Claudia Hommel, your ticket to Paris!

From 4th graders to grandparents, from critics to repeat presenters, our audiences agree: an evening with Claudia is sure to be the "zenith of the season"; the "auditorium was jammed", to "take off on a magical journey". "No one should miss this opportunity!"

Let some of the critics tell you more:
Neil Tesser for the Chicago Reader is enchanted. “Claudia Hommel plays the role of chanteuse-boulevardiere to the hilt. Her glassy tone and blithe celebrations of life make her a latter-day female counterpart to Maurice Chevalier, the quintessential French entertainer… And she offers an unspoken guarantee that you'll think you paid for the evening in euros."

John S. Wilson for the New York Times says "Claudia Hommel, a singer and actress who performs in both theater and cabaret, brings a sense of theater with her when she goes into cabaret...Miss Hommel's voice can be strong and soaring, and she uses it to excellent dramatic effect in her lusty Spanish and French songs."

From Pioneer Press, Dorothy Andries writes at length about our "Women of Paris" concert... to give you a good idea of what one evening event can look like:

<For a few hours the evening of Friday May 7, we were in Paris, transported by a marvelous cabaret show at the Ravinia Festival starring Claudia Hommel. The lovely chanteuse sang nearly all of her two dozen songs in French, with the exception of a few that had been written by Cole Porter or had crossed the Atlantic to become popular songs in English.

<Among those were “My Man” and “Autumn Leaves” with English words by Johnny Mercer and they were sung in both French and English. Hommel is a cabaret artist, which means she is a song stylist and interpreter. An excellent actress, she can set a mood with a turn of her head or the look in her eyes. She spoke about each song, giving us the context in which it was written, and tidbits about the women who sang them.

<Her program was divided into two parts, pre- and post World War II. Josephine Baker was the most familiar in the first set and Edith Piaf in the second.

In Piaf songs “Milord,” “Padam padam,” the finale “Non, je ne regrette rien” and the encore “La Vie En Rose,” Hommel made no attempt to imitate the “Little Sparrow,” but simply gave the pieces straight-up respectful renderings. She began “Autumn Leaves” unaccompanied, filling the room briefly with just her own clear voice. Only in the second verse was she joined by Bob Moreen at the piano and Don Stille on the accordion. Her colleagues are excellent musicians, Stille playing virtuoso riffs and Moreen also joining her on vocals now and again.

Hommel is a very pretty woman, her flawless skin topped with curly black hair and she made ample use of hats and at one point a bright red feather boa. She wore a mauve satin gown with a stole for the first half, then returned after intermission in a sleek deep purple skirt with form-fitting bodice.

Since so many French songs are about lost love, the program had plenty of drama. By the end of “My Man,” Hommel had collapsed in mock grief across the top of the grand piano!

The show marked the finale of the Rising Stars series at Ravinia, and it was held on the second floor dining room of the restaurant building. There was regular seating, but the front part of the room was also punctuated with cabaret tables, and a faint aroma of wine filled the air.

An American from Paris

A favorite from the Art Institute of Chicago to the Lapin Agile in Paris, actor/singer CLAUDIA HOMMEL is best known for her cabaret concerts of French and American songs celebrating Paris. Not limited to the role of French chanteuse, "Claudia Hommel is a gifted and uniquely versatile artist, with a wide range of roles demanding deep emotional commitment or zany satirical high-jinks and everything in between," writes her mentor, actor and director Alvin Epstein. Claudia's repertoire encompasses French chanson, American standards, 19th and 20th century art songs and theatre music. Her clear and beautiful voice, ranging from lyrical to gutsy, adds to her considerable appeal.

Born in Paris and raised in Detroit, trained extensively in New York City where she lived for 8 years, and now calling Chicago home, Claudia leads an active career as a theatrical singer in clubs, recital halls, museums, libraries and theatres from New York City to California. Described as a "bit of Audrey Hepburn, with something of Ginger Rogers, Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier and... Air Jordan," Claudia "will make you want to dance along the Seine."

Claudia is active as a teaching artist/artist-in-education. Her Cabaret-Paree programs get elementary school kids up and dancing in French in no time. Her high school programs "Souvenirs of Paris 1950" and "Paris in the Jazz Age" have traveled from coast to coast in association with members of the American Association of Teachers of French. Her academic background in history and archives (she was the Detroit Institute of Arts' first archivist) infuses her school residencies, workshops and master classes with revelations of social and cultural history and criticism.

A member of the Actors Equity Association, Claudia appeared as Young Nadya in Joshua Sobol's Adam, Guenevere in Camelot, Elvira in Blithe Spirit, Artie in Lee Blessing's Eleemosynary, and Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream. She is also a member of the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. She often shares the stage with other members of the Chicago Cabaret Professionals, which she co-founded in 1998.

The Maison Clobert label features Claudia's recordings of Parisian cabaret concerts: "Paris/Paree," "Paris in the Jazz Age," and "Romance Language: French songs for lovers" (featuring the legendary jazz violinist Johnny Frigo), and the classical-jazz crossover albums "The Jazz Fauré Project: au bord de l'eau" and "By the Riverbank".

From the simplest set-up (a living room with 30 chairs to which we add one accordionist and a singer) to a full concert stage with jazz combo and singer, the basic requirement is that we be seen and heard the way your audience likes it best.

Handheld wireless microphone and quick-release stand, focused lighting on the singer. When engaging our piano-singer duo, we'll need a piano in tune and good order. A boom stand and vocal mic for the singer-pianist who accompanies Claudia. When engaging the accordionist, an instrumental mic and another vocal mic on boom stands. Keep the monitors away from center stage.

A small table for props. A high stool with or without a back. Focused lights, optional color variations.