When people ask me to define “cabaret,” I usually say that at its base, it’s anything performed in a cabaret setting. Jason Danieley (a.k.a. Mr. Marin Mazzie) is a case in point – anywhere else his work with the acoustic band the Frontier Heroes would be bluegrass honky tonk. But when it’s presented at the Metropolitan Room, it’s “cabaret.”
Here’s what the NYTimes had to say: “The program demonstrated what might be called the Willie Nelson principle: that most songs can be done in any style, given the appropriate arrangement and instrumentation. Even histrionic arias like the Mario Lanza hit “Be My Love” and the grand Broadway showstoppers “What Kind of Fool Am I?” and “As Long as She Needs Me” were successfully bent in humbler directions by being sped up, harmonically simplified and given a steady rhythmic lilt. Through it all, Mr. Danieley remained true to himself, standing confidently astride the distance between rural and urban, classical and folk.”
