Sunday, October 6, 2019

Smooth Feinstein Meets Brassy Rocker


We all remember Michael Feinstein.  He’s the tuxedo-clad charming cabaret guy whose stock and trade is the Great American Songbook. 

He sings the songs in a sweet whisper and tells us everything there is to know about Berlin, Gershwin, Jerome Kern, and all the other great song writers of he 30s and 40s.

But can you make a career of that limited menu over a span of 30+years? Feinstein can. He is constantly evolving from his beginnings, and as an example he is coming to Wharton Center on Saturday for the fourth time with a new Vegas style show with edgy rock singer, Storm Large (yes, it’s her real name – almost). The show is called “Shaken and Stirred”. 


Feinstein told me, “I’ve done this kind of collaboration before.  I enjoy working with people I like.  I’ve toured with Rosemary Clooney, Alan Cumming, Nancy Wilson, David Hyde-Pierce and others.”

Many think of Storm Large as a brassy rock singer, but she has also done cabaret work, jazz and some regional Broadway musicals.  She has a much broader repertoire than Portland’s Pink Martini, the band she often sings with.

“Storm and I are very good friends who feel comfortable together”, says Feinstein. “She stretches me musically.  Storm is a lady with a large musical palette. In the show, we both have solo sections and several duets.  We’ve performed on and off together for two or three years.”

This show will feature a 7-piece band, and Feinstein says, “It’s very interactive with the audience.  Very in the moment.  We will take requests and we love to connect.  It’s a live experience.”

Feinstein doesn’t stand still.  He made his reputation with very popular PBS specials 20 years ago but has since purchased a high-end cabaret club in New York City (Feinsteins), bought another one in California, runs a summer academy for kids interested in the Great American Songbook and is the artistic director of The Palladium, a major performing arts center in Carmel (Indianapolis suburb) Indiana.

“I love learning about the other side of the entertainment business – it’s been valuable for me. I’m not a businessman, but I understand audience trends.  This teaches me the economics of it all.”

MICHAEL FEINSTEIN AND STORM LARGE: SHAKEN AND STIRRED.
WHARTON CENTER GREAT HALL, EAST LANSING.
TICKET INFO: WWW.WHARTON CENTER.COM







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