January 28, 2016
John Epperson: An Evening with Lypsinka's Maid
Steve Weinstein READ TIME: 2 MIN.
While I would never ask John Epperson to retire Lypsinka, his neurotic drag persona, John Epperson: An Evening with Lypsinka's Maid shows just how well Epperson does on his own, in his "male drag."
It was not always so, at least in my experience. A while ago, I saw Epperson perform an autobiographical one-man show at an East Village theater. It was basically the story of a sensitive, artistically inclined young man growing up in a backwoods Southern town where such things were frowned on.
Said young man yearns for the Big City, arrives, and thrives. It's a story common to many of us -- too many, I'd say, for it to warrant another retelling. Obviously, I didn't like it.
So it's with no small amount of trepidation that I went into Feinstein's/54 Below in mid-January. What I experienced couldn't have been more different.
Far from the theater version, this semi-autobiographical cabaret show (emphasis on "semi") was a sheer delight. From start to bang-up ending, Epperson gave the lucky audience a veritable object lesson in what cabaret is supposed to be.
The evening included scintillating, hilarious and enlightening medleys of the Charleston; the music of Broadway legend Betty Comden; and songs associated with Kate Thompson, the jack-of-all-trades musical genius who guided many a star through his or her paces while overseeing many of the musical numbers during the heyday of the Freed Unit at MGM. There was even a medley from Michael Feinstein's own beloved American Songbook of proto-rap songs.
Throughout it all, Epperson stepped very much into the limelight as a gregarious, easygoing, thoroughly enjoyable chap; the kind of guy you'd love to invite over a bottle of wine or three with a piano nearby.
This is exactly what cabaret is supposed to be and all too often these days isn't: intimate, fun, casual, lightly educational. I hope Epperson returns soon to a cabaret in our fair city and reprises this perfect evening.
"John Epperson: An Evening with Lypsinka's Maid" ran through Jan. 23 at Feinstein's/54 Below, 254 W. 54th St. For tickets to upcoming shows, call 646-465-3551 or visit the 54 Below website.
