Photo: Kevin Alvey

Birdland became Preservation Hall North as Julie Benko marched her band on stage for a set called Euphonic Gumbo. The performance, inspired by the French Quarter of New Orleans, was hardly a random soup, but more of a well thought out, scenic visit to the Crescent City, beloved by Benko and her husband, jazz pianist Jason Yeager who makes her arrangements of classic tunes entirely fresh for her.

It helps that the seven-piece band includes first rate players: including Michael O’Brian on bass, drummer Jay Sawyer, Andy Warren on trumpet, Evan Christopher on clarinet and Ron Wilkins on trombone. Mixing up the music and her story-telling, Benko created a quiz with prizes that include Café du Monde chicory infused coffee, her CDs, and a return to her next Birdland gig—all great because, as she demonstrates amply, she is a master at the cabaret genre, her theme enabling her to provide a history of the beloved Louisiana city, as well as lovely renditions of the tunes.

For “Love for Sale,” known in Billie Holiday’s version, Benko talks about Storyville, a surprisingly diverse place in Jim Crow south. Louis Armstrong lived there for a while in the early twentieth century. She imagines a brothel there. Of course, Benko could not resist a joke about parades and raining on them. This was Monday night, when she’s not on call to sub for Lea Michele in Funny Girl a few blocks away on Broadway, although she stars as Fanny Brice on Thursday nights. Referencing Brice, Benko changed some language in “Bill Bailey,” which Fanny Brice sang back in the day when the lyrics reflected a different attitude about women and their men. Swapping “Don’t” for “Won’t,” she sang, “Don’t you come home Bill Bailey.” 

Julie Benko will take on the role of Fanny Brice for a week soon, she said when we caught with her after the show, with three different actors stepping in for Nicky. Gleeks, as Lea Michele’s fans are called, after the show, Glee, will not be disappointed. Yeager returns to Birdland on March 27 for his homage to the writing of Kurt Vonnegut, and Julie Benko will be singing.