Ann Hampton Callaway ( right ) with Liza Minnelli.___________
Singer/songwriter Ann Hampton Callaway, daughter of legendary local television journalist John Callaway, returned to her hometown of Chicago recently to fulfill a six-year-old dream. Hampton Callaway filmed the pilot for Singers Spotlight, a proposed series in which the talented Broadway and cabaret performer will host a singing variation on Inside the Actor's Studio. In each program, Hampton Callaway will converse with her musical guests about their backgrounds and then join them in song. A noted songwriter ( who has penned the theme for The Nanny and songs for Barbra Streisand, among many others ) , Hampton Callaway, also a gifted jazz pianist, will spontaneously compose a song based on audience suggestions. Taped at WTTW, the same studio where her father presided for years over Chicago Tonight, Hampton Callaway was thrilled to talk about the pilot show ( which airs on Channel 11 on July 26 at 8 p.m. ) and her fabulous first guest: Liza Minnelli. See www.annhamptoncallaway.com
Windy City?Times: It must be so wonderful to have shot the pilot for your new program at WTTW.
Ann Hampton Callaway: It's incredible. I've been dreaming of this for over six years. Sometimes you start to lose faith that's its going to happen, though something in me always said, 'This needs to happen.' WTTW is a very dear place to me and my family and I'm so honored that they were excited about the concept.
WCT: What took so long for the show to happen?
AHC: Well, I've been trying to pitch a talk-variety show about singers and singer/songwriters for about six years and I had a lot of interest from people. [ However, ] I think that it's a challenging thing for regular networks because it's very expensive to produce anything with music because of the licensing problem.
WCT: Oh, right.
AHC: It costs so much money to get permission to even do one song but what's great about public television is they have a blanket license, so shows can use many songs. It gives you the freedom to do a great show of music and the sensibility of public television is so much more sophisticated—there's no sense of dumbing down to America. There's a sense that quality music and quality conversation about great artists and what makes art great is possible.
I was sitting in Melissa Manchester's home and we were writing a song and she tells me about this new incredible CD she has out, which I fell in love with, and she said she can't get on television to save her life. I said, 'This is absurd! This is why I want to do this show.' I feel a sense of a passionate mission to bring great music to America and this is a perfect time to do this show because America is obsessed with American Idol. I'm glad that people are so interested in singers, but if they think what goes on in American Idol is real singing they're in for a surprise when they tune into Singers Spotlight. Not only are they going to hear truly remarkable artists; they're also going to find out what's behind all this art.
WCT: Terrific. Let's talk about your first guest: Liza Minnelli. Talk about a coup right out of the gate.
AHC: I know! I met Liza on March 15, 1991. I went to a show that she had attended of my friend, Billy Stritch, and after the show there was a wonderful musical party; that's when I met Liza. We started singing together around the piano. At that point in her life, she was inviting people over for wonderful nights of music and I really spent a lot of time with Liza. Over the years we've had a wonderful friendship—she's been very inspirational to me. I couldn't ask for a more wonderful, brilliant, gracious and generous guest than Liza Minnelli. She's done it all; she's truly an American icon and a real survivor in an age when this kind of music is fragile.
WCT: I'm hoping you and Liza are going to duet on something.
AHC: We are—probably more than one song—but we're definitely going to be doing Stormy Weather together. I asked Liza what she wanted to do together and she said, 'Well let's do something where we belt our asses off!' [ laughs ] and I said, 'Right on sister!'
WCT: I know you're hoping to have funding in place to start taping shows in earnest next spring. Any other guests lined up?
AHC: Well we've gotten definite yesses from Tony Bennett, Barbara Cook, Audra McDonald, Dianne Reeves and, of course, we want to have some pop singers. I really love Bonnie Raitt and Sting. I had the pleasure of working with Carole King and I'm certainly going to try to induce her.
WCT: Great list! Now what about Barbra? I would be remiss if I didn't at least ask that. [ Laughs ]
AHC: I wouldn't dare ask Barbra Streisand to come on my show until it was a bona fide hit and we could spoil her and do all the things she needs to be comfortable. I know Barbra's needs and I certainly know that she has been very, very gracious to me over the years. So when the time is right, I would love to do a whole two-hour special with Barbra. Who knows what would be possible? I know how hard it is for her to get out and do these kinds of programs but it's interesting; now that she's been enjoying doing the live performances, this is more feasible. I'm going to wait for the perfect time to ask Barbra so that the likelihood would be that she would say, 'Yes!' [ Laughs ]
WCT: Fingers crossed on that! Can we talk a moment about your CD, Blues in the Night? It's a very interesting, eclectic collection.
AHC: Originally, it was going to be an album of all blues songs and I suddenly realized that I'm much too optimistic and positive of a person to want to put out a lot of sad songs; I wanted the CD to be an exploration of happiness. After I started singing songs with much more of a blues style, it was so uplifting and audiences have been so powerfully responsive to this part of my music that it was exciting to finally put together a CD that not only has the big blockbusters like Blues in the Night and Blue Moon but also has some beautiful, contemplative songs [ as well as ] songs about happiness.
WCT: That's wonderful. Now, you were here to help open the Center on Halsted—a historic first for the gay community in this country. Can you talk for a moment about the importance of gay audiences for you and this music?
AHC: They've been incredibly important. It's hard to understand exactly why, but I think gay audiences are frequently the heart and soul of many of my audiences, whether I'm on Broadway, at a symphony concert, in a jazz club, in a cabaret. There's a culture of real listening and real arts participation and fun and nightlife in the gay community that has always been the lifesaver of singers and actors. I think there's a very high cultural I.Q. in the gay community and, frankly, if there isn't a certain amount of gay people in the audience it's not going to be as fun of a show. There's a higher sense of humor—almost a language of humor I would say—that I have certainly loved participating in over the years.
WCT: It's so true; we have such good taste and we love The Nanny. [ Laughs ]
AHC: [ Also laughing ] Thank you, thank you— [ it's ] one of the gayest things I've ever done in my life. Speaking of Fran Drescher—I was just at her fundraiser in New York. She's doing this wonderful thing called Cancer Schmancer; she's raising a lot of money for women's health issues and she's an amazing woman and I'm going to be writing a song for her website. The Nanny keeps on giving back, no matter where I travel around the world people still sing The Nanny theme.
