Riverside Theatre jazzed things up last Monday evening with the help of award-winning singer and producer Steve Tyrell at the ninth annual Riverside Theatre Supper Club, hosted by the Riverside Theatre Friends Committee.
Guests enjoyed cocktails in the Orchid Lobby then supped on a sumptuous chicken Française dinner catered by Elizabeth D. Kennedy & Co. The Waxlax Stage had been transformed into the sophisticated Skyline Room, reminiscent of the intimate supper club establishments that riddled New York City when jazz was king.
Tyrell, known for his earthy, soulful tone, had been the Supper Club’s inaugural performer when theater advocate Nancy Goodes first brought the idea to life in 2010. Goodes returned to Vero for this year’s performance, amplifying the evening’s celebration and bringing things full circle.
Tyrell crooned songs from the Great American Songbook, a canon of American melodies and jazz standards, which went down as smoothly as the hazelnut chocolate gelato the guests savored for dessert. During their musical trip down memory lane, audience members hummed along as toe-tapping music filled the room.
“The music he sang really struck a chord with the entire audience,” observed Anna Bain Slater, event chair. “I think his music touched so many people.”
With a nod to Valentine’s Day, Tyrell performed “At Last,” which he declared one of the best love songs ever written. He also treated the audience to several songs from his most recent album and, in a nod to his Italian heritage, the FBI (Full Blooded Italian) sang “Bella Notte,” from “Lady and The Tramp,” ending the song in Italian.
Other high notes of the evening were Tyrell’s performance of “The Way You Look Tonight,” which he sang in the movie “Father of The Bride,” and “Sunny Side of the Street,” which was used by NASA to wake astronauts in outer space.
“I fell in love with the theater several years ago and when I became a member of the Friends Committee, that enabled me to become more involved,” shared Slater. “If you go to any of the shows that we have at the theater you see the fruits of our labor.”
The women of the Friends Committee, currently chaired by Rosemary Haverland, raise capital to supplement annual operating costs through the Friends Fall Luncheon, Supper Club and the upcoming VIP Premiere Gala.
Photos by: Stephanie LaBaff
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