World of Cabaret

THE WORLD OF CABARET, ENTERTAINMENT AND DIVAS FROM THE 18th CENTURY TO PRESENT

THE GREATEST SINGERS OF ALL TIME. WHO IS AND WHO IS NOT A TRUE CABARET SINGER IN THE UNITED STATES?

By Maximillien de Lafayette

Photos from L to R: 1. Susan Egan, Kevin Kline, and Kerry Butler. (Photo by Aubrey Reuben). 2 The flashy dashy Rhe De Ville, supreme dame of elegance of the American cabaret.

CABARET! CABARET! That's is the answer, not the question! And the answer was there all the time, since the days and nights of La Goulue, Mistinguet, Josephine Baker, Juliette Greco, Barbara, Jane Avril, Rita Hayworth, Marlene Dietrich, Line Renaud, Edith Piaf, Melina Mercouri, Nina Simone, Gabriella Ferri and Eartha Kitt.

But the cabaret of today gives us so many different and convergent answers. The cabaret of Susan Eagan's Broadway spotlights, neon flashes and extravaganza is so different from Aristide Bruant's Paris intellectual-vagabond "cabaret-boite". The Cabaret of the cultured Grande Dame Paulette Attie is the reverse reflection of Mistinguet's Moulin Rouge and the Trocadero cabaret gigolo panache. The classy Anna Bergman, the aristocrat vedette and stunning Rhe De Ville's cabaret acts are the contra definition of the 1930's Le Chat Noir and the 1920's Le Nean Cabaret of the hustlers, self-proclaimed philosophers and scary faces and characters of the early Parisian cabarets. Andrea Marcovicci's elegant and academically refined cabaret style is so different from the nostalgically explosive cache of Gabriella Ferri and the cabaret noir of the sensational Melina Mercouri.

STARS OF THE YEARS 1920’s . "Les Grandes Dames de La Chanson".

Yvonne George Gaby Deslys Arletty

CABARET: THE GREATEST SINGERS OF ALL TIME

WHO ARE THOSE FEMME FATALES?

Yet, all those cabaret divas share many things in common: The Cabaret's drama, the femme fatale persona, the whispers in the dark, the personification of the shadows of the sacred and the damned, the mystique and the risqué on 12 foot by 10 foot human arena called plateau du cabaret: THE STAGE! Despite the diversity and fanatic separation between the kinds and categories of their fans at all levels, the cabaret style of those divas metamorphosed, evolved or rebelled throughout times en vertue of almost similar preferences, tastes, choices and emotional-social-educational-cultural-political states and needs. Those who listen to Gabriella Ferri care less about Barbara Cooke. And those who adore Edith Piaf might not enjoy the captivating performance of Chita Rivera or Cleo Laine. CABARET IS A STATE OF MIND. We go to cabaret to forget or to remember. Asking a famous gigolo and self proclaimed Parisian philosopher: " Do you love cabaret?", the man replied: "You bet your derriere I love cabaret. I go there to forget." "Forget what?", asked the Paris Match reporter. And the man with a satiric smile replied: " I just remember, I have already forgotten what I forgot." He meant by that, the cabaret chanteuses make his head spin in all directions. And there is nothing else to forget or to remember except this "Femme Fatale" on stage and the French bottle of Muscadet on the table! Yes, cabaret is pure magic and the cabaret chanteuse is a poisonous elixir! And we love it! There are more than 350,000 cabaret singers in the world belonging to 13 different kinds of cabaret, ranging from the grotesque to the sublime, and from the Mata Hari genre to the Piaf's style. But who are those femme fatales? Those divas of world cabaret? Don't go far away, mon cher ami. Some of the best in the business are on this page. Look at them!

Germany: Ute Lemper. United Kingdom: Barb Jungr, Kate Westbrook. Greece: Marinella. Italy: Gabriella Ferri. Canada: Nicole Martel, Lyne Tremblay. United States: Susan Eagan, Amanda McBroom, Andrea Marcovicci, Anna Bergman, Cleo Laine, Betty Buckley, Chita Rivera, Eartha Kitt, Barbara Cook, Bernadette Peters, Nancy Kelly, Liza Minelli, Marisa Berenson, Paulette Attie, Rhe De Ville, Debbie de Coudreaux . France: Caroline Nin, Raquel Bitton, Simone Marchand. Middle/Near East: Sabah.

