Blues From Brazil to China

2011

by Will Friedwald

Colleen McHugh has found a fresh approach to the catalog of Cole Porter, perhaps the most frequently celebrated Great American Songbooker. She is at her best when overtly theatrical, not to mention funny, funny, funny (she’s a Second City vet), and boasts an outstanding quartet with Tedd Firth, Aaron Weinstein, Steve Doyle, and Matt Munisteri.

© 2011 The Wall Street Journal. All Rights Reserved.
 
 
 
 

Prêt-à-Porter at Signature Theatre, Arlington

July 2011

by Michael Miyazaki

Colleen McHugh’s show, Prêt-à-Porter: Cole Porter’s French Connection, concentrates on the French-connected portion of the Porter songbook, or, as McHugh put it, “You’ll realize on the drive home that the title works on so many levels.” McHugh, dressed in silver lamé (as a “glamorous robot” as she put it), is a sassy, brassy presence, with warm humor and incredible musicality.

The theme of the evening allowed McHugh to focus on a delightful slice of the Porter repertoire and yet have a great variety of moods: joyous on “C’est Magnifique,” pensive on “Do I Love You?,” explosive on “Find Me a Primitive Man,” or heart-wrenching on “When Love Comes to Call.” And her version of “Can-Can” was a textbook lesson on how to build the performance of a multi-verse patter song. The Tedd Firth arrangements brought amazing freshness to chestnuts (or are they marrons glacés?) such as “Let’s Misbehave,” “Night and Day,” and “I Love Paris,” and he and bassist Adam Neely combined with McHugh for a musical seamlessness.

A danger of a themed show like this is that it can easily feel like a lecture, but McHugh leavened the proceedings with her own feelings about Paris and Porter in a way that was charming and totally captivating. For her encore, she told a story about singing at a friend’s wedding in France and re-created her after-party performance of “True Love” with such tender spirit that it transported us to an auberge an ocean away.

© 2011 Cabaret Scenes. All Rights Reserved.

What Good Is Sitting Alone in Your Room? Cabaret Is a Steal

May 2011

by Erik Piepenburg

Fans of the American Songbook can get their fix of torch songs and 11 o’clock numbers on almost any night in New York. This weekend alone brings the husband-and-wife duo of Jason Danieley and Marin Mazzie to the Café Carlyle; K T Sullivan saluting Dorothy Fields at the Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel; and Nnenna Freelon covering songs made popular by Lena Horne at Feinstein’s at Loews Regency.

But in tough economic times a night at one of those venerable Manhattan rooms can cost a small fortune. Seats at the Carlyle, for example, are $40 to $135; add cocktails and dinner, and a night out for two requires a few hundred dollars. Luckily, for thrifty lovers of standards there are several night spots in New York where the repertory is being sung for a song.

At the 70-seat cabaret theater at the Duplex in the West Village, the cover charge is never more than $20 and a moderately priced two-drink minimum. On a recent night the singer Colleen McHugh and a jazz trio—the pianist Chuck Larkin, the guitarist Sean Harkness and the bassist Steve Doyle—performed an intimate show that included Irving Berlin’s “Blue Skies,” Cole Porter’s “I’m in Love Again” and Dorothy Fields and Jerome Kern’s “April Fooled Me.”
…

For Ms. McHugh, 43, cabaret lets her indulge in music she’s come to feel passionate about. “I’d always been a Top 40 girl growing up as a child of the ’80s,” she said. “But this is always the soundtrack that was on in the background.”

The American Songbook is an umbrella term for popular music from the ’20s through the ’60s, whether from Broadway, Tin Pan Alley or Hollywood. Its songwriters include the likes of Richard Rodgers, Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, George Gershwin and Irving Berlin, with Fields being one of the few women in the overwhelmingly male bunch.

“ ‘The American Songbook’ sounds like this thing that your mom liked or you were supposed to study in college,” said Ms. McHugh, who works by day as a writer and producer at WNET-TV. “But then people say, oh, ‘Stormy Weather’? I love that. That’s Harold Arlen? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Harold Arlen.’ Then I do a Harold Arlen show, and my friends that I force to come love every song.”
…

For many singers the downtown cabaret scene is a good fit, though performing in a more gilded room remains an aspiration. “I have my dreams-slash-delusions of grandeur of moving my way uptown, like the Jeffersons,” Ms. McHugh said. “But being downtown and having this opportunity to be at an accessible and affordable place that lets me try out new material every month is exactly where I’m supposed to be.”

