eartha kitt's 80th birthday celebration :: carnegie hall

where to begin really - i mean - last night - to have the absolute pleasure to sit in one of the most prestigious concert halls in the world (carnegie hall) - and watch one of the most iconographic women in cabaret - perform for her 80th birthday - i'm telling you - it was truly an experience of a lifetime. the woman in question is none other than eartha kitt. i've been loving this woman for as long as i can remember. from watching old episodes of batman when i was a kid - to singing along to her disco hits in the 70's. this woman has seen and done it all. and for 80 - my god - still giving most people half her age a definite run for their money.

last night - it was all about eartha. simple stage set with a usual jazz band as a backdrop - 2 spotlights illuminating this timeless woman for all to see. i lost count at 12 standing ovations. the crowd absolutely loved her - as well they should. she opened with the sondheim classic 'i'm still here' from follies. she of course adapted it in her own eartha way - touching on her u.s. exile during the vietnam war from presidents johnson and nixon all the way through her comeback from the 70's and beyond. very fitting to open the show.

without missing a beat - eartha went onto sing some of her most known hits including my personal favorite - 'come-on-a-my-house' - sung in japanese and adapted from the original work by rosemary clooney! always a flirt - this night was no exception - purring at the men (and women) in the front row - commenting on how she needs to change the lyrics in 'just an old fashioned girl' from 'old fashioned millionaire' to 'billionaire' to raise the stakes a bit. i was quite happy when she staged her version of 'le danseur de charleston' - something i've been waiting for most of my adult life to see live (the link is an example when she did it in australia many years ago). for an 80-year old woman - she could charleston without missing a beat! i was impressed. the only number missing from the night was 'champagne taste' but the above totally made up for it. she closed out the first act with the disco favorite 'i will survive.' another fitting tune for this triumphant woman.

in the second half of the show - her special guests performed with her: tonya pinkins (tony winner - jelly's last jam & tony nomination - caroline, or change), lachanze (tony winner - the color purple & tony nomination - once on this island), and ben vereen (tony winner - pippin & tony nomination - jesus christ superstar). tonya and eartha brought the house down with a duet inspired by eartha's hit 'monotonous' while lachanze and eartha paired up for a rendition of 'santa baby'. ben vereen saluted eartha with a jazz inspired free-form version (including soft shoe dance) to 'my funny valentine.'

several times during this segment of the performance - eartha broke down into tears of joy - and you could hear her sobs throughout the rest of the show. she once stopped to simply say 'thank you - thank you to each of you for making me live so long.' it was truly a touching moment and one i'll never forget. after the music had died down and the ovations were had - the fabulous woman that she is - took time to shake people's hands as she moved from one end of the stage to the next - audience members showering her with flowers and cards - and ms. kitt taking time to sign an autograph or two.

breathtaking performance. absolutely stunning.

fortunately for us all - she'll be headlining at the carlyle hotel in new york city starting on september 18th through october 27th. i'm already in line for my tickets!

rufus wainwright :: gramercy theatre

i was fortunate last night to be able to attend rufus wainwright's show at the gramercy theatre on 23rd street on the east side of manhattan. as usual - i attended with my concert-buddy ames (aka tixgirl - read her review of the show). it was nothing less than a family affair!

opening this glorious night was his cousin - lucy roche - playing numbers from her first and only ep (8 songs) just released to u.s. audiences that night. lucy was a pleasant start to the evening not only with her own works but with recreations from musical theatre and other songs from the fantastically talented wainwright clan.

in the audience - many members of the wainwright clan. too many to mention but they were in full force to support their own. mysteriously absent (at least from my seat) was rufus' sister martha. nonetheless - this was night one of what will be a 4 night gig at the gramercy theatre.

present in the crowd: golden globe nominated actress maggie gyllenhaal, rufus' boyfriend jörn weisbrodt, former ny club kid walt paper, tony nominee justin bond of kiki and herb (who actually did a cameo performance in the show seen in the pictures below), mike furey of dangerous muse, and if not her a very good carbon copy of fashion designer betsy johnson (we could not confirm if it was indeed her - now with jet black hair and conservatively dressed for the typically wild betsy.)

after a 20 or so minute break between sets - rufus (and band) mount the stage and in true rufus fashion - the fashion was as much a part of the show as the music. everyone in the band was wearing some form of stars (sparkly bangles) and stripes in honor of his new cd release the stars and single 'going to a town.' rufus told a funny story about how the black and white flag he created didn't make it through customs in time for the show but would be there for the shows the following nights.

the show consisted of a lot of music from his new cd - which makes sense - and mixed in here and there were hits from previous cds - definitely crowd-pleasers. i always like seeing him with a full sound including his amazing brass section - and in that venue - wow - what an impact - intimate and brimming with quality. i could hardly believe i was in a renovated movie theater.