Photos from L to R: DEBBIE de COUDREAUX , MONIQUE , BETTY BUCKLEY, CAROLINE NIN

Ute Lemper

SABAH LIZA MINELLI RHE DE VILLE PAULETTE ATTIE ANNA BERGMAN UTE LEMPER

PORTRAIT OF A CABARET DIVA

The prototype of an authentic cabaret chanteuse.

Photos: Zizi Jeanmaire, singer, ballerina, poetess, philosopher, activist, producer, writer, designer, cinema star, stage sensation, music hall queen. Jeanmaire symbolized the spirit and essence of a perfectly crafted romantic-intellectual-artistic cabaret star. Photo #4 : French dancer and choreographer Roland Petit and his legendary wife, Zizi Jeanmaire. Listen to Jeanmaire: D'aventure En Aventure

The Yanks love music. The Americans love cabaret.

The colorful characters and wizards of the nights love Divas. Would we ever see real cabaret if we hit Broadway or venture in cosmopolitan cities in the United States? Affirmative. America has become the world stage for cabaret. The fascinating aspect of this American art and musical platform resides in the variety of styles of the artists, rather than in the rendered repertoire. Back in the 20s, 30s and 40s, France defined the prototype of a cabaret vedette and the persona of a cabaret chanteuse. In the United States, categorizing and indexing chanteuses is a hard task. For, each American star and starlet, the aura of her presence on stage and artistic quality are defined by a personal charisma and powerful artistic performance, rather than by an artistic quality. It would be impossible to establish an analogy between traditional French cabaret artistes such as Mistinguet and the popular American counterparts. The French artiste crafts her art with personal elegance, a dramatic stage presence and intimate dialogue. The contemporary American cabaret artist rebels against the established dogmatic cabaret of the golden era of Paris and Berlin. A tour d'horizon of what is happening on the American musical scene reveals a divergence and convergence of the character, persona and style of a wide variety of chanteuses. Although, they copy each other in a singular and innovative way, their individual cache remains distinct and seal-stamped. greater difficulty arises in defining the persona and cache of an American cabaret chanteuse. Are there established standards and criteria for a "CABARET CHANTEUSE", "CABARET DIVA" or "CABARET ARTISTE" in the United States? Absolutely not! Each chanteuse brings to stage her own world, attitude, feelings, concept and a particular style. This is why there is NO "conform or mono-form cabaret" style in the United States. Each chanteuse is her own cabaret. Some succeeded the moment they faced the audience, while many others blessed with a much more developed and higher talent succumbed miserably, for they failed to either intimately or dramatically create a warm presence and a rapport with the audience which could reach the heart of the listeners and go beyond the wild fantasies and imagination of the public. Daring is another image a cabaret chanteuse should possess. In many instances, "daring" is an ammunition and a great asset. The daring spirit of Mistinguet transformed this almost mediocre singer and dancer into the world's greatest cabaret star, almost overnight! Josephine Baker cleverly took notice of that and reduplicated the success of her rival Mistinguet on a much wider and greater dimension. Therefore, should we ask the cabaret chanteuses in America to be "more daring"? But what a "cabaret's daring attitude" is? This attitude cannot be defined. It is not freely displayed in a department store . It is exclusively found in the intellect and " inner world" of the performer. Broadway is certainly a stimulus for artistic bravery, however, its flashy sets and neon buzzing deprive the cabaret artiste from conveying an ambiance of intimacy usually and exclusively found in the smoky-sensual setting of a cozy cabaret room. European cabarets remain sensually warm. American cabarets metamorphosed into a platform. Quite a difference, indeed. What it would take an American cabaret chanteuse to become sensually warm? Nothing, for the sincerely and fully devoted American cabaret artistes have already succeeded in rivaling the French and the world's most established cabaret artistes. Regardless of the era and style, the old wave and the new one, the preceding and continuing generations of performers, and the contemporary American cabaret singers brought this form of entertainment to a newer, innovative, more animated and certainly more sophisticated level of artistic performance. Recognition and accolades should be given to superb artists such as Cindy Benson, Rhe De Ville, Andrea Marcovicci, Amanda McBroom, Anna Bergman, Debbie de Coudreaux, Anne Kerry Ford, Bernadette Peters, Paulette Attie, Simone Marchand, Pam Bricker, Lizabeth Flood, Rebecca Spencer, Sally Martin, Julie Wilson, Barbara Cook, Raquel Bitton, Nancy Kelly, to name a few. The American cabaret is well and alive.

