Last night was the second (annual?) Waterwell Cabaret Benefit at Joe’s Pub.  It started off good, and I was definitely having a fun time, until the evening came to an abrupt end in the most random and disappointing of ways.  Not even halfway through the set, while the lovely Hanna Cheek introduced the next song, a large portion of the attendees began noisily making their way toward the door.  When the disruption finally couldn’t be ignored any longer, she asked what was going on, and it turned out there was a fire downstairs, and the room was filling up with smoke.  Awesome.  The ensemble did their best to persuade the audience not to retrieve their coats and to wait in the lounge next door until the smoke was cleared, but eventually we had to be evacuated as the fire department axed their way through the floor of the venue.

Words can’t express how bad I feel for these guys.  All the schmoozing and crazy amounts of organizing that it took to set up this show, with all the sponsors and performers and auction items and everything, and it all ends because of a stupid fire.  I didn’t see anyone buying a 50/50 raffle ticket on their way out either.  The thing is, it’s incredibly expensive to put on an independent off-Broadway show, and the proceeds from the benefit were going to be a big part of the funding for this year’s show.  So if you have any tax refund money left over that you don’t know what to do with, or if a wealthy relative unexpectedly dies and leaves you with a huge inheritance, it would be really cool if you could head on over to waterwell.org and put a drop in the bucket.  And if you STILL have money left over, there’s a sale at Threadless!  Wooo.

In celebration of my 26th birthday, Aryn took me to see The Apple Tree at Studio 54 last night. Knowing nothing of the original 60’s show, I wasn’t familiar with the story or the music, but I was there pretty much just to see and hear the lovely Kristin Chenoweth. And she was there. And she did sing. Although the songs themselves were decidedly less showy, and perhaps less memorable than something like Wicked, she performed them so flawlessly, and had so much fun with them, that it’s hard to say anything bad about the show. Throughout the night, Chenoweth showcases her versatility by playing three characters, jumping from a chesty vibrato to a piercing nasal voice and everywhere in between.

In addition to her crazy mutant vocal range, she has perfect comedic timing, whether going for something subtle or completely over the top. In the end, the show itself might be a little fluffy and insubstantial, but her performance is so captivating and she is so charasmatic, that everyone from the hip locals (us) to the out-of-towners in sweatpants (directly in front of us) gave her a standing ovation at the end.

My birthday also featured lunch at Swich and dinner at Burgers & Cupcakes. And I think I had oatmeal for breakfast. Overall a good day. The Apple Tree ends its limited engagement next month, so if you’re unable to see it, I recommend that you make it to the next show Kristin Chenoweth is in, whatever it may be. Just don’t wear sweatpants, that’s not cool.

I just thought I’d give a little update as to what’s happening in the world of Joe lately. First, Marco Millions opened this weekend and is doing well. It’s a change of pace from my usual progressive rock tendencies, and everyone seems to enjoy those wacky Waterwell kids, so check it out if you’re in the mood for some off-off-Broadway theatre.

Second, my band has a show at the Downstairs Lounge at CBGBs on Saturday (08/12, 12:30 am, $10). It would be great if people would come out and enjoy the rock. It’s going to be our first show with drummer extraordinaire Jeff Palermo, and we’re going to be playing a few songs from God’s Eye for the first time in public. Plus, CBGBs is closing in like a month, so you’ll get a little wedge of the cheese wheel of history. Should be good times.