched a DVD of her performing Poulenc's one-woman opera La

Stephanie and I saw El Último Sueño de Frida y Diego on May 14, 2026. It's an opera with music by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Gabriela Lena Frank (she just won it a couple weeks ago!) on a libretto by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Nilo Cruz. The opera had its premiere in San Diego in 2022 and has also been produced at San Francisco Opera and Lyric Opera of Chicago. We didn't know it when we bought the tickets but we happened to see the Met premiere. The opera opens on

Stephanie and I saw Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin at the Met on May 12, 2026. I was in the chorus of this opera in college so I know it pretty well. I've always loved it, it's my second time seeing it at the Met. I saw this production (directed by Deborah Warner) when it was new in 2013 and I really didn't like it, I thought it was drab and dull. I decided to take my chances and see it again because Asmik Grigorian was playing the female lead - - I heard her as Lady Macbeth in

My brother Howard alerted me to the death of his beloved Claudine Longet, who died yesterday at the age of 84. She was a singer and actress at her peak in the 60s. Howard sent me a couple of CDs around the turn of the century, highlights from his vast Longet collection. I found something strangely unsettling about her singing and the bright, sparkly production vibe of her recordings. It reminded me of Twin Peaks - - the surface is so squeaky clean I felt there must be somethi

I discovered Playboy After Dark on YouTube a few years ago. I asked my brother Howard if he was familiar with that show, of course he was. He sent me to this clip of Deep Purple and Hef: That's fun but THIS is freaking seismic. Musically speaking - - the Hammond organ, oh yes. And the lead singer, what a voice on that dude. He sang the role of Jesus in the original album of Jesus Christ Superstar so he's no slouch. And visually speaking - - the big 70s hair, the classic Engli

Tammy Grimes won the 1970 Tony for Best Actress in a play for playing Amanda in Private Lives. Anything by Noel Coward is a Diva but especially that lady! One of the other nominees was the inevitable Helen Hayes as Aunt Veta in Harvey. I guess she's the leading lady in that show but the play is really about Elwood, played in this revival (as it was in the movie) by Jimmy Stewart. Miss Hayes is pictured with Mister Stewart in the photo below. Diva: Tammy Grimes in Private Live

Francesca and I went to Pub Choir at Webster Hall on May 11, 2026. It wasn't so much a performance as an experience. "Everybody can sing. Like, not well, but literally. Why should being average at something stop you from doing it!? It hasn’t yet… Singing is good for you, it’s EASY, and Pub Choir is here to show you how. Created and hosted by music witch, Astrid Jorgensen, Pub Choir is an ENTIRELY improvised, comedy music lesson. The show is a euphoric sensation that transfor

Jim, Michael, Dave, and I heard the New York Philharmonic and the Spanish Harlem Orchestra on May 10, 2026. The concert didn’t appear to be part of the NY Phil season, it seemed to be a pop-up concert at a Washington Heights venue, a project conceived of by the incoming artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel. We heard about it because Michael got an email from the venue, the United Palace. Jim, Michael, and I all live within five minutes of the United Palace - - I had walked past