The Four Corners Arts Center Presents

A Cabaret Performance with Bobbi Carrey and Will McMillan, Doug Hammer Accompaniment

IRVING BERLIN: THE VOICE OF EVERYMAN

July 12, 2008 at 8:00 p.m.

at The Meeting House,
3850 Main Rd, Tiverton, RI 02878

From “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” in 1911 to “Count Your Blessings” in 1954, Irving Berlin was the voice of Everyman, putting into words and music what everyone felt to be true about their lives.

He wrote tender love songs, waltzes, novelty songs, in many genres. And unlike many others, Berlin never relied on any one style to sustain his success, and by doing so managed to stay current and relevant long after others had fallen by the wayside.

No one else could have spanned the distance between “God Bless America” and “Say it Isn’t So” without showing the effort, but Berlin did it seamlessly, merging all his efforts into a body of work that stands as a formidable model for any other songwriter.

In appreciation of Berlin’s genius, this show by Bobbi Carrey and Will McMillan offers songs by-and stories about-Irving Berlin.

BOBBI CARREY
Through her company, nowandthen Productions, Bobbi Carrey offers cabaret performances combining social history with popular American song. Her shows range from Irving Berlin: The Voice of Everyman to Give My Regards to Broadway. Her first CD, BETWEEN THE WARS: Music from 1918-1941 was featured in the Boston Globe and the Boston Herald. In 2004, she released a second CD, IF I LOVED YOU, with Will McMillan to a sold-out crowd at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston. She was one of thirty-six participants selected from nationwide auditions to attend the Cabaret Conference at Yale University.

Her prior musical experiences have ranged from folk singing to summer stock, from Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes to soloist with the Mystic Chorale, from Christmas Revels to a women’s vocal trio called ‘The Mood Elevators.’ She has performed throughout New England, including CabaretFest! in Newburyport and Provincetown, Club Cafe, Encore Lounge, Center for Arts in Natick, Harvard Pops, Scullers Jazz Club and at many private parties and events. She has been featured live on Ron Della Chiesa’s The Jazz Songbook on WGBH radio and was nominated with Will McMillan for an IRNE for Best Cabaret Group Performance from the Independent Reviewers of New England. www.bobbicarrey.com

Bobbi has done so much for and with the American Songbook. Her vocal interpretations and appreciation of the 'story behind the song' makes her one of our most precious and important performers! —Jordan Rich, WBZ Radio, Boston, MA

WILL MCMILLAN
Will McMillan performs around New England with singer Bobbi Carrey in shows on Irving Berlin, Richard Rodgers, Hollywood, Broadway and Love. They released their first CD, If I Loved You, and debuted two new shows, In Good Company and The Envelope Please at Scullers Jazz Club.

For years McMillan hosted "Will & Company," a series at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education highlighting local performers and songwriters, which earned him a 2002 IRNE Award for Best Cabaret Show in a small venue. He is also a founding member of the vocal quartet At The Movies, which received a 2003 IRNE Award for Best Cabaret Group Performance. Their CD release concert for "Reel One" was named one of 2003's Top Ten Shows by Bay Windows. Will has attended the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center Cabaret Symposium and the Cabaret Conference at Yale, and has released a CD of jazz standards, "Sketchbook 1," with pianist/composer Steve Sweeting.

“There aren't enough superlatives to give McMillan his dues. What a voice. What delivery. He owns the stage even when he's still as a whisper. Isn't that what cabaret is about?”—Beverly Creasey, Theater Mirror

DOUG HAMMER
Doug Hammer is a veteran musician, composer, producer, arranger, and engineer, with clients ranging from corporations to singers to songwriters. He founded, developed and runs Dreamworld Productions, a full service music production company and recording studio. He has composed and produced music for commercials, film, video, and theater. He works with many vocalists as pianist, arranger, musical director, and CD producer. He is a scholarship graduate of Berklee College of Music.