Julie Wilson
In Concert at the Gardenia

I knew that Julie Wilson was one of the most famous Julies from the musical Showboat, but, I must admit, before I saw her recently in her cabaret evening at the Gardenia, I knew little else about her or her career.

A legend in her later years (it is unfair to divulge a lady’s true age!), Wilson is phenomenal. To quote singer Shelley Goldstein, in attendance the night I was there, along with the ever beautiful Constance Towers and comic actor Jason Graae, she’s “a lesson” for every singer or wanna-be saloon singer (as Wilson referred to herself) that wants to sing well. And that means what it takes to grab hold of the audience, keep them in the palm of your hand and then blow them away. Wilson is up to all of this! Her phrasing and vocal styling, much like that of Elaine Stritch, another great performer, are 100% focused and intense, as are her hand gestures, as she sings the hell out of each and every song.

Her set included some marvelous Cole Porter tunes, like “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” from Pal Joey, Peter Allen’s “Everything Old is New Again”, “Bill”, Kurt Weill/Bertolt Brecht’s “Surabaya Johnny” ( her very best dramatic delivery), and “Mack the Knife” , “I Can Dream, Can’t I?”, Julie Styne’s “That Sugar Baby of Mine” and Meredith Willson’s “Hey Look Me Over.”  Exuding a broad smile like the wonderful Eileen Brennan, Wilson displayed a warmth, so genuine, as she literally reached out and embraced members of her audience. At one point, she cried copiously, out of  happiness, due to the outpouring adulation of her fans and peers in attendance.

Thanks, MaryJo Mundy, for encouraging me to witness one of the truly great cabaret artists of this or any century!