They’re Still Here

Helen’s, the new nightclub that has emerged out of the ashes of Judy’s Chelsea on Eighth Avenue between 18th and 19th Streets, officially opened its cabaret space last Friday night. It was an auspicious occasion. Julie Wilson christened Helen’s Hideaway Room with a stellar performance of an act titled I’m Still Here. It might as well have been titled Julie Wilson’s Greatest Hits because virtually all of the songs came directly out of the Wilson canon — or should we say cannon? The woman blew everyone away, including these two critics, with her extraordinary command of the stage. Hell, she commanded the audience from her entrance to her exit and at every moment in between.

Wilson is on the cusp of turning 80, and we should all be so vibrant and alive at that age. She brings all of her accumulated experience and her finely honed talent to the Hideaway stage, demonstrating why she is such a beloved figure in the world of cabaret. It isn’t because she has a pretty voice. Be forewarned her voice is not her strong suit — but her acting is. She knows who she is on stage and she sells that personality with powerhouse performances of such songs as “Don’t Ask a Lady” (Cy Coleman-Carolyn Leigh), “Do Be a Darling” (Cy Coleman-Dorothy Fields), and, of course, “I’m Still Here” (Stephen Sondheim).

Helen’s was packed for the show, and the club sparkled; whatever opening night glitches occurred were of the sort that should easily be fixed over time. The cabaret room has been expanded to seat approximately 70 people and the lively piano bar up front has been smartly reconfigured to make it more inviting. The club is positioned to be the much-needed “middle-class” venue that fills the vacuum left when Arci’s Place closed a couple of years ago.

In order to bridge the gap between clubs like Don’t Tell Mama and Feinstein’s at the Regency, Helen’s is wisely offering a rangy menu that should fit almost every budget and every taste (including vegetarians). But, aside from moderate cover charges and minimums, the key to the club successfully establishing itself will be the quality of its bookings. Here’s hoping that Julie Wilson’s longevity will rub off on Helen’s Hideaway.

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Mothers and Daughters

What a performance Jayne Houdyshell is giving in Lisa Kron’s Well at The Public Theater! Earlier this season, she created yet another revelatory characterization in Fighting Words. Here is an actress who has emerged this year in two original works, rightfully gaining attention for her sublime work in theater pieces that do not have the advantage of tried and true roles. Play Medea and you’ve got yourself an award-winning part; a turn as Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire will always be noteworthy. Yet here is a veteran character actress who demands the spotlight simply because she invests her performances with so much humanity.

In Well, Houdyshell plays Lisa Kron’s mother. Kron wrote this often moving piece to honor her mother and to understand their relationship. As a consequence, she generously wrote a better part for her mom than she did for herself, and Houdyshell makes the most of this rich, multi-faceted character. There are many reasons to see Well, such as its inventive use of theatrical conventions, but the acting of Houdyshell — subtle, sensitive, real — is the best reason of all.

The relationship of mothers and daughters is also the subject of From Door to Door. Playing downstairs at the Westside Theatre, below I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, this production follows a line of thought more in the mode of “I Love You, You’re Imperfect, You’ll Never Change.” A rueful, oftentimes touching piece about the emotional baggage that one generation lays upon the next, it tells the story of three Jewish women who are related by blood and bound (but not gagged) by their history. My, they love to talk — and thank goodness they do, because much of what they say is as funny as it is moving.

Playwright James Sherman, perhaps best known as the author of the long-running hit Beau Jest, tells this story of three generations of mothers and daughters sometimes with delicacy, sometimes with a heavy hand. Joe Brancato wisely directs the play straightforwardly, letting the comedy sit on top of the pathos. Anita Keal, as the tough old grandmother, is wonderfully brittle. Suzanne Toren, as her daughter, tends a little too much toward the whiney and that gets tiresome, but Sarah McCafrey as the youngest of the clan has a bright, natural quality that nicely balances her elders. Although From Door to Door is not without its clichés, there is a sincerity about the piece that carries it through.

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[To contact the Siegels directly, e-mail them at siegelentertainment@msn.com.]