Entertainment :: Music
Hot Mess in Manhattan by Kevin Scott Hall
EDGE ContributorThursday Mar 19, 2009 With a show entitled "Hot Mess in Manhattan," cabaret newcomer Cait Doyle takes a big risk when inviting reviewers to her show, which has been playing twice-monthly at the Duplex for several months now. I mean, the fun a reviewer could have with that title!
The thing is, Doyle may feel like a mess in her everyday life-hence, the title-but she is fully in command of her stagecraft in this rollicking, often irreverent autobiographical one-woman show.
While the central idea, that of a fresh-faced young woman trying to survive in the big city, is not new-in fact, Doyle is reminiscent of a young, spunky Mary Tyler Moore but with a decidedly naughtier edge to suit our times-she and director Jonathan Whitton inject the story with inspired song choices, spicy patter, Doyle’s flashy dance moves and comic facial expressions. She looks like the girl next door but her daring only adds to her charm.
Doyle apparently adds a new song by a notable musician, written especially for the show, each month. This idea serves the show well, as there are now several original songs offered.
Doyle opens with "The Mess" by Ryan Scott Oliver, a theme song of sorts. It’s a big theatrical number, complete with a breathlessly-delivered patter segment that makes one wonder how she is going to keep up the pace for sixty minutes.
Other standouts include Michael Mahler’s "Starbucks," about finding the right job until stardom comes along, Drew Gasparini’s "Text Message Song," a response to the break-up by text message, and Sharon Kenny’s "Leaky Ceiling," a folk tribute to those awful apartments that any starving artist can relate to. Musically, though, the song suspiciously resembles Christine Lavin’s "Good Thing He Can’t Read My Mind."
Adam Gwon’s "Running" manages to be amusing and heartbreaking at the same time and asks the question "Why do we keep running and what are we running towards?" The song should become a new standard.
Doyle also brings hilarious new life to Taylor Swift’s "Picture to Burn," with a few choice lyrical additions.
Just when one may be slightly tiring of the jokes about bad boyfriends, bad jobs and bad apartments, Doyle sits down and delivers Sarah Bareilles’ "City," with soul-baring honesty and longing: "Here in these deep city lights/a girl could get lost tonight/ I’m finding every reason to be good/there’s nothing here to hold onto/Could I hold you?"
Yeah, Cait, we’ll hold you.
Vocally, Doyle is best on the folk-pop choices to which her pretty voice is most suited and which lend themselves to her interpretive abilities-even in an encore of "Over the Rainbow," which she manages to make new in its thousandth incarnation.
Doyle has made inspired choices for musicians, Vince Peterson on piano and Dan Delaney on cello, both of whom expertly blend their voices with hers when needed.
This reviewer wonders why HBO and the like keep going to the well of stand-up comics for specials when someone like Cait Doyle has talent on so many levels.
Judging by the packed house of twenty-somethings in attendance, Doyle seems to have her finger on the pulse of the adventures of young city-dwellers. It’s gratifying to see that cabaret’s cutting edge is still to be found, and that this young lady has a future, there and beyond.
Cait Doyle next appears at the Duplex (61 Christopher Street @ 7th Avenue) on Saturday, March 21, 10:00 pm. Check the calendar at www.theduplex.com for dates in April and beyond. $10 cover/2-drink minimum.
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