Piano Bar Live! (PBL!) streams this Tuesday, March 23 at 7:15 pm ET, celebrating St. Louis piano bar and cabaret, co-hosted by Scott Barbarino and Katie Dunne McGrath, with guests Steve Brammeier, Robert Breig, Beverly Brennan, Adrienne Danrich, Chuck Flowers, Dionna Raedeke, Rick Jensen, Tim Schall and Jeffrey M. Wright.
PBL! is proud to continue the long-established tradition of the piano bar—that special place where we can gather, entertain, support and create, as we connect with live music.
Join us this TUESDAY, March 23 at 7:15 pm ET at www.facebook.com/PianoBarLive, on BroadwayOnDemand.com or on YouTube @PianoBarLive
Scott Barbarino, publisher of NiteLife Exchange, and the creator of Piano Bar Live!, has a long history of proactive involvement in the cabaret and piano bar culture. Back in 1980, Barbarino walked into the Duplex Piano Bar for the first time; his heart never left. Since that day, he and his band of merry-makers have been keeping the Piano Bar scene alive. Inspired by songwriting legend John Wallowich and his public access show, which featured John at the piano singing to the TV audience, the idea of using social media and the Internet to bring this special art form to people around the world, seemed a natural way to take the piano bar experience into the 21st century. Barbarino says, “One of the greatest joys for all of us at PBL! is the the chance to see veteran performers pass the torch to the next generation of merry-makers, while witnessing young talent blossom. As much as times change, they also stay the same.” Barbarino has worn many hats in his career. He’s also a performer and a promoter, managing and producing shows in live entertainment venues. His career began at the original Duplex Cabaret, where he became the Manager and Entertainment Coordinator and the Host of “Stars of Tomorrow,” one of the first competition shows in cabaret. He is currently the Artistic Director of Ellen’s Stardust Diner on Broadway. Barbarino, an ASCAP member, served on the Board of Directors of the Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs as Member-at-Large (1997-2000) and as President (2004).
Katie Dunne McGrath moved to New York City in 2016 after retiring from her career in advertising. Her first show as a New Yorker, Significant Others, won the 2017 Bistro Award for best debut. She started working with NiteLife Exchange in 2018 on her video blog, “Cabaret Katie,” previewing the shows and artists she wants to see in the coming months. To date, she’s gained 60,000 unique video views from New York entertainment seekers who avidly tune into the vlog.
Steve Brammeier is delighted that 12 years ago he discovered cabaret. He’s lived in St. Louis his entire life as a practicing veterinarian (since retired). A singer since childhood, he loves what he’s learned and experienced from the cabaret community in NYC, Chicago and St. Louis. Brammeier has created two solo shows with the guidance, artistry and expertise of Lina Koutrakos and Rick Jensen, performing those shows both at Don’t Tell Mama in NYC and Blue Strawberry in St. Louis.
Robert Breig is a native of The Lou and has been singing and performing all his life. He’s especially grateful to have worked with so many wonderful singers as producer of Mariposa Artists.
Beverly Brennan is singer, writer, director, humorist and storyteller. She is also an award-winning educatr, having been the Director of Speech and Theater at Harris-Stowe State University for 22 years and also employed in the St. Louis Public Schools for 20 years.
As an award-winning singer, writer, composer and educator, Adrienne Danrich’s goal is to redefine what it means to be a creative performer. She is a recipient of a Midwest EMMY for her performance and narration of “This Little Light of Mine: The Stories of Marian Anderson and Leontyne Price,” which she created.
Chuck Flowers considers himself a “singer of good songs in good taste.” A native St. Louisan and a seasoned performer/entertainer, Flowers, who embraces many genres and styles of music is “glad to be a part of Piano Bar Live!!
Dionna Raedeke, “Artist, Singer, Mama, Big Thinker,” currently paints out of her St. Louis studio, shares life with her artist husband, Daniel, and son, Gramm, and has been singing regularly in St. Louis for the past 12 years. She recently made her debut at Don’t Tell Mama.
Multi-award winning singer-songwriter Rick Jensen’s compositions have become standards on the New York City club circuit. He’s been seen in venues as diverse as the Duplex cabaret to the stage of Carnegie Hall. Solo appearances include Washington DC’s Source Theatre, The Roslyn Spectrum Theatre in Arlington, VA, The Mabel Mercer Foundation’s Cabaret Convention at Town Hall, Symphony Space and The Metropolitan Room. Spring Harvest is his debut CD on which he performs his original material, which as been sung by the likes of Lee Lessack, Lina Koutrakos and the late Nancy Lamott.
Tim Schall most recently performed at Lincoln Center during the 2019 New York Cabaret Convention’s salute to composer Frank Loesser. He has over a dozen solo shows to his credit and has headlined his shows at St. Louis venues such as The Sheldon Concert Hall, The Bistro at Grand Center, Gaslight Cabaret Festival among others. Regionally/nationally he has performed in Colorado, Iowa and at Davenports (Chicago), Geist Cabaret (Santa Fe), Boston, Colorado, Iowa and Washington DC. Schall is co-founder of The St. Louis Cabaret Conference, which attracts more than 30 singers each year from all over the nation. Additionally, he has taught Advanced Performance classes and directed nearly 30 full length cabaret shows and showcases. Schall has also served as adjunct faculty at Webster University teaching Cabaret Styles Performance to seniors in the University’s Musical Theater Conservatory. He is the Executive Director of The Cabaret Project of St. Louis (TCP), as well as the owner of a private vocal performance studio in St. Louis. As an actor, Schall was nominated for a St. Louis Theater Circle Award as Outstanding Supporting Actor for his performance in The Normal Heart.
Based in St. Louis, Jeffrey M. Wright is active in the cabaret and theatre scenes there and beyond. In 2015, he was featured in The Music of Alex Rybeck at NYC’s Feinstein’s/54 Below and The Metropolitan Room. Since then, he has also been featured in other New York concerts at Don’t Tell Mama, The Iridium on Broadway and The Laurie Beechman Theatre, to name a few. In 2019, he made his debut as a featured performer at the Provincetown CabaretFest in Provincetown, MA. In St. Louis, his four solo cabaret shows have played in various venues including the Gaslight Cabaret Festival. His extensive musical theatre credits leading roles in Guys and Dolls, Ragtime, Hands On A Hardbody, High Fidelity, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Next To Normal, Pippin and many others. Wright regularly sings the National Anthem for NCAA Division I basketball games in St. Louis, and has also been featured in several independent films, commercials, web videos and print ads produced there. www.jeffreymwright.com
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