Concert Review: Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs at Orchestra Hall

The very versatile Alan Cumming.

Album cover for "Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs," 2016. Alan explained how the cover was shot on his recent appearance on Seth Meyers.

Last night I attended Alan Cumming’s concert at Orchestra Hall with my wife and my mother. Alan’s show is called “Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs,” but a more accurate title would be: “Alan Cumming Sings and Entertains the Hell out of You for Two Hours.” Cumming is an amazing and fearless performer who has won many plaudits for his work on stage and screen. He’s probably most well-known for his starring role as the Emcee in both the 1998 and 2014 Broadway revivals of Cabaret, and for his role as Eli Gold on the TV show The Good Wife. 

In concert, Cumming is a master showman, as he could have the whole audience laughing and during emotional moments it was so quiet you could hear the proverbial pin drop as everyone hung on Cumming’s every word. Like many great musical theater artists, Cumming fully inhabits a song when he sings it, and you could tell that the passion he feels for these songs is genuine. 

The songs Cumming picked were an eclectic mixture of pop songs, ranging from Miley Cyrus’ “The Climb” to Billy Joel’s “Goodnight Saigon.” One of the most clever songs was Cummings’ mash-up of Adele’s, “Someone Like You,” Katy Perry’s “Firework,” and Lady Gaga’s “The Edge of Glory,” which Cumming has re-titled, “Someone like the Edge of Firework.” 

Along the way, Cumming told hilarious stories about writing a jingle for a condom commercial, and co-hosting the Tony Awards with Kristin Chenoweth. He also told moving stories about his grandfather and his difficult relationship with his father, the subject of Cumming’s 2014 memoir, Not My Father’s Son. Cumming is a fantastic storyteller, and I could listen to him talk for hours. And it’s not just because of his Scottish accent. 

Cumming was backed by pianist Lance Horne, cellist Eleanor Norton, and a drummer/guitarist whose name unfortunately wasn’t in the program. All three musicians did a great job of making the songs come to life. From my seat I could watch Cumming and Norton at the same time, and it was a lot of fun to see the obvious joy that she takes in performing. 

If you want to be entertained by a great performer, go see “Alan Cumming Sings Sappy Songs.” It’s fantastic.