Photos for L to R: Widely admired American stars, Amanda McBroom, Anna Bergman, Karen Akers, Anne Kerry Ford.

Cabaret chanteuses in Europe were born "Cabaret Chanteuse". They define and adopt a permanent and ever-lasting style from their very first debut. In other words, you will not find two similar Edith Piaf or Catherine Sauvage in France. Per contra, an infinitesimal reproductive number of cabaret chanteuses styles are copied and re-invented everyday in the United States. Call it artistic re-productivity or creativity, if you wish, but to be politically correct, such creativity is in fact "copiage". However, nowadays, a bouquet of chanteuses in the United States illustrates their talent with an extreme originality which found fertile soil in creativity-conformity. Consequently, for a cabaret chanteuse in America to become popular and widely recognized, she must remain faithful to the cabaret traditional roots, yet, at the same time, project herself as totally different from others; different in her appearance, looks, wardrobe, musical arrangements, repertoire selection, packaging, the locations and spots where she will be performing, the flair and tempo of the music beat and delivery, the choice of her pianist, the lighting and "illuminage" she requires on stage, her willingness to freely incorporating French songs and ballades or absolute tendency to exclusively sing songs written by American composers, etc...Ahead of her, a multitude of factors and decisions are to be considered. One bad decision and she will exit from the backstage door for good.

CABARET: THE GREATEST SINGERS OF ALL TIME

WHO ARE THOSE FEMME FATALES?

Photos from L to R: Josephine Baker, circa 1927, Mistinguet, the queen of the French cabaret, circa 1935.

So many readers in the United Kingdom asked me who is the best cabaret entertainer in the United States? And I replied: "There is no such thing as the best cabaret entertainer!" For the world of cabaret is immense and so is its personification on stage. Some artists are singers, purely singers with occasional appearances on the screen or on the tube. They are typically cabaret singers, such as Amanda McBroom, Andrea Marcovicci, Anna Bergman, Caroline Nin et al. Others are cabaret concert artists like Barbara Cook, Kate Westbrook, Barb Jungr, Lorna Dallas and Anne Kerry Ford. And few other superb cabaret entertainers are simultaneously all of the above, such as Susan Egan, Bernadette Peters, Lorraine Serabian and Liza Minelli. And of course, there is a very special league which outcasts all the others. They are the legends and 100% authentic CABARET super divas and goddesses like Gabriella Ferri, Ute Lemper, Marlene Dietrich, Juliette Greco, Barbara, Edith Piaf (to certain extent, because she was much more than a cabaret chanteuse). Also, we have the tragi-comic theater-cabaret leads like Cindy Benson, or traditional cabaret concert artists who once upon a time shined brilliantly on the big screen like Anne Kerry Ford and Julie Andrews.

Photo: Gina Gershon.

EACH CHANTEUSE IS DIFFERENT.

Another national/international group of cabaret divas remained "untouchable artists" like Eartha Kitt, Rita Moreno, Chita Rivera, Cleo Laine, Paulette Attie, Josephine Baker, Sabah, Amalia Rodriguez, Sarita Montiel, Mistinguet, Marinella, Mina, etc... Do you need more styles and more different cabaret goddesses with distinct style and unique persona? Revere these: Karen Akers, the great Betty Buckley, the one and only Raquel Bitton, the larger than life, Nicole Martel and the magnificent Simone Marchand who worked for me for approximately 6 consecutive years at my boite-floorshow cabaret "Le Marquis de Rochambeau" in the United States. Each one of them has a very singular theatrical aura and a well-defined cache. But of course, many of them share a common denominator, once their performances have been crafted and scenario-graphed by commercial and extravaganza Broadway productions. In that category, I would not hesitate to call upon Susan Egan, Bernadette Peters, Liza Minelli et al. And how about the cabaret-show of the flashy-dashy Broadway productions with a lot of skin on stage? Some big names pop up before my eyes, vedettes like Deborah Gibson, Jane Leeves, Gina Gershon, etc...In other words, different strokes for different folks and vice-versa. There is no way you can establish an analogy between Nina Simone and Bette Middler or compare the super duper Marisa Berenson with Brookes Shield!

HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE A CABARET CHANTEUSE?

