“I’m very passionate about finding lyrics and music that really speak for how I feel,” John Vincent Mahady told Inside. The proof of his passion will be on stage at the Vittum Theater, 1012 N. Noble St., Friday and Saturday, Oct. 12 and 13. Entitled “As Long As I’m Singing,” the show is a musical tribute to the legendary male crooners of the 20th century.
The show is designed around the songs made famous by Bobby Darin, Sammy Davis Jr., Nat King Cole, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, Mel Torme, Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire, Perry Como, and Tony Bennett. Providing the musical backdrop for these performances will be The Crooners 2001 Orchestra featuring Beckie Menzie.
Obtaining arrangements for some of the wonderful old songs which Mahady sings was difficult and sometimes impossible. If an arrangement simply did not exist anymore, he had the song transcribed and arranged for each instrument.
“I had heard Mel Torme’s ‘The Christmas Feeling’ [and loved it] but I could not get the arrangement from the distributor. When I heard Mel Torme was at the Fairmont Hotel I went to approach him,” Mahady told Inside. “He was floored that I even knew the name of the song. ‘I don’t even have a lead sheet for it,’ he told me. So, I had it transcribed and sent him a copy.”
Mahady has performed in a variety of Chicago nightclubs, including Toulouse on the Park, Boombala’s, Crickett’s, Davenport’s and Gentry of Chicago. He has also appeared in 16 original one man shows he has self-produced for the Royal George Cabaret Theater. “ The greatest compliment I’ve received is ‘I felt things tonight I haven’t felt for 40 years.’ It had to do with the lyrics, the communication of the song, and what he was feeling.
“You move them, and they feel better about where they are, where they’ve been, and where they’ll be.”
In addition to singing, John Vincent Mahady loves to bake and cook, a talent which has led to a unique—and effective—calling card. He made rich cookies he called chocolate bombs and blond bombshells, and was inspired to channel that energy into a small baking business and title it Vincent Van Dough. His original triple chip cookie now has as many fans in Chicago as he does! He gets a lot of response by approaching people with something a little different from the norm.
When Mahady was searching for the arrangements for Marvin Hamlisch’s “One Song,” he found out that Hamlisch was going to be at the Centre East in Skokie and left him a message with the cookies. “[Hamlisch] called me at 10:30 the next morning and said ‘I’ll send it immediately.’ I got his original 14 page arrangement the next morning by Fed Ex.”
Mahady performs at weddings and private events as well as corporate events. His first CD, “Intimate,” will be for sale at the shows. He is also a 12 year employee of Mon Ami Gabi, formerly known as Un Grand Café, in Lincoln Park. Between the baking, the waiting, and the crooning, he has become an ambitious celebrity in the Chicago area.
The Vittum Theater was chosen for “its lovely space, great sound equipment and free parking!” said Mahady. The shows begin at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday in the Vittum Theater, which is two blocks south of the intersection of Milwaukee, Ashland and Division avenues. The free parking is half a block south of the theater. Tickets are $35 and are available by calling Vincent Van Dough Productions at (888) 462-4239, or the Vittum Theater Box Office at (312) 278-7471, ext. 194. The performances are reserved seating and advance purchase is strongly recommended.
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