Not that cheap comes at the expense of quality.

Read the full article here (cookies must be enabled on your browser)

© 2011 New York Times. All Rights Reserved.

Colleen McHugh

July 2011

by David Finkle

Her Second City background means she can be naturally, off-the-cuff funny, and she is often while loping through the nicely punned Pret a Porter: Cole Porter’s French Collection. Does anyone need to be reminded who the honoree is and was? Maybe so these days. Well, he was only one of the most sophisticated and passionate songwriters to whom Broadway ever bowed. This Porter lover is backed by no less than Aaron Weinstein on violin, Tedd Firth on piano, and Steve Doyle on bass: in other words, powerhouse entertainment.

© 2011 The Village Voice. All Rights Reserved.

Colleen’s shows are now Critics’ Pick listings on Time Out New York!

July 2011

Colleen McHugh: Prêt-à-Porter: Cole Porter’s French Connection

July 2010

by Elizabeth Ahlfors

Colleen McHugh, The Duplex’s Calendar Girl, has already reached the cabaret apogee. She has “regulars”—that is, customers who automatically come to each of her quirky monthly shows, no matter exactly when or what the theme is. “Block off the entire month, just to be safe,” she suggests. The regulars know that her Cole Porter celebration of Bastille Day is de rigueur, the pièce de résistance, a proven winner. She calls it Prêt-à-Porter and what she takes off the rack are familiar tunes by Cole Porter accessorized with the dry, ironic, and breezy humor of Colleen McHugh. It’s a perfect fit.

Her comic timing is low-keyed, natural, and feels spontaneous. While she sings well, her shows spotlight a quirky personality. Admitting a love for all things French, she reveals, “I was born in the French town of Eau Clair, Wisconsin,” and she adds an homage to the McHugh family, “Find Me a Primitive Man,” including Porter’s second refrain in French. That was pretty much the extent of the French language in the show, except for the opening song’s title, “C’est Magnifique” and “Ça C’est l’Amour.”

McHugh is backed here by versatile Musical Director/pianist Tedd Firth with Steve Doyle on bass and Sean Harkness on guitar, each bringing musical personality to every song. Firth’s piano embellishes a confident version of “Can Can,” building with energy and key changes as McHugh holds firmly to the dizzying lyrics. Almost firmly—there was one line repeated; still this was a plucky rendition. McHugh’s zesty pairing of “It’s All Right With Me” began with Doyle’s bass intro, and Firth and Harkness picking up the tempo before moving into “Just One of Those Things.” Those two songs always complement each other, don’t they? McHugh delivered her ballads with sensitivity and savvy phrasing, even if she sometimes followed them with an unexpected jibe. After the warmth of “Do I Love You?” McHugh quipped, “Here’s what I hate about this song….” An astute mood break and no damage done.

For your French connection, or for any connection of songs and humor, keep an eye out for Colleen McHugh. Hint—her August theme at The Duplex is My Stupid Mouth, and it’s dedicated to her dental visit.

© 2010 Cabaret Scenes. All Rights Reserved.

“Calendar Girl”

by Roy Sander

March 2010

For some time now, Colleen McHugh has been appearing monthly at the Duplex, each time with a different show and a different theme. How’s that for a daunting self-assignment? The umbrella title for the series is “Calendar Girl”—for obvious reasons. The edition I saw on March 25 was called Being Green, and though I went with a bit of trepidation, I was delighted to see that green had nothing whatsoever to do with alternative energy, recycling, inadequate-flush toilets, or any of the other associations the color has had since it was appropriated for a political agenda. Rather, its references were of the old-fashioned variety: things Irish, money, jealousy, plants, frogs, etc. Some of the connections with green were a stretch, but McHugh is such fun, and the show was so jolly, what the hay?

Humor is her through-line, and she seldom passed up an opportunity to make merry. She did an ebullient “Hello Young Lovers” with more than a touch of camp. Afterwards, she commented, “How silly it all is,” showing that she was fully aware of the device, and while her approach may not have served the song ideally, it did become fun—once I’d accepted it on her terms. Her patter, much of it appearing to be off the cuff, was consistently funny and delightful.