According to the American cabaret goers, critics and cabaret artists, Edith Piaf is the godmother of cabaret. The ultimate figure of a super CABARET DIVA. How wrong they are! For, Piaf was never considered by the French as a cabaret singer! Besides, she never performed on stage as a cabaret singer or as a cabaret-entertainer. Also, she never starred in any musical or a cabaret picture. Would you still call her a cabaret star, the same way you call Susan Egan, Julie Andrews and Liza Minelli? How would you define the stardom status and category of a cabaret star in the United States? Does she have to star in a major cabaret motion picture, take the lead of a cabaret show on Broadway, perform at Pizza on the Park or at Le Moulin Rouge? Or it would be enough to sing intimate cabaret songs in a cozy and "intimate" small cabaret-night club room? Does the repertoire of songs chosen by a cabaret singer establish the definition and characteristic nature of an "Authentic Cabaret"? Who is more of a cabaret songwriter, Cole Porter, Weill, Aragon, Prevert, Jean Cocteau, or Jacques Brel, Gilbert Becaud, Jean Constantin? Would you consider Berlin, Joplin, Sondheim, Armstrong, Al Jolson, Louis Prima as authentic as those French cabaret songwriters and composers who wrote the songs of Piaf, Patachou, Mistinguet, Josephine Baker, Line Renauld, Jocelyne Jocya, Juliette Greco, Catherine Sauvage, Maurice Chevalier, Charles Trenet, Damia, and Lucienne Boyer? Especially, when it comes to the true essence and spirit of a traditional Parisian Cabaret, or a 1920's or 1930's Berlin original Kabaret? I doubt it.

WHO WAS OR IS THE BEST SALLY BOWLES? WHO IS THE BEST CABARET STAR IN AMERICA?

THE CABARET SONGWRITERS: DIVERGENCE AND CONVERGENCE

The truth is, American cabaret songwriters have absolutely nothing in common with the traditional German and French counterparts!! Particularly, the contemporary American cabaret writers, composers and songwriters. In France and Germany, the pioneers and creators of the early Cabaret music, wrote CABARET MUSIC for CABARET BOITES, meaning small nightclubs, cafe-cabarets' revues. The American counterparts write big time music for big time flashy dashy cabaret productions for huge stages and elaborate productions. Bigger is better in America! The difference is enormous, like day and night. The American modern cabaret world has lost its romanticism, lyricism and intimacy. And these luxurious and extravagant American cabaret (Broadway) productions killed the mystique, the risqué, the delightful macabre-film-noire aura, the cabaret noire genre of the early era of Montmartre and Rue Le Pic . Consequently, this new kind of lavished productions has redefined the character of cabaret in America, imposed and dictated upon truthfully honest cabaret artists in the United States, new rules "governing" makeup, wardrobe, choreography, decor, stage set, stage lighting techniques, musical arrangements, acting style, accents, sensuality-sexuality physiognomic projection and contours. The list is endless. Fortunately, we still have a great number of authentic artists who prefer to perform in a cozy and charming small boites and clubs which convey an ambiance of intimacy and romance. Amid all these new musical and theatrical changes and distortions, it has become quasi impossible to define the cache and persona of an AUTHENTIC AMERICAN CABARET "ARTISTE"!! Therefore, comparing one American cabaret artist with another cabaret artiste, is like the French say "Chercher midi a quatorzes heures!", meaning verbatim "looking right now for a time which has already elapsed hours ago or searching for a time yet to come! In other words, this is an impossibility. Please excuse my French!

Photos: The legendary Nina Simone, composer, arranger, writer, activist, thinker, cabaret and concert superstar, songwriter, world-traveler, Doctor Honoris Causa, humanist, philanthropist. She was adored in Europe. The French worshiped her!

Photos: From L to R: #1.Lorna Dallas and Queen Mum in the UK. #2. Lorna with Al Hirschfeld during her Carnegie Hall debut. Dame Dallas is highly admired in Europe, and particularly in the United Kingdom. The Europeans "see" in her, the perfect lady of entertainment. Quite a contrast with Britney Spears and Janet Jackson!

