By Bart Greenberg***Vocalist Janice McCune brought enthusiasm and a large dose of cuteness (a very good thing) to the Don’t Tell Mama’s stage with her show Let’s Start Tomorrow Tonight! Backing her up was hot tri
o: music director-pianist John Fischer, bassist Chris Bonner and drummer Zachary Eldridge. The singer was in good company—especially with Lennie Watts serving as director with his expert flair; in addition to her fine vocal work and warm personality, MCune used every inch of the stage available to her, creating a vivid and varied stage picture.
The show offered a nice range of material, and more importantly, explored some very personal attachments to certain songs. Family asking her when she might marry, for instance, led to a highly-thoughtful and beautifully enunciated, “The Miller’s Son” (Stephen Sondheim), while her passion for the television series “The Big Valley,” and especially the strength of star Barbara Stanwyck, naturally led to a 
fine version of “That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard It Should Be” (Jacob Brackman, Carly Simon). And her best way to deal with rage was demonstrated in a strong belt out of “Nobody’s Story” (Tim Rice, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson).
Some of the selections for the evening simply emphasized the wide range of styles McCune can work in and master. From her rocking opening “I’ve Got the Music in Me” (Bias Boshell) to the delicate encore with piano only, “The Sound of Music (Richard Rodgers,Oscar Hammerstein), McCune delivered a delicious variety of material. In between, she brought charm to the country oddity “The Rock and Roll Waltz” (Dick Ware, Shorty Allen), linked to a lovely memory of her parents, and the surprisingly swinging musical arrangement of “Count Your Blessing (Instead of Sleep)” (Irving Berlin), blended with John Bucchino’s “Grateful.” This smorgasbord of styles and sources made for a constantly entertaining evening.
Photos by Bart Greenberg
