Cabaret when you least expect it
November 12, 2009
By DONALD LIEBENSON Contributor (Pioneer Press)
Sunday and Monday nights are not usually associated with an evening out, but Steve Burke, co-founder of Shoestring Productions at Stage One in Des Plaines, is changing that perception. In an intimate former 1920s ballroom space in the Old Masonic Temple on Lee Street, Burke and company are reviving the intimate pleasures of cabaret.
Like the song asks, "What good is sitting alone in your room?" Shoestring offers a full-length musical revue for $10, which includes a beverage and a dessert from Sweet Remembrance, the downstairs coffee shop that Burke recently opened with his business partner (and cast member) Randy Toelke.
Burke, 54, a veteran of community theater, said that he had wanted to open a cabaret-style venue for awhile. "We wanted to give people an affordable evening out on what have traditionally been considered off nights," he said. "It's a nice break from the daily grind."
Shoestring's inaugural productions are "Listen to My Heart: The Songs of David Friedman," which runs on Sunday evenings through Nov. 22 at 7 p.m., and "Cole," which runs on Monday evenings through Nov. 23 at 7:30 p.m.
Friedman was the conductor and vocal arranger for the Disney animated classics, "Beauty and the Beast," "Aladdin," "Pocahontas," and "The Hunchback of Notre Dame." The revue spotlights his original songs, including "We Live on Borrowed Time," which Barry Manilow covered. "His songs take you through life's up moments and sad moments," Burke said, "Relationships, life, and death. But it's a very uplifting show."
"Cole" is a Porter-palooza of standards ("Night and Day," "Anything Goes") and lesser-known songs ("Thank You So Much, Missus Lowsborough-Goodby") by one of the signature authors of the American songbook.
The shows feature two separate ensembles. Burke held open auditions and will cast future shows the same way. The eight performers in "Listen to My Heart" and five in "Cole" hail from Des Plaines, Wilmette, Highland Park, Glenview, Mundelein, Rolling Meadows, Vernon Hills, and other points mostly north and northwest.
Burke is a champion of community theater. "What I've always enjoyed and been impressed with is that the performers come to rehearsals and performances with great enthusiasm," he said. "They're not in it for the money. They're there because they really want to do it."
The company's unconventional schedule was chosen "so we wouldn't compete with other theaters," Burke said. "Most are dark on Sundays or Mondays. It could also give us access in the future to solo performances by (performers) who are in other shows."
Burke considers himself a "behind the scenes guy," although he does provide piano accompaniment for both shows. He has directed productions for theater companies from Winnetka to Western Springs, but he said he has a special affinity for cabaret. "When it's done right," he said, "the audience feels like they are more in touch with the performer. I've had people come up to me after the shows and say, 'I felt like they were singing right to me,' which they were. I wanted to create something where the audience will come back because they feel that connection."
Shoestring's next production will be "Celebrate the Season" a holiday music revue that begins Nov. 29.
The theater seats 80, and was outfitted with a stage and theatre lighting. "We're exceeding our expectations," Burke said. "We knew it would be an uphill climb because people don't necessarily go out on Sunday and Monday nights. But it's not like they don't leave the house. They go to the grocery store. They go to the movies. It's just a matter of re-educating people."