A regular feature of her shows is a song she improvises based on an anecdote recounted by a random audience member. I’m usually apprehensive about improvisation, for two reasons: (a) I worry about the quality of random audience participation, and (b) I feel an empathetic concern for the pressure placed on the improviser. On this particular night, my first fear was realized: the chap in the audience thought he was being oh-so-clever and amusing, but he was really a putz, and not only was he annoying, he was also vulgarly graphic. However, McHugh handled the situation with grace and humor, and she allayed my second concern by coming up with a funny piece. I needn’t have worried about this second part, for not only had McHugh studied improvisation at Chicago’s Second City Training Center, she also taught there. She was abetted in this challenging assignment by pianist Chuck Larkin, also from Chicago, who was the evening’s musical director.

She also scores when she resists the temptation to be funny. Her handling of “Somewhere That’s Green” (Howard Ashman, Alan Menken) was quite sweet, Joe Raposo’s Kermit classic, “Bein’ Green,” was dear, and “Danny Boy” (Frederick Edward Weatherly) was truly lovely and affecting. She delivered Randy Newman’s “When She Loved Me” with heartfelt simplicity, and her bouncy, swinging rendition of “The Green Grass Starts to Grow” (Hal David, Burt Bacharach) was as sunny as the imagery in the song’s chorus.

McHugh’s guest this evening was Klea Blackhurst, who treated us to a robust performance of Irving Berlin’s “Can You Use Any Money Today?” Written sixty years ago, the song’s funny but pointed allusions to the U.S. government’s profligate doling out of money expropriated from the people who earned it is, alas, all too timely. For the few minutes that McHugh and Blackhurst were on stage together, we had before us at the same time two of the brightest, sharpest, and funniest entertainers in New York.

Because McHugh is always doing new material, it is inevitable that not everything will work or be ready for prime time—but her personality and talent are strong enough to compensate—or at least come damned close. For example, though her interpretation of “Hey! Jealous Lover” (Sammy Cahn, Kay Twomey, Bee Walker) was, not special, her presence and energy were. A country music-flavored “Evergreen” (Paul Williams, Barbra Streisand) was a touch peculiar and not quite thought through, but her spirit carried the day. It’s rather like being a guest at her salon—an informal affair in which the pleasure of her company is what you’ll remember most vividly afterwards.

Her show on April 15 will be Spring Forward, and on May 21 it’s Nailing the Carpenters. There are occasional repeats; for example, on June 10 she’s bringing back Friend of Dorothy,her tribute to Judy Garland, and the Styne/Comden & Green standard “Just in Time” has shown up in several of her shows. Maybe we can get her to repeat Prêt-à Porter, an evening commemorating Cole Porter’s French connections. (Isn’t that an adorable title?) I saw it in 2008; it’s pretty wonderful.

© 2010 Bistro Awards. All Rights Reserved.

Colleen McHugh—Calendar Girl: Just In Time
(The Duplex, New York, NY)

Cabaret Scenes

January 12, 2009

Peter Leavy

Former Chicagoan Colleen McHugh has set herself a formidable task in The Big Apple: To make each of her once-monthly Calendar Girl shows at The Duplex a brand-new event. Her varied talents do provide her with plenty of ammunition, musical and otherwise. She’s quick on the draw with her patter, ad libbing and interacting with her audience, which provides plenty of unique opportunities right there. If she was out to dazzle her audience with that quick wit, she did it handily by creating a song of “the worst experience” described by one of her audience. “Tom Showed Mom the Door” was a howl of creativity. But with all the fun and fireworks, McHugh is a compelling, come-hither songstress who can segue from topical wise cracks to an affecting ballad with the ease of stage magician making the quarter disappear from his hand.

Opening with a bouncy “Blue Skies,” McHugh and her accompanists, Jody Shelton on piano and Michael Pearce on bass, were as together on their songs as a well-choreographed dance team. Shelton and Pearce, who were permitted ample opportunity to shine in frequent instrumental spots, also knew their oats when it came to supporting their vocalist. Two of the show’s high spots were a love-struck McHugh’s rendition of “I’ve Got the World on a String,” with a captivating accompaniment by the solo bass, and a scintillating presentation of George and Ira Gershwin’s last collaboration, the moving “Our Love is Here to Stay.”

