Karen Mason - Latest News

Right Here, Right Now

Birdland ~ New York, NY

Karen Mason celebrated her latest CD on Zevely Records, Right Here, Right Now,for one night only at Birdland, and the audience was delightedcelebrating with her. In her sly witty opener, "Taking A Chance onLove" (Duke/Latouche/Fetter), she promised, "I'm gonna give my allagain," and she did, backed by Bob Renino on bass, Rex Benincasa ondrums and the talented musical director/pianist Christopher Denny.

Mason'ssongbook is vast. A brilliant story-singer, she wraps herself incharacter and then watch out! This singer/actress is at her peak. Shemixes old with new for each show, drawing them together in an arccentered on songs that speak to her. With a versatile and rangy voice,Mason has blossomed in her interpretations, on the mark withsophisticated phrasing that delivers compelling drama in each song,delving into nuances and illuminating them. She is a riveting mixtureof intensity and intimacy, believing in her songs, like Styne andMerrill's "People," for example, communicated with a unique unaffectedcandor.

Singing thetitle song, "Right Here, Right Now," by husband, Paul Rolnick and JimPapoulis, Mason went for its essence and let the passion galvanize fromthere. Rolnick is recognized for writing songs of unmannered sincerityand love, a hand-in-glove fit for Mason. One highpoint in this showincluded “We Never Ran Out of Love, We Just Ran Out of Time,” a songshe has performed for years. If the intimate candor of these songsevoked a few tears, and they did, Mason played with the humor in otherselections. Her phrasing of the Betty Hutton hit, "Murder, He Said,"(Loesser/McHugh) built up its storyline as well as its playfulness. Shehad fun with Leo Robin and Jule Styne's "Diamonds Are a Girl's BestFriend." Letting go of the usual coyness, Mason instead delivered itwith a soft twist beat and good-natured, take-it-or-leave-it advicefrom one chum to another.

Perhapsmost thrilling was to hear and watch Mason work the song up to thevibrant denouement, but she also engaged her audience with the tenderJerome Kern ballad, "Look For the Silver Lining," (lyrics by BuddydaSilva), no vocal dynamics, just musical magic. Whether igniting thestage or whispering an introspective ballad, she never fails to deliverher own brand of honesty and charisma. She was aided in the imaginative

arrangements of Barry Kleinbort, Paul Rolnick, and Christopher Denny.

Elizabeth Ahlfors
Cabaret Scenes
August 4, 2008
www.cabaretscenes.org

Karen Mason of 'Hairspray' Celebrates New CD At Birdland

On Monday night, August 4th, Broadway at Birdland welcomed Karen Mason, Hairspray's newest Velma Von Tussle, back to her Birdland home. The sold-out concert celebrated Mason's new cd, "Right Here, Right Now," which includes "All That Jazz," "Secret Love," "Get Happy," and "As If We Never Said Goodbye." The evening was a major event, what with the cast of Hairspray in attendance, including Marissa Perry, Niki Scalera, Tevin Campbell, Susan Mosher, and Aubrey O'Day! All photos by Steve Sorokoff.

See the pictures in the photo gallery (under Karen Mason in Cabaret.)

Mason proves all she needs is 'Love'

By Howard Reich | Tribune critic
February 16, 2008

Strangely, the passing years seem to improve Karen Mason's voice rather than deteriorate it.
Perhaps that's because she always commanded more sound than she needed. Now that some softness has crept into her high notes and a radiance of tone has emerged elsewhere in her instrument, she sounds gentler than her longtime listeners might have expected.

Or at least that was the case Thursday evening at Davenport's, where Mason unveiled a new show – exuberantly titled "Love Love Love" – to a sold-out house. !Big-Ending.jpg

No doubt the Valentine's Day holiday had something to do with Mason's tender manner. If past performances have shown the sharply acerbic and darkly dramatic facets of her work, this time the theme was high-flying romance. Yet Mason managed to put a novel spin on extremely familiar repertory.

Nobody is going to call Mason a jazz singer, but her saucy, rhythmically strutting version of the age-old "Just in Time" certainly veered toward a jazz sensibility – and was all the more persuasive for it.

If Mason borrowed from Tony Bennett's songbook by dipping into "Watch What Happens," she paid little heed to his famously expansive interpretation. Instead, she moved briskly through the tune, yet with a degree of delicacy and understatement one does not typically associate with her.

And anyone who can strip away the treacle from the Disney anthem "A Whole New World" deserves a round of applause (which Mason received). Until this evening, at least one listener would not have believed that so many layers of meaning and nuance could be mined from the thing.

But "Love Love Love" showed a little edge, too, in the form of the classic "Murder, He Says." Mason dispatched Frank Loesser's wickedly clever lyrics with relish. In fact, she brought to the tune double-entendres that Loesser may not have foreseen.

In virtually every show, Mason pays homage to the late songwriter-accompanist Brian Lasser, who was practically her alter ego until his death from AIDS in 1992 at age 40. His hauntingly beautiful "I Made a New Friend" reminded the audience of the scope of his talent.

This time around, Mason – a former Chicagoan who long has lived in New York – was accompanied by pianist Beckie Menzie, who practically has become indispensable to Chicago cabaret.

Certainly she was on this occasion.

hreich@tribune.com

Karen Mason performs "Love Love Love" at 8 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday at Davenport's, 1383 N. Milwaukee Ave.; $30-$35; 773-278-1830.

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