A CHRISTMAS WITH MIMI by Mimi Bessette

Remind me

Mimi Bessette sings Christmas songs old and new at The Metropolitan Room, 34 W22nd st. NYC - Dec.17th at 9:30pm. It's a joyful ride!

After talking with so many of my friends we've all agreed that this year seemed to be one where things just spun out of our control; Jobs were hard to come by, It was tricky to find an affordable place to live and then Hurricane Sandy created it's own challenges. I felt the best way I could help would be to create a Christmas show where people could come in from the cold and feel all warm and fuzzy again. The operative word of my show is JOY. It will be a joyful ride through well known holiday favorites and some not so well known. But they're equally as beautiful and fun. My piano player and I have come up with some wonderful arrangements. And we both feel if we could have a bassist and guitar player that the show would be taken to a whole other level. I would love for my Dad to see the show but he lives in Naples, Florida and had some pretty serious health challenges. If I could make a video of my show then he'd be able to enjoy it too. Plus as I mentioned in my video I need to advertise the show so people know I'm there.

I plan to pull it off by putting a lot of thought, care and rehearsal into it. I will be using two of my favorite friends as back up singers on a couple of songs. That in itself makes me feel very happy. Every day I get so excited about the whole process. It almost feels like it's creating itself. I'll find a great new song and I'll know immediately where it should go and how to introduce it. Right now it's feels like a fun puzzle where all the pieces are starting to fit. I have so many friends who've already gotten tickets to come. Feeling that support gives me even more energy and the desire to make it the best show I can do.

I think it's important for you to know that 8 of my Broadway producer friends are coming to my show. When I asked them they all said "yes" immediately. They said they wouldn't miss it and that they even wanted to invite some of their friends. I think that's a pretty good vote of confidence. Ordinarily you would think I should be nervous about this. But these producers are some of the most kind and nurturing people I've ever met. So I'm more excited than anything.

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Well because I've been in the business for a while I know how much time and thought needs to go into a show. I think I'm up to that challenge. It has to be a nice blend of old and new songs otherwise people have to work too hard taking in new lyrics. So which ones to choose? I have to make sure that it's paced correctly and that there will be a silly section. I'm a big believer in "the goofy factor". If you can laugh at yourself and life then you can get through most of anything. This is the section where it will be me and my friends really having fun on stage. I also love the beautiful and moving imagery that one song paints. I'm lucky in that my piano player Doug Oberhamer plays a number of instruments so he's planning on playing the flugel horn on a couple of songs.
The challenge I'm facing right now is making sure I schedule enough free time to allow for adequate rehearsal. I've been accepting work every chance I get to help pay for the show. While I'm very grateful to have the work, my windows of creative time become few and far between. But recognizing a potential problem is how you solve it. I just have to plan ahead and make a schedule that works.
From the day I decided to do this Christmas show I've been walking on a cloud. It's been great working with Doug and I can't wait to see what we come up with!

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