another break - had a beer and a wee - then back for the second part of the show. rufus this time had changed into german lederhosen. gotta love a man who can pull off leather shorts in june. the second part of the show was more of his older hits and great energy throughout as always.

encore - of course there was an encore - like 5 to be exact. rufus came out in a bathrobe and later did his tribute to judy garland in heels, hat, tuxedo jacket, black hose, lipstick and rhinestones - simply stunning with a dance break to boot.

in all - super fun - great energy - fantastic show. can't wait to see him again (and i will - central park - august 19th.)

for more photos of the performance check out my flickr account.

scissor sisters :: the theatre at msg

i was fortunate enough to go to the scissor sisters concert at the theatre at madison square garden on saturday 03.03.07 - it was absolutely spectacular. ames (tixgirl), lauren, and i were able to score floor tickets and push right up to the stage and snap some fantastic photos and videos.

the concert - one of the best i've seen - it may have been the fact that msg plays no games - or it could be the fact that the scissor sisters can do no wrong - either way - costumes and lighting and jake's never ending energy were brilliant things to watch.

seen: fashion icon amanda lepore, kiki of 'kiki and herb' justin bond, and b-52's front man fred schneider.

view all of the images on flickr

happy new year?

ok ok - so it's been like forever and a day since i've posted last - there's good reasons i assure you. just to start off - to anyone who may be reading this - happy new year and may 2007 be the best ever - i mean hell - it has to be better than 2006 - it just hast to be!

i mean i'm not knocking 2006 - personally for me i had alot of accomplishments:

:: new job
:: new apartment (in brooklyn)
:: bought a new condo with my best friend mark (in brooklyn - move date tbd - hopefully february)
:: went on 2 fabulous international trips (london in july and buenos aires in november)
:: got in shape (or in a better shape than 2005 - thanks julia)
:: performed at carnegie hall (for the 5th time - mom finally was able to come and tixgirl wrote about it in her blog)
:: met some amazing new people (marcos, bruston, ryan, andy, john - aka 'the mean girls', roy, billy, amy - oh the list could go on for days)
:: tech-nerd purchases: computer (macbook- my knight in white armor), camera (canon sd 630- how did i ever take beautiful pics witout you), phone (treo 680- unlocked and ready for the world) and ipod(god's gift to life itself)

so in all - pretty great year.

now - onto why i've been absent. as we all know - the holiday season can be very hectic - you all were there it happened - it's over - praise jesus. the family came to visit on/around the 19th of december and were here until the 31st. we had a small family trip planned for the holiday up to block island to visit my aunt and uncle - gorgeous house - absolutely nothing to do but was nice nonetheless. as we all know - when family comes to visit - especially around the holidays - time set aside for the 'usual routine' are usually cut in half or taken away all together.

new years was great. roy volunteered his apartment for a dinner party/drink fest - and it was - it was great - and it was a perfect way to ring in the new year.

so now we are in 2007. my god - how time is flying by. i'm sure there'll be many an adventure ahead for us all this year. there was a shift in the political structure after all - so this year could be the beginning of a great era for our country - or at least give us the ability to begin fixing the crap that the current government has put us in.

already work is buzzing. 2007 has started - changes are in the air and i'm ready to see what challenges are ahead. so far i've already been to dallas and philly - who knows where else i'll be going.

already had my first issue with the nypd this year - yes indeed - i got a ticket - gasp - i know right - but i got a ticket for - get this - 'occupying more than one seat' on the subway. it went down like this:

i went to see 'notes on a scandal' with roy and bruston. was returning home after the movie. i was sitting - minding my own business - playing solitaire on the treo and listening to 'la traviata' on my ipod. the train stops at atlantic/pacific avenue in brooklyn. the doors open. a cop - sees me sitting 'slightly askew' - and asks me to get off of the train. he gave me a $50 ticket for that ridiculous charge. i wasn't drunk. i wasn't disorderly. the train wasn't full. but now i owe $50 for minding my business and trying to get home safely - yay - way to go nypd.

so we aren't even out of january and i have a 'scandal' on my hands - can't wait to see what happens in the next 11 months - lol.

so that's my brief update - more to come - i promise. golden globes are this weekend - i have to talk about that - and i've seen more shows that i can fill you all in on - other than that - have a great 2007 and more to come from me.

scissor sisters :: live at the hammerstein ballroom

i was very fortunate to attend the scissor sisters concert at the hammerstein ballroom in new york city last evening - here's a video i shot from their opening number 'take your mama' - more to come - enjoy!

