Daniel Johnson served on the board of Chicago Cabaret Professionals, and he led the effort to launch Chicago Cabaret Magazine Sept 1, 2020. His dedication to the art form of cabaret is real, thoughtful, and well researched. He recently stepped out of his roles as Editor and Board Member, and this is my interview with him in November 2023.   ANNE: Hi, Daniel. DANIEL: Hi, Anne. ANNE: I wanted to tell you from my heart that I truly love the magazine — and to take it from a newsletter for our members to an online magazine that is available to the public is fantastic. Your leadership on this w ..read more

In July, the Chicago Cabaret Professionals Board unanimously elected Patricia Salinski as President and Ellen Winters Reynolds as Vice President. Patricia and Ellen are both longtime members of Chicago Cabaret Professionals and have experience serving on the Board, Patricia most recently as Vice President and Ellen as Educations Chair. Their terms are for 2023 to 2025. They join 11 other board members in serving a two-year term, from 2023 to 2025: Pam Peterson, Secretary; Bridget Schutt, Treasurer; Carla Gordon, Director of Development; Gaye Klopack, Director of Education; Carolyn Wehner, Dir ..read more

On a tropical August night, the Epiphany Center for the Arts welcomed a sold-out audience to the 2023 Emerging Artist Showcase.  As the room filled, the excitement elevated and the energy in the room was palpable.  Five finalists were preparing in the Green Room for what was expected to be a fantastic night.  And it was. The finalists were culled from a list of submissions that was assessed by a panel of professional musicians; with the performers garnering the highest total points proceeding to the final showcase.  This quintet of performers was very evenly matched, maki ..read more

One of my favorite things about being Membership Director of our organization is getting to welcome new members. While the majority of our membership resides in greater Chicagoland, I have noticed in the last few years an increasing number of newer members have addresses that are far from The Windy City. My interest was piqued. And when my partner and I were in London this past April and visited with NYC singer and CCP member David Sabella after his fabulous show at The Pheasantry, it was time to delve further. Carolyn Wehner with David Sabella and Michael Lorenz post-show at the Pheasantry ..read more

Accompany Me: Iconic Singing Pianists (August 6 at Rhapsody in Rogers Park) celebrated Beckie Menzie’s favorite musical icons who have made their careers singing, songwriting and performing at the piano. Artists such as Carole King, Billy Joel, Nat King Cole, Stevie Wonder, Lady Gaga, and Alicia Keys were ostensibly the subject of the program. But even more so was Menzie’s love affair with the piano and her 35th Anniversary entertaining at the piano in Chicago cabarets and beyond. Her fans know her as a virtuosic performer. When I first began to follow her career, she astounded me by samplin ..read more

Building a Theater David Fink and Kim Clark In 2001, my partner Kim Clark and I purchased a 20,000-foot former factory in the small town of Three Oaks, which is in Southwestern Michigan, with the intention of turning it into a live performance venue. The building was constructed in the late 1800s as part of the Warren Featherbone Factory where they made corsets using the cartilage of turkey feathers instead of whalebone, since it was more comfortable, lasted longer, and didn’t smell as bad.  When we bought the brick structure, there was a hole in the roof where rain and snow were ro ..read more

On April 11, 2023, we traveled to see a film debut at the Great American Songbook Foundation (GASF) courtesy of Library and Archives division. In these pages we have been following this important institution in Carmel, Indiana. In our September 2022 issue of this magazine, we covered one of many activities produced by GASF the with Ellen Winters Reynolds’s story, “Changing Lives Through Music.” Note that GASF should not be confused with the American Songbook Association (ASA), publishers of Cabaret Scenes magazine, a New York based organization that also shares our mission in respect to the Am ..read more

Anne Burnell (AB): Hello Daryl, we are excited to learn about a landmark in your personal life. After more than 30 years teaching in Chicago-area public schools you are about to retire. Now that your days are about to be free, your friends in cabaret wonder what this life altering accomplishment means for your life in Chicago cabaret! Daryl Nitz (DN) Yes, I taught at Glenview for 25 years and at Wilmette and Chicago before that. AB: Congratulations! DN: And June 9 is my last day. AB: First off, big changes are afoot at Davenports. As we previously reported, the club is on the market to be sold ..read more

What is a producer? When asked what a producer for a live show does, the Berklee College of Music answered on its website: “Working towards the broad goal of putting on a successful event, concert, or festival, producers truly do it all.” Producers book artists, delegate staff including directors, technicians and promoters, and in most cases coordinate with venues.  Importantly, they oversee funding and distribute payments. Cabaret offers the opportunity for many artists to serve as their own producers, for which the do-it-yourself process has advantages—and disadvantages. Producing is so ..read more

In preparation for her New York City cabaret debut February 5, 2023, at the Laurie Beechman theater, Cynthia Clarey, previously known for accomplished performances in musical theater and opera, gave an absorbing interview to Broadway World’s Michael Walters. He explained how Clarey began a new career in Chicago as a cabaret performer – how she began collaborating with Chicago cabaret legend Beckie Menzie and became, in a few short years, a leading and popular member of the Chicago cabaret community. Recipient of this year’s Chicago Cabaret Professionals Outreach Award, Clarey has become well k ..read more