By Bart Greenberg***The glamorous Francis Assissy, gifted with a beautiful voice, made her solo cabaret debut at The Laurie Beechman Theatre with Torch Song Soliloquy, an evening devoted to paying tribute to “the women who made me the woman I am”—not just her drag mothers, but her birth mother and her second grade teacher, among others. 
Assissy, along with her music director Drew Wutke and the assured direction of James Beaman, created an evening that was much more than a performance by a standard stand-up drag artist, and more a complete theatrical event, complete with a clever use of video and, of course, a costume change.
Rules were set up from the beginning when a video of Assissy belting out “Let Me Be Your Star” (Marc Shaiman, Scott Wittman), allowed the diva to join herself on stage to deliver a show-stopping number. Demonstrating versatility, her next selection was a powerful “My Man” (Maurice Yvain, Channing Pollock), half hers and half Barbra, but working as one interpretation. But then she topped that with a full-on torch version of “I Dreamed a Dream” (Charles-Michel Schonberg, Herbert Krezmer) that thrilled the audience.
Other classic songs were refitted for the show: “The Boy Next Door” (Hugh Martin, 
Ralph Blane) became a tribute to Grinder; a mash-up of “I’m Still Here” (Steven Sondheim) and “Everyone Says Don’t” (Sondheim) came complete with a modified strip tease. “Don’t Rain on My Parade” (Bob Merrill, Jule Styne) was a clearly-defined cry of independence. And the intense ABBA tune about a breakup, “The Winner Takes It All” (Benny Andersson, Bjorn Ulvaeus), received a very sensitive and subtle delivery.
One of Assissy’s key talents is that she actually listens to her lyrics. Her delivery of Sondheim’s “What More Do I Need?” was a fine example. Each image in this overflowing lyric was presented clearly and with emotional detail. But this clarity and honesty is what makes Assissy a terrific performer and well worth seeing again.
