ACCLAIMED ACTRESS-SINGER LONETTE MC KEE MAKES OAK ROOM DEBUT APRIL 5TH IN “CAN’T HELP LOVIN’”

Lonette McKee, Another Oak Room Triumph

Not just another pretty face or cookie cutter jazz singer, Lonette McKee has style and versatility. Ms. McKee’s songlist includes a touching version of “How Long Has This Been Going On,” “Them There Eyes,” “Ill Wind,” “When A Woman Loves a Man,” the ultimate rendering of “Bill.” Her interpretation will bring tears to your eyes. Musical Director Bette Sussman, who has also worked with Whitney Houston, Bette Midler and Aretha Franklin offers fine support and is a virtuoso in her own right. Drums & Percussion: Kahlil Kwame Bell. Bass: Lee Nadel add to the musical mesh. As an aside, McKee, was just recovering from the flu, but her lush contralto remained unaffected.

McKee exploded onto the screen in the Motown-inspired cult musical Sparkle. She starred as a 30s torch singer opposite Gregory Hines in Cotton Club and a 50s Paris-based jazz singer in ‘Round Midnight. On Broadway she starred as Julie in two major productions of Show Boat and off-Broadway as Billie Holiday in Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill.

Shows are Tuesday through Thursday at 8:30 and Friday and Saturday at 8:30 and 11, with dinner seating at 7 pm. Cover charge per person is $50 weeknights and late shows and $60 for early weekend shows plus either a $30 minimum or a $60 prix fixe dinner. Reservations: 212 419 9331 or bmcgurn@algonquinhotel.com.

Disclosure

The Oak Room is proud to announce that from April 5^th thru 30^th, acclaimed actress-singer-composer Lonette McKee will make her Oak Room debut in a new show, “Can’t Help Lovin’.”

A native of Detroit, Lonette McKee displayed her gifts early when at four she sat down at her family’s upright piano and began composing and singing without lessons. At seven, she was playing in local clubs and at 14 had her first hit record. She moved to California, where her big break came when she was chosen as a series lead in The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters, then won the lead role over thousands in the cult film Sparkle. Richard Lester featured her in Cuba, and she worked extensively with Richard Pryor and Spike Lee. Francis Ford Coppolla directed her in Cotton Club and Gardens of Stone, and French director Bertrand Tavernier directed her critically acclaimed performance in the Dexter Gordon-starrer ‘Round Midnight. Ms. McKee made her Broadway debut as Mrs. Jackie Robinson in the musical The First, and won a Tony nomination for her portrayal of Julie in the Houston Grand Opera production of Show Boat, reprising the role in 1983 for Hal Prince. Off-Broadway she won a Drama Desk nomination in the one-woman drama with music, Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill. Television work includes The Women of Brewster Place, Queen with Halle Berry, Blind Faith for Showtime, For the Love of Olivia, Third Watch and the soap opera As The World Turns.

Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, currently preparing Catch Me If You Can for Broadway, are consultants.

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LONETTE MC KEE Song List (Some Songs May be Added or Cut)

“CAN’T HELP LOVIN’”

APRIL 5-30, 2011

OAK ROOM SUPPER CLUB

ALGONQUIN HOTEL

NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10036

(212) 840-6800

SONGLIST

ILL WIND – Harold Arlen and Ted Koehler

HOW LONG HAS THIS BEEN GOING ON – George & Ira Gershwin

HEARTBROKE – Ricky Skaggs

GOD BLESS THE CHILD – Billie Holiday

WHEN A WOMAN LOVES A MAN – Johnny Mercer/Bernie Hanighen

& Gordon Jenkins

I WONDER WHERE OUR LOVE HAS GONE – Woodrow “Buddy” Johnson

DON’T STAND SO CLOSE – Sting (May be Cut)

HARD DAY’S NIGHT – Paul McCartney & John Lennon (May Be Cut)

WE THE PEOPLE – Fats Waller

HOOKED ON YOUR LOVE – Curtis Mayfield

LOVER MAN – James Edward Davis, Ram Ramirez & Jimmy Sherman

COLORS OF THE LOVE OF MY LIFE – Lonette McKee

SWEETER & SWEETER – Lonette McKee

DO TO ME – Lonette McKee

MAYBE THERE ARE REASONS – Lonette McKee

CAN’T HELP LOVIN’ DAT MAN – Oscar Hammerstein II & Jerome Kern (Was cut on our visit)

BILL – Oscar Hammerstein II & Jerome Kern

THEM THERE EYES – Maceo Pinkard, Doris Tauber & William Tracey

WHAT A LITTLE MOONLIGHT – Harry Woods

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Dark paneled walls, white tablecloths, and a gleaming piano let you know you’re in for a treat at Algonquin’s famous supper club. Come inside and slip back in time to a more glamorous era. Enjoy dinner, then a show. The Oak Room was a launching pad for Harry Connick Jr., Michael Feinstein, Andrea Marcovicci, Diana Krall, Jane Monheit, Peter Cincotti, and Jamie Cullum. Learn more about the entertainment at The Algonquin or view the performance schedule.

Dinner and performances are offered seasonally Tuesday through Saturday, by reservation only. Dinner seating begins at 6:30 p.m. with an 8:30 p.m. curtain time. There is a second performance on Friday and Saturday evenings at 11 p.m. Guests may enjoy an á la carte menu at 10 p.m., prior to the second show.
On Sundays, enjoy a Jazz Brunch with Barbara Carroll (seasonally) with seating beginning at 11:30 a.m. and show at 1 p.m. See the “Oak Room Supper Club” page for more information

Food and service continue to improve. And there is a new incarnation of Matilda, the fabled Algonquin feline.

Entertainment NYC