Die-hard fans of the Grammy-winning singer/actress Bette Midler are well-aware that her rise to stardom includes an unconventional run performing in 1970s New York at the gay male bathhouse known as the Continental Baths.
Midler herself has stated in interviews that she's proud of Continental performances, which is where she laid the foundations for a spot as a gay icon and first earned her nickname as "The Divine Miss M." In fact, Midler named the title of her 1998 album Bathhouse Bette.
But now with Midler performing in concert arena shows, it's very unlikely that she'll ever return to performing the seedy and intimate confines of a bathhouse. Which is where Hell in a Handbag Productions comes in with its summer show Bette, Live at the Continental Baths. The musical tribute stars Caitlin Jackson as Midler, features music director Jeremy Ramey portraying Barry Manilow ( who also famously accompanied Midler during her Continental days ) and includes TJ Crawford and Adam Fane as two toweled "bathhouse boys." NOTE: Adam Fane has been replaced in the cast by Will Wilhelm.]
"I've been obsessed with Bette Midler since forever. Haven't we all?" said Jackson, who was overjoyed when someone posted black-and-white footage of one of Midler's full Continental cabaret shows on YouTube. "I thought it would be fun to someday, sort of re-create that."
Luckily for Jackson, the Hell in a Handbag folks were very receptive to the idea, particularly artistic director David Cerda who greenlit the project with director/choreographer Christopher Pazdernik at the helm.
"I just thought it would be a fun, frothy summer show," Cerda said. "The goal is not to mimic Midler, but to capture her spirit and Caitlin is very bawdy and funny and she's got the vocal chops."
Now both Cerda and Jackson emphasize that Bette, Live at the Continental Baths is a tribute show and that their venue, Mary's Attic, has a karaoke license. So hopefully these will be deterrents and defenses to keep the real Midler from swooping in to shut the show down.
"It's really no different than people doing an homage to Bette Midler, but this is the first one at least that I've seen that really takes you back to the baths instead of just a revue," Jackson said. "I hope she doesn't get mad."
Although Jackson loves Midler and her long career, she said really wanted to give audiences a taste of Midler's brassiness and unfiltered performance style long before "Disney got ahold of her in the 1980s."
"I'm desperate to do this show at Man's Country," Jackson said, referring to the longtime Chicago bathhouse just down a few blocks south on Clark Street from Mary's Attic. When asked about Jackson's wish, Cerda laughed and said, "That would be fun. I'm sure it's possible, but we'll just have to wait and see how well-received it is first."
Hell in a Handbag Productions' Bette, Live at the Continental Baths plays through Friday, Aug. 21, at Mary's Attic, 5400 N. Clark St. A preview is 8 p.m. Friday, July 17, with a press opening 8 p.m. Saturday, July 18. Tickets are $20-$22, with a limited number of $35 VIP tickets ( including drink ). Visit handbagproductions.org .
Gertrude Stein repeats
Back in 2006, the gay collaborators of director/adapter Frank Galati ( The Grapes of Wrath ) and composer Stephen Flaherty ( Ragtime, Once on This Island ) teamed up to write Loving Repeating, a musical revue dedicated to the writings of famed American lesbian writer and modern art curator Gertrude Stein.
About Face Theatre and Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art teamed up to present the show's world premiere, which was deemed so artistically important that Jay Records issued an original cast recording even though Loving Repeating never transferred to New York.
Now, Loving Repeating is back in Chicago with a new production courtesy of Kokandy Productions at Theater Wit. Allison Hendrix, a Stein fan since the age of 17, directs the musical.
"I generally like the hardest challenge possible," laughed Hendrix about taking on such a high profile revival of Loving Repeating. "I like to choose something that is non-traditional narrative structure and has a lot of things to figure out."
Nonetheless, Hendrix emphasized that Loving Repeating is actually one of the most accessible ways to find out about Stein and her publicity-filled life as an artistic expatriate in 1920s Paris where she was very open with her relationship with longtime partner Alice B. Toklas.
"It's material that makes a lot of sense," Hendrix said, noting how Galati drew a lot from Stein's public lectures for the show. "It's not dry and intellectual, it's very silly. There is someone doing a dance in a cow head and there is a little vaudeville and it's very romantic and joyful."
Kokandy Productions presents Loving Repeating from Saturday, July 18, through Sunday, Aug. 30, at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Ave. Preview tickets are $25; regular-run admission is $38. Call 773-975-8150 or www.kokandyproductions.com .