posted on motionbox: http://www.motionbox.com/video/player/a09fd5ba1e28

the agenda

1. wake up (done)
2. shower (done)
3. get dressed (done)
4. eat cheerios (done)
5. head to the city (done)
6. workout with julia at thirdpower fitness (done)
7. go to work (done)
8. work (in progress)
9. dinner (i hope)
10. regina spektor concert at the town hall
11. go home
12. sleep

i'm most excited about the concert tonight. as always - i'm going with my concert buddy ames (aka tixgirl.) we've been sitting on these regina spektor tickets for a couple months now and tonight we finally get to go and i can't wait!

eric himan :: bitter end :: nyc

once again - i'm a slack ass and posted no agenda. what's to post really - i worked all day. but here's what i did:

this evening - i went to see my friend eric himan perform at the bitter end in nyc. he played with his band (dan, rich, and andy) - great show - but in my true dumb-assed fashion - i thought the show was for 8:00 when in reality it was at 7:00 - so my friend justin and i managed to show up about 15 minutes late.

the show was his nyc performance for his new cd - everywhere all at once. it was so great to see him playing with a band. we were talking about 'the old days' in frederickburg, va - man he's come a long way - so proud of his success and this cd rocks!

afterwards - we all went to dinner at sammy's on 7th ave. joining us was renowned photographer john arsenault. john did the photography for eric's last cd - dark horse.

it was great to connect with great friends for the evening over big martini glasses of sashimi. we returned home to catch up and gossip. now it's late - time to go to bed for i have an appointment with julia at 7:30am tomorrow. sleepy time - over and out.

the agenda *

1. piss away the morning (done)
2. eat the daily cheerios - for the cholesterol (done)
3. shower (in a minute)
4. drop off laundry
5. take the train to union square
6. meet ames at virgin - inside not outside
7. hop back on the train - and head to williamsburg
8. find food
9. eat again
10. find the galapagos art space
11. attend the 3rd annual cnbcn music festival
12. head home
13. eat again
14. sleepy time

* agenda subect to change

one word...

...wow! martha always seems to take my breath away. tonight was no exception. i have to say - if i weren't a gay man and i could give birth to babies - she'd be the person i'd want to have babies with! i met up with martha after the show - she signed my cd - in true jonathan fashion - i was a dork - thanked her for her music and called it a day. it's always those awkward situations when faced with celebrities that i feel like i'm 5 years old and facing my teacher with an assignment to be graded. my good friend ames captured the event on digital film. (pictured here)

as far as the rest of the night - joanna newsome - um - bjork with a harp - but not in a good bjork way. neko case - i could be a fan - if it weren't for her drunk former schoolmate beside me giving me a blow-by-blow - ok ok - so it was her birthday - and yeah - we all drink a little on our birthdays - but damn lady - i paid to hear neko sing - not the random nobody that used to know her.

beer - kielbasa - and ice cream sandwiches capped out the night. the rain came - but only for martha - which is kinda cool as ames pointed out - 'she's the stormy one' - but the clouds gave way to a pretty amazing night.

martha wainwright: when the day is short: video by ames


martha wainwright: bloody mother fucking asshole: video by ames

neko case at mccarren park

i'm heading to mccarren park pool in brooklyn for a concert tonight - martha wainwright (pictured here and who is infinitely more talented than her brother - yes that's right - rufus - the one and only - who i also love), joanna newsome, and neko case. taking along my friends ames and elizabeth. can't wait - loves me some martha - anyway - more on the outcome later - for now - gotta jet.

from the archives :: lord of the rings

at the last minute last night - we decided not to go to the rusted root concert. we found ourselves outside of the 9:30 club scalping the tickets. we then went to see lord of the rings: the return of the king. wow - great movie - until the end. i mean it never ended - it was so long - and it ended like 5 times. crazy! i still don't think it has the staying power of such movies like star wars (the originals) but it was pretty cool nonetheless.

i'm about to call into the only meeting i'll make today. at 11:00 i head to the airport for my week in maine. what was i thinking - going to maine for new years - talk about cold! haha - oh well - should be fun.

from the archives :: starting over

2003 is almost over. so much has happened this year and i am about to start a very new chapter in my life. i leave tomorrow for maine. going to ogunquit for new years. doing a show at a bar called mainestreet with one of my best friends - anthony. should be an interesting time. when i return on the 1st - i have to get ready for my next stage of life. you see - i'm moving to new york city on the 5th. after 5 years of living in the washington, dc area - i'm moving on - being transfered with my job. i'm very excited yet scared of what life will be like a year from now. i'm now patiently waiting for my friend luis to come and pick me up - we are going to see rusted root at the 9:30 club tonight. it will be one of the last things we all do together before i head north. so much to do - so little time...