Nellie McKay
Sharp & Thoughtful Singer-Songwriter
Whimsical, Catchy and Predictable Unpredictable
Why you should see this show…
“McKay comes on as a Harlem Holly Golightly, a social activist with a disarming mastery of pop vernacular.” – Los Angeles Times
“..ambitious, intriguing, and clever..” – Billboard
“McKay must have been genetically engineered under an oyster shell in New Orleans’ Frenchman St.. a bizarre sense of busker authenticity… witty, bright, and gloriously inappropriate.” – Theatre Mania
“A renegade songwriter with an ultraflexible Great American Songbook sensibility. McKay finds modern resonances everywhere..” – Rolling Stone
Among Ms. McKay’s charms, David Byrne said, are the way she playfully mixes what he called a “tragic noir vibe” with her “wicked sense of humor.”
“The one thing certain about Ms. McKay is the size and range of her talent..” – The New York Times
Nellie McKay Bio
On Obligatory Villagers (“a brisk nine-song set that plays like the breathless first act of a musical decrying American fascism” – SPIN), local Poconos hometown jazz greats Bob Dorough, Phil Woods, and David Liebman contribute their exceptional talents.
Sister Orchid speaks of the night, the outsider, the plaintive wail of those lost at sea. (“the most lonely romantic album imaginable..” – Minneapolis Star-Tribune)
Nellie earned an Ovation nomination for her work as composer/performer in Ethan Coen’s A Play is a Poem at the Mark Taper Forum Theatre in Los Angeles. She has won a Theatre World Award for her portrayal of Polly Peachum on Broadway in The Threepenny Opera, performed onscreen in the films PS I Love You and Downtown Express, and her music was used in Rumor Has It, Monster-in-Law, PS I Love You, Gasland, Last Holiday, and Private Life.
McKay co-created and starred in the award-winning off-Broadway hit Old Hats and has written three acclaimed musical biographies – I Want to Live!, the story of Barbara Graham, third woman executed in the gas chamber at San Quentin, Silent Spring: It’s Not Nice to Fool Mother Nature, an exploration of environmental pioneer Rachel Carson, and A GIRL NAMED BILL – The Life and Times of Billy Tipton– named one of the Best Concerts of 2014 by The New York Times. Her latest lady bio is The Big Molinsky – Considering Joan Rivers (“unpredictable, thrilling…sardonic wit..” – The New York Times)
McKay’s music has been heard on Mad Men, Boardwalk Empire, Weeds, Grey’s Anatomy, NCIS, Nurse Jackie, and SMILF, and she has appeared on TV shows including The Late Show with David Letterman, Conan, Ferguson, and The View. Nellie has made numerous radio appearances on NPR’s Mountain Stage, A Prairie Home Companion, eTown, and Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz. In 2017 her pastel ‘now I can dream of you in peace – i don’t eat you anymore’ was included in the Behind Closed Doors art exhibition at The Strand Gallery in Soho, London.
Nellie has enjoyed touring with The Turtle Island Quartet, while The Chase Brock Experience produced a ballet around her third album, Obligatory Villagers, and she contributed the forward to the 20th anniversary edition of The Sexual Politics of Meat. Her writing has also appeared in The Onion, Interview, and The New York Times Book Review.
A recipient of PETA’s Humanitarian Award and the Humane Society’s Doris Day Music Award in recognition of her dedication to animal rights, Nellie is an annoyingly vocal critic of capitalism, endless wars, and the two-party system that sustains them.
Dining Option
Purchase of a ticket to a show in the Supper Club ensures you will have a seat for the concert. One member of your party must make a table reservation, even if you do not plan to dine, so we may seat you together when you arrive. To make a dining reservation, click here or call our Box Office at (216) 242-1250. Click here to see the menu.
If you are attending with a party of eight or more, you must call the Box Office to make your reservation at (216) 242-1250.
To better serve all our customers, we require that you arrive on time for your dining reservation. Arriving more than 15 minutes after your reserved time will result in the cancellation of your reservation. You will be seated for the concert, but you may be put on a waiting list for dining.
