Julie, Madly, Deeply

Any number of Broadway houses are named after icons of the theater–e.g., George Gershwin, Richard Rodgers, Neil Simon, the Lunts, and even a couple of critics. So why shouldn’t New York City’s cabaret rooms follow suit?

Happily, a major step in that direction is being made. Denis Carey and Van Pano, owners of The Hideaway Restaurant at 32 West 37th Street in Manhattan, have decided to change the focus of entertainment in that venue from big band and jazz to “elegant cabaret” as of September, 2001. In conjunction with the change, the restaurant will be renamed The Hideaway Cabaret and Supper Club, and its main performance space will be christened The Julie Wilson Room in honor of the legendary lady who is the essence of cabaret class, talent, and glamour.

“We feel that, since Miss Wilson has given so much support to the cabaret community over the years and helped define the art form with her dazzling performances, this honor is overdue and well deserved,” said Carey and Pano. The room will offer shows by rising cabaret stars as well as established names. Wilson will be very much on hand, as performer and honoree, for the gala opening of the venue on September 5; she will also perform there on September 6, 7, and 8, along with Dave Frishberg, Barbara Carroll, Margaret Whiting, and other greats, in a benefit for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. These performances will be dedicated to the memory of the cabaret and jazz singer Susannah McCorkle, who ended her own life earlier this year.

Performers set to appear in The Julie Wilson Room in upcoming weeks and months include KT Sullivan and Larry Woodard, Amanda McBroom, Wesla Whitfield, Mark Murphy, and the musical theater’s own Kristin Chenoweth and Tom Wopat. For further information, phone 212-947-6428.