Guest performer Christine Lavin, a prolific and topical songwriter, presented one of her own compositions, with lyrics taken from the venerable political pundit of the twenties and thirties, H. L. Mencken. It was a revelation, indeed, to see how little human nature changes as time goes by. Then, Lavin and McHugh teamed up for an audience-tickler, “Boys Want Sex in the Morning.”

Although not overdone, McHugh’s early January show, titled Just in Time, did take some pertinent jabs at the imminent changes in Washington and some of the prominent figures on their way in and on their way out of the positions of power. And her comments on the troubling economic woes brought both knowing agreement from most of the room and a smooth intro to “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love, Baby.”

Those who won’t want to miss Calendar Girl’s February tilt at Valentine’s Day, Tales of Revenge and Regret, had better book at The Duplex early. This Windy City Miss is rapidly becoming a downtown New York favorite. She’ll present her “tales of love gone terribly, terribly wrong” on February 9.

“Keeping Up Appearances”

BROADWAY WORLD.com

November 8, 2005

by Michael Dale

When I visit a cabaret show it’s never a surprise to hear a few tunes by the likes of Cole Porter or the Gershwins. What I’m not exactly used to is hearing an original torch song about my own love life. But aside from being a terrific interpreter of both pop and showtune, Colleen McHugh is an experienced improv performer coming to Gotham directly from Chicago’s legendary Second City, so naturally a part of her show was to improvise a song based on an audience suggestion.

“Tell me about some sad moment in your life,” she asked the crowd. “Some moment of finality or when things changed for you.”

So I volunteered information about the night a woman who I was seeing for about a month told me she was breaking up with me because she couldn’t date anyone who liked Michael John LaChiusa’s The Wild Party. I’m not joking. This actually happened. So after asking a few pointed questions to flesh out the details, McHugh and musical director/accompanist Tex Arnold improvised 32 bars of music and lyrics for The Mild Party. It was a catchy, but soulful, ballad where she managed to squeeze a rhyme out of “I would never choose ya” and “Michael John LaChiusa.”

But McHugh has a good ear for rhyming even with other people’s material, not missing one hidden gem in Stephen Sondheim’s tricky lyric for “Ah, But Underneath” (i.e.: using the proper enunciation needed to rhyme “If his idea of ecstasy / Is to see what he expects to see”)

Keeping Up Appearances is the name of her new show at The Duplex (“My Greenwich Village opening!” she announces with a smile that tells us to make up our own double entendre), where this charming alto belter with a sly sense of humor sings of an assortment of characters who have a special interest in how others see them.

McHugh uses a comically alluring, Mae West flair for “The Lorelei,” a Gershwin number about the seafaring siren who lured sailors with her “most immoral eye.” But then she’s a “good ol’ girl” with a serious sense of melodrama for Bobbi Gentry’s “Fancy,” about another type of temptress from the wrong side of the tracks.

Marcy Heisler and Zina Goldrich are well-served twice by McHugh, as she rocks out to the comic “Fifteen Pounds (Away From My Love)” before a chilling “Out of Love,” where she suffers the devastation of a fresh break-up.

In Jerry Herman’s “Look What Happened to Mabel,” McHugh does an impressive job of gradually transforming herself from an awkward little pipsqueak to a still-awkward, but enthusiastically glamorous silent screen star. Another fine acting performance accompanies John Wallowitch’s “News Item (Dear Nameless),” an absurdly funny number where an actual “Dear Abby” column is set to music. McHugh plays a woman with a dying mother who seems more concerned with dressing properly for the funeral than with her parent’s health, then switches to Abby for the slightly snarky reply.

Cole Porter, Jane Olivor, John Bucchino, and Dietz & Schwartz are some of the other songwriters represented in this eclectic and entertaining set. And who knows…with a visit to The Duplex (remaining shows November 10 and 17 at 9:30), this delightfully funny belter may turn your own life into a song.

“A Song For You”

“Bistro Bits”

May 21 2004

by John Hoglund

“I’m a songwriter snob,” Colleen McHugh chides from the stage of Helen’s Hideaway, where she is currently making her local cabaret debut on Thursdays in May with her wickedly funny show Tales of Revenge & Regret. Noting that Cole Porter and Irving Berlin have “come and gone,” the Chicago singer (who has just relocated to the Big Apple) playfully waxes about her love of great composers, shrewd wordplay, and songs. This leads to the irreverent country-style ditty “One More Minute” (“I’d rather jump naked on a huge pile of thumbtacks than spend one more minute with you”) by Al Yankovic. She deftly makes her point in the fun hour, opening with the odd pairing “I Wanna Be Around” (Mercer-Vimmerstadt) in medley with “Goody Goody” (Mercer-Malneck).

