In 2008, under Director of Musical Theatre and Producing Associate Peter Napolitano, Urban Stages became a home for musical artists every December with its Winter Rhythms Festival. This year, the producing baton for the festival, which runs from Wednesday, December 12 to Saturday, December 22, has been handed over to songwriter and producer, Tom Toce. Toce will focus on the tradition to bring the talents of well-known and up-and-coming singers, musicians, lyricists and composers to the attention of the New York theater community. All proceeds goes directly to spreading free and affordable art, theater and education throughout NYC via Urban Stages’ Outreach Program.
For ticket information and to see the roster of talent that will appear in this year’s festival (published in NiteLife Exchange), click here.
1. NiteLife Exchange (NLE) How did your new position of producer of Winter Rhythms come about?
Tom Toce (TT): It’s the next step in a process. About seven years ago, I decided to do something about a problem I was having. I’d written songs for years, but very few people knew them. I’d kind of always wanted to concentrate just on writing good songs and hope that singers and everyone would magically find them just because they were good. As David Friedman put it in his song “My Simple Christmas Wish:” “I want(ed) to be discovered while I’m sitting on my ass.” That strategy didn’t work so well, so I decided to throw myself back into cabaret to promote my songs. I had done an evening of my songs at Eighty-Eights in 1993. In 2012, I decided to do another one. I met with Peter Napolitano, who was one of the most active cabaret directors then, and he directed my show Hopelessly in Love, which played the Metropolitan Room. I also joined the New York Sheet Music Society (renamed the American Popular Song Society—APSS).
Producing cabaret shows is fun, and it’s easy to find shows and talent and venues, since there are a lot of people hungry for this kind of entertainment in NYC. Marissa Mulder was in Hopelessly in Love, and I produced a show in 2014 for her called Living Standards. Both those shows had performances in Winter Rhythms (WR) after their runs at the Met Room. I’ve been one of the most active producers at WR these past five years. I’ve done five other shows besides Hopelessly in Love and Living Standards. Peter and I are good friends and he knows my commitment to quality and that I throw myself fully into all the things I produce. So when he decided to step down, I was a logical candidate to replace him. I’ve done numerous shows at APSS, Feinstein’s/54 Below, the Metropolitan Room and The Laurie Beechman Theatre, so I know the cabaret world very well now.
2. NLE: You’ve succeeded Peter Napoitano as producer, but he remains as a consultant to the annual series. What was the transition process like and how do you anticipate working with Peter in the future?
TT: It was an easy transition, because we know each other well and trust one another. Peter cares deeply about WR and wants to see it in good hands. All I want to do is have fun and present great shows—and work with people I like. There’s not a lot of money in this world. With most endeavors, I struggle just to not lose money. So, if you’re not getting rich, you may as well be working with people you like. That’s my approach. About half the shows this year would be there even if Peter had kept the position. Many of the individual producers are returnees, and when you’re producing a festival with 20 shows in a week and half, you depend on that. The other half of the shows reflect my choices. I’m producing three myself: Christine Lavin (an old friend), the showcase of New Musical Theater Writers and the closing night’s Songs of Hope. I’m not producing The Best of the Harvard-Yale Cantata, but I started that series and Victoria Ordin, who is producing, has been my associate producer the past two years. I’m also not producing the New York Songwriters Alliance Showcase (my friend Jennie Litt is), but I founded that group and we meet twice a month in my apartment. I also enlisted Matt Corriel to present his version of A Christmas Carol and Deb Berman to do her show Still Swingin’. So maybe not half—a third.
I think in the future I’ll ask Peter to produce a show or two per year, as I have done for him for years. He’ll also suggest things for me to consider. Peter is not a micromanager, however, and he won’t try to hold sway over WR. He won’t have to try to exert influence, because I’ll actively seek out his opinions.
