“The Mother of All Cabarets 2”

Many of you are aware of our good friend, Lauren Berman, of 4 chairs theatre. Besides directing for local area high schools as well as regional theaters, she does classes for song and theater. Many of her classes end up in concert/cabaret performances at Hey Nonny in Arlington Heights. If you have never been to this wonderful spot, you need to get yourself down there. Hey Nonny is a cool venue, where they serve great drinks and have a marvelous menu. In fact, the venue is somewhat divided- it has a restaurant on the north side of the building and on the south side, a true cabaret, where they have different types of acts every night- from comics to every type of music one might want to hear.

Lauren’s students end up coming to Hey Nonny to “put on a show”, so that their families and friends can see why they have been MIA all those weeks, and as one who has been to many of these, often we find talent that might have gone unfound had it not been for 4 chairs. In fact, we have seen several of Lauren’s students go on to be featured in roles at area theaters that we cover, making us feel like “insiders” who got to see them when they were unknowns.

Tonight’s show, “The Mother of All Cabarets 2” was in honor of the upcoming 2025 “Mother’s Day” this Sunday, and the ladies that graced the stage at Hey Nonny, got the opportunity to “strut their stuff”. Each of the ladies talked about their venture into motherhood and some of the positives and negatives along the way, and they did  16 songs, some solo, some duets and  one ensemble piece.

We even got to see a first on Hey Nonny’s stage when Kristine did a tap dance number ( ” I Can Do That” from “A Chorus Line”. Her hubby even came up onstage to build the dance floor for her. The opening number “When You’re Good To Mama” from “Chicago” done by Abbi set the tone for the evening and while some of the personal stories brought a smile and others a tear, we knew that these ladies all had  worked hard to come on stage and present their songs. I think most of them have stage experience, either from their school days or community theater, but I think what they have, which is probably of the greatest importance, is the ability to not hold back and to open their hearts and souls to each other and the audience that enjoyed this evening of music and love.

The songs selected were not all songs that the audience was familiar with, but when we heard each of their stories, and then the song, they all made sense as they were related to the life events that brought them to the stage tonight. What we have seen over the years of watching the productions that Lauren brings to Hey Nonny is talent that we might never have known about and for those who perform, an outlet that they might never have had the opportunity to find. Let’s face it, everyone has , at one time or another, stood in front of a mirror, holding a hairbrush , or some other object ( pretending it is a microphone) and either sung along with a recording or just sang. Lauren gives you the opportunity to do your thing and do it in front of an audience. Maybe you can be in the next feature production, so reach out to www.4chairstheatre.org , and find out more.

Let’s give it up for: Amy Malouf, Abbi Adjel-Perberg, Kristine Burdi-Stickney, Becka Carvell, Christine Pfenninger ( and her daughter who joined her for a number) and to the pianist who made the music, Tyeese Braslavsky. They made for a fun evening of merriment and music. Hey Nonny is located at 10 South Vail Street in downtown Arlington Heights. Call 224-202-0750 for info and check out their great schedule at www.heynonny.com.

photos by David Pfenninger