Incorporating wacky novelty songs like Babbie Green’s “The Best Thing to Happen to Me” and John Wallowitch’s riotous “Dear Nameless (Dear Abby)” (which is about a vain woman asking advice on how to dress for her sick mother’s impending funeral—“I look terrible in black”—only to have the columnist answer, “Don’t buy much—she may live!”), McHugh also laughs at the assorted American misinterpretations of French songs like the Edith Piaf staple “Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien,” which translated word for word really means, “No, I Don’t Not Regret Anything.”

While she punctuates the hour with very funny songs and delightful patter, McHugh is a serious singer whose ballads are made even more effective due to her show’s light moments and her buoyant personality. This camping offsets some wrenching moments. For instance, when she pours her soul into a beautifully realized “If These Walls Could Speak” by Jimmy Webb, she is riveting. Randy Newman’s poignant “When She Loved Me,” dedicated to her grandmother, becomes a reflective ode to family.

While she has an affinity for contemporary composers and clever material, I might suggest adding a few standards for tighter structure. Otherwise, this confident lady is off to a great start in New York and there’s much more ahead.

© 2004 Backstage. All Rights Reserved.

COLLEEN McHUGH—Tales of Revenge & Regret

August 2004

by Barbara and Peter Leavy

Colleen McHugh is quite a performer. Bringing to Helen’s her show, Tales of Revenge & Regret, she ranged from standards to recent works of our contemporary songwriters, managing to delight virtually everyone in the audience, no matter where their preferences might lie. Colleen is favored with a big voice, both fine and pure, with ability to sustain a note, notably. In addition, she likes to have her fun and, as she says, enjoy herself during her cabaret shows. With great wit and equal emotional power, she did Peggy Sarlin’s “I Regret Everything,” an amusing antithesis to the classic Piaf number, “Je Ne Regrette Rien.”

Also, if one wants to talk about an impressive ad lib accomplishment, Colleen solicited whole anecdotes from her audience, and as her pianist invented a melody, she composed a complete lyric on the fly, with unified content and rhyming words. Now, that’s impressive!

© 2004 CabaretScenes. All Rights Reserved.

“Critic’s Choice:” COLLEEN McHUGH

Albert Williams

On opening night of last month’s Chicago Cabaret Convention, Colleen McHugh nearly stole the show with her bravura rendition of Edith Piaf’s “Hymn to Love” and comically melodramatic take on Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” But in her club act at Davenport’s, Songs of Self-Delusion, McHugh opts for a subtler style, deftly balancing understated poignance and wry irony. An unusually expressive performer who’s accomplished in improv as well as cabaret, this Second City alum breezes through a set of tunes about sexual fantasy and emotional avoidance. Though there’s an occasional diva moment (Jerry Herman’s “I Don’t Want to Know”), the evening is dominated by the laid-back dark humor of such songwriters as Randy Newman (“Better Off Dead,” “Gainesville”), Robbie Fulks (“I’ve Got to Tell Myself the Truth”), Johnny Mercer (“Talk to Me Baby”), Francesca Blumenthal (“The Lies of Handsome Men”), and Jim De Wan (“You Wouldn’t Do That to Me,” delivered with a quietly stunning mix of anger, pain, longing, and bemusement). McHugh is at her best when she simply stands still and sings, letting pianist Andrew Blendermann’s sensitive accompaniment propel her through deeply felt, quirkily intelligent reflections on the pitfalls of romantic love.

© 2002 Chicago Reader. All Rights Reserved.

Colleen McHugh, “Songs of Self-Delusion”
Davenport’s Piano Bar and Cabaret

April 6, 2002

By Todd Shuman

She’s won awards and her cabaret shows have been ranked in top-10 lists by the Cabaret Hotline Online, Gay Chicago magazine, and Cabaret Scenes. Her name is Colleen McHugh, and on the cabaret stage there are few who can top her. She’s back at Davenport’s Piano Bar and Cabaret this month with a brand-new show celebrating songs of self-delusion.