3. NLE: What was foremost in your planning as you conceptualized this year’s series of programs?
TT: The most important consideration is the producer. I need people who can deliver. First, they have to deliver a quality show with minimal friction. I don’t have time to dive into the little problems that inevitably arise with shows like this. Singers cancel, people get sick, problems arise. Having someone take ownership and address all the headaches is crucial. Second, I’ve tried to engage producers who can deliver an audience. The festival is a fundraiser and I feel an obligation to sell as many tickets as possible. It’s not just the money: everybody involved in a show is happiest when the house is full. Third, I tried for some variety. That’s a funny word to throw around. We don’t have any bluegrass; we don’t have any Himalayan music, no rock, no emo, no Renaissance music. So what am I saying? Really just this: within the confines of the NY cabaret and musical theater scene, I have given some thought to different kinds of voices. Finally, I tried to work with people I already knew and liked or new people who I thought I would like. Life’s too short, you know?
4. NLE: There’s an enormous talent pool in our community to draw from; how are talent selections assessed and made?
TT: I know and have heard the majority of singers in these shows. I know all the music directors either personally or by reputation. The producers of the individual shows are responsible for the performers they pick. I consulted a bit with Victoria and Jennie, gave Matt a few names, but other than that, I didn’t select talent for the shows I didn’t produce. For the ones I did produce, I asked Christine right away if she would do a show. She’s the best-known performer I know well enough to ask. For the musical theater songwriters showcase, I had a hard time selecting writers. I wanted to pick writers I knew, but because I know so many, I wanted some limiting criteria. I’ve done a number of Yale songwriter shows and though I could fill five showcases with the alumni I know, I didn’t want to. (So only two of the five, Zak Sandler and Kim Oler, are Yalies.) I didn’t want all guys. I didn’t want only writers in their 20s or 30s. Besides Zak and Kim, I asked Cynthia Meng, who represented Harvard in a couple of Cantatas, Ned Paul Ginsburg, a well-known orchestrator/musician/composer whom I’ve known for 30 years and Michael Wysong, a young man I met last fall at an industry meet-and-greet. Some age and gender variety. But no Himalayan musical theater composers! The songwriters are responsible for their own singers.
The question of singer selection came up the most in the closing show, Songs of Hope. I’m the most optimistic person I know and I care so deeply about this last show. I want it to be the most beautiful evening in 2018 cabaret. It’s on December 22, the Saturday before Christmas, and I worried I’d have a lot of people who’d be traveling or otherwise unavailable. A few singers turned me down but the majority by far said yes. There is a reason that singers like Sidney Myer, Steve Ross, Natalie Douglas and Eric Michael Gillett get asked to do the Cabaret Convention and similar shows year after year. They’re great and everyone knows it. Cynthia Crane is the quintessential saloon singer and has been a friend for many years. I was best man at Douglas J. Cohen’s wedding and Doug is a phenomenally talented writer and performer. Ann Kittredge and Cynthia Farrell are newer friends, with voices and styles that knock me out. The music director, Jon Delfin and I go way back, although we originally met because of our shared interest in cryptic (and lately crossword) puzzles. I don’t mean to leave anyone out, and I know I am, but I can’t mention everyone. The one person I do have to mention is Julie Gold, who is the first songwriter I think of when I think of hope. Julie will probably sing her famous Grammy-winning song “From a Distance,” but if she doesn’t, I can think of half a dozen other hopeful songs of hers she can do.
5. NLE: What outcomes would you like to see realized in the 2018 edition of Winter Rhythms?
TT: A thousand tickets. Really that’s what I’m focused on right now. The theater seats about 75, so with 20 shows, that would be 2/3 capacity. It’s a tough time of year and I can lure my friends to one or two shows each, but in order to sell 20 shows, I have to pester the producers—to produce ticket sales.
Seriously, the festival opens in three days as I write this and I can’t do very much more about the quality of the shows. I have a few songs here and there, and I can rehearse them and memorize the lyrics better, but that’s about it. I can make sure everyone gets rehearsal space and has a good tech run-through. I’m done artistically, now it’s time to concentrate on selling tickets.
6. NLE: What are your goals for next year and in the longer term?
TT: To present things I would like to see. To meet people who are fun and interesting. To pack the house every night. To further the cause of live music and living songwriters. And if one of the living songwriters is sometimes me, well, I just hope my songs are worthy of being included with the others in the festival.
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