SOPHISTICATION OF THE CABARET SINGER

In my humble opinion, and contrary to the common belief, a CABARET SINGER IS MORE SOPHISTICATED AND TRUTHFUL THAN AN OPERA PRIMA DONNNNNNNNA!! For, cabaret is the sincere echo and vibes of human drama, tragedy, mishaps, truthfulness, adventures, expectations, escapades, dreams, fantasies, visions, the sacred and the damned, the sublime and the grotesque of each single second of our lives. The cabaret singer is more than an artist singing romantic songs on stage, leaning against a piano or just sitting on a chair at one corner of the stage dramatically choreographed and positioned. A cabaret singer is a healer, a therapist, a raconteur, a story-teller, a philosopher, a challenger, a confident, a friend, a poet, and a part of the night with all its secrets, magic, mysteries, lights and shadows. So, if you want to decide or select which American cabaret artiste is better than another, you probably should take into consideration all of the above and rethink priorities and visions in your life, in case, you feel that cabaret emanates a part of your life on stage. Honestly, we don't know WHO IS THE BEST SALLY BOWLES? WHO IS THE BEST CABARET STAR IN AMERICA?!

However, those magnificent artistes who made their mark on the American and World Cabaret are difficult to forget. Among the most illustrious and classiest stars who positively influenced and enriched the American Cabaret were or still are:

Marlene Dietrich Julie Wilson Lena Horne Kaye Ballard

Ma Reiney Anita O'Day Maragret Whiting Mary Cleere Haran.

STARS TO REMEMBER

Photos from L to R: Lotte Trouble, Elaine Webster.

And now, let's put everything in perspective. A case study would be very a propos. Let's take for example the "ultra-modern" Cabaret theater and musicals vedettes who starred in the Broadway's Cabaret show and try to depict their persona. First, who are they? Many artists took the lead, played Sally Bowles and shined in a modern Cabaret production,. But who are the ones we are most likely to be remembered? I have some names for you: Natasha Richardson, Marisa Berenson, Susan Egan, Deborah Gibson, Jane Leeves, Molly Ringwald, Katie Finneran, Lea Thompson, Mary McCormack, Kate Shindle, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Sally Martin, Joely Fisher, Amy Downing. And of course CABARET IS THE cabaret show of all time in America.

INTERNATIONAL POLLS: AMERICA'S BEST CABARET SINGERS-ARTISTS-ENTERTAINERS

WORLD ART CELEBRITIES JOURNAL conducted in 2003 an international poll on America’s All Time Best Cabaret, Concert, Recital, Musical and Torch Female Singers. Here are the results : #1 Cher, #2 Madonna, #3 Barbra Streisand, #4 Doris Day, #5 Liza Minelli, #6 Dianna Ross, #7 Bette Midler, #8 Peggy Lee, #9 Barbara Cook, #10 Debbie Reynolds, #11 Linda Ronstadt, #12 Vicky Carr, #13 Mary Rose Clooney, #14 Gloria Estefan, #15 Ann Margret, #16 Rita Moreno, #17 Julie London, #18 Joan Baez, #19 Judy Collins, #20 Diane Worwick, #21 Lena Horne, #22 Keely Smith, #23 Nina Simone, #24 Ertha Kitt, #25 Bernadette Peters.

Lorraine Serabian Deborah Gibson Claire Martin Andréa Marcovicci Julie Wilson

WORLD ART CELEBRITIES JOURNAL 2003 International Poll on Cabaret Best Performers/Entertainers/Players of the Year. Here are the results: #1.Amanda McBroom, #2.Andrea Marcovicci, #3.Anna Bergman, #4.Anne Kerry Ford, #5.Simone Marchand, #6.Julie Wilson, #7. Lorraine Serabian, #8.Kim Zimmer, #9.Claire Martin, #10.Deborah Gibson, #11.Lorna Dallas, #12.Pam Bricker, #13.Julie Wilson, #14.Naomi Newman, #15.Marilyn Scott, #16.Julie Budd, #17.Rebecca Kilgore, #18.Linda Purl, #19.Stacey Kent, #20.Lisa Lauren, #21.Claire Martin, #22.Patricia O’Callaghan, #23.Sophia Bilidis, #24.Kim Nalley, #25.Dottie Burman.

Photos from L to R: #1. Kim Zimmer with Deidre Hall. For many years, Zimmer was an international household name in Europe, particularly in France and Scandinavia. It is pity, Ms. Zimmer is no longer as active as she used to be. #2. Ginger Gonzaga, Amanda Abel, Lynne Alexander and Susan Asbjornson. Ms. Abel is a magnificent artist who excelled in musicals, theater and cabaret acts. #3. The versatile and creative Dottie Burman with impresario extraordinaire, Sidney Myer, manager/booking agent of "Don't Tell Mama" cabaret in New York City. Ms. Burman is noted for her wit, comedy acts and cabaret savoir-faire. A very talented and funny lady, indeed.

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