“New York Days become New York Nights when the sun goes down…”* so went the theme song for “New York Cabaret Nights,” a weekly series of 26 live performances broadcast in 1990 from three historic cabaret venues (Rainbow and Stars, the Algonquin Hotel’s Oak Room and The Ballroom in Chelsea). Showcasing performances from venerable as well as up and coming cabaret performers, the programs, hosted by Steve Ross, brought to radio audiences the glamour and intimacy of the cabaret experience that previously was the province of only those who could attend a show at one of the sophisticated night spots that once dotted Manhattan.
Now listeners can revisit these venues and experience cabaret’s elegance and intimacy once again with digitized recordings of most of the original broadcast tapes that previously were scattered in various locations but now are available to enjoy on the WNYC web site.
At the time of the original broadcasts, Steve Ross (a well-known and seasoned cabaret performer himself), had no prior radio experience but was a natural. “I had to watch very carefully the clock,” recalls Ross. “And I had to time the numbers: 3 minutes for the song, 2 minutes for the talk.” Despite these constraints, Ross found the experience “wonderful.” Recalling the gala premiere broadcast, Ross remembers, “Maureen McGovern, already a star (and I was a bit in awe of her that first night) came over and pressed my arm and said, ‘Don’t worry about anything, I’m a big fan of yours.’ I wasn’t panicky, but it was very sweet that everybody jumped in and went along with the program. They weren’t divas, they realized maybe subconsciously it would be a legacy of some kind.”
In addition to established cabaret performers such as Michael Feinstein, Karen Akers, Andrea Marcovicci, Julie Wilson and Margaret Whiting, the shows featured newer artists such as KT Sullivan and the group Betty, and composers such as Sheldon Harnick (Fiddler on the Roof, She Loves Me), Marty Charnin (Annie) and Bart Howard (Fly Me to the Moon). Ross remembers, “there was not a dud of any who performed!”
The show proved popular among listeners. Ross notes, “A couple of times a year people come up to me and say, ‘Gee, what ever happened to those wonderful programs?’ They were wonderful for people who either couldn’t or chose not to go out at night.” The 26 shows were eventually edited into 13 shorter programs that were distributed nationally by American Public Media.
Almost thirty years after the live broadcasts, none of the venues exists as a cabaret. The building that housed the Ballroom became a New York University fraternity; Rainbow and Stars closed in 1998; and the Oak Room in the Algonquin closed in 2012 and is now a private breakfast room for Marriot Reward Elite customers.
*Song written by Richard Jenkins.
To experience WNYC’s “New York Cabaret Nights” please click here.
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