This show is a little darker than Ms. McHugh’s past cabaret events, but she pulls it off and proves herself to be an outstanding singer, a fine actress, and a gifted comedian (when called upon). Opening with an arrangement that blends Jerry Herman’s “I Don’t Want to Know” with Amanda McBroom’s “Dreaming,” Ms. McHugh was nothing short of brilliant. She also performs outstanding renditions of Randy Newman’s “Better Off Dead,” John Bucchino’s “Not a Cloud in the Sky,” and Jill Sobule’s “Mexican Wrestler.” Comic moments come with “I Put a Little More Mascara On” (Herman) and a role-reversal take of “Madeleine” (Brel).

In a few short years, Ms. McHugh has become one of Chicago’s most celebrated cabaret stars, and this show reminds us why—she is SO good at what she does. She will be performing Songs of Self-Delusion at Davenport’s every Saturday in April at 8:00 pm—reservations are strongly recommended!!

DAVENPORT’S is located at 1383 North Milwaukee Avenue, Chicago, IL—773-278-1830—http://www.davenportspianobar.com

© 2002 Cabaret Hotline Online. All Rights Reserved.

“Songs of Self-Delusion” / Colleen McHugh

“After Dark”

by Jeff Rossen

Ignorance is bliss, or so the saying goes, but self-delusion is a dangerous pastime. It can also be hysterically funny and achingly poignant, as Colleen McHugh proves in her new show. And with this third solo outing, following her sensational debut in Keeping Up Appearances and the subsequent Tales of Revenge & Regret, McHugh takes a quantum leap as an artist, taking her talents to new heights and grabbing hold of her material with an uncanny mix of vibrant swipes and subtle shadings.

Setting up the escapism in Amanda McBroom’s “Dreaming” with the verse to Dear World’s I Don’t Want to Know, McHugh launches into a roller-coaster ride through self-delusion, from the fully-aware state of “Avoid” and a dazzling pairing of “Talk to Me Baby” and “The Lies of Handsome Men” to the heartbreaking naiveté of “You Wouldn’t Do That to Me” and raucous “Better Off Dead” and “A Little More Mascara,” which become outrageously comical mini-production numbers here. But it is in Jill Sobule’s “Mexican Wrestler” and John Bucchino’s “Not a Cloud in the Sky” that McHugh hits the zenith, deftly playing the dichotic lyric Sobule weaves in “Wrestler” and baring her soul in “Cloud.”

Andrew Blendermann’s musical direction and accompaniment support and enhance McHugh superbly, and she also receives some fine vocal support from Alison Bazarko and [Anne Smith]. Under the sharp direction of Rob Lindley, McHugh and her Songs of Self-Delusion leads the pack in the race for the year’s best. (Rating: Four Stars)

© 2002 Gay Chicago Magazine. All Rights Reserved.

Her Grand “Delusion”

April 2002

By Misha Davenport, staff reporter

Some people might call Colleen McHugh delusional. As a struggling actress and comedian, she once took up residence across the street from Second City.

“I lived above the McDonald’s. I used to work out on a treadmill that faced [Second City’s] flags and would tell myself that someday I was going to work there,” McHugh says.

There was nothing delusional about her determination. Now 34, McHugh not only attended classes at the famed improvisational institution, she also landed a gig as part of their national touring company as well.

Singled out by Chicago critics for her versatility in the 1998 improvisational show Musical! The Musical, McHugh segued into a career in cabaret in 2000 and found success almost immediately. Cabaret Hotline Online magazine listed her Tales of Revenge and Regret as the best Chicago cabaret show in 2001. She also appeared at the recent New York and Chicago cabaret conventions alongside luminaries including Julie Wilson and Amanda McBroom.

“Looking at the playlist [from the Chicago Convention], I saw Marcovicci, McBroom, McHugh. My name was on the list with all these people. I’m young enough in the business that it’s all unbelievably, giddily exciting. But I’m also old enough as a person that I can appreciate it and get how lucky I am,” McHugh says.

Her success in cabaret, however, has had one downside. McHugh recently resigned from Second City.

“It’s not about having a preference for cabaret over improvisation. Being at Second City and touring left me with little control over my schedule. I need to make myself available for the next thing,” she says.

Her current show, Songs of Self-Delusion, includes the music of Jerry Herman, Randy Newman, and Robbie Fulks, among others.

“There’s a fine line between being deluded and having a plan. It just depends on whether it works out, I guess,” McHugh says.