Sultry Shirley Martin put a stage move on Ray Leggiero.
Mary Jo Vitale provided a stirring “Bridge Over Troubled Water.”
Jan Lavin made like a 1940s’ Bette Davis.
And the Dorels turned the Four Seasons into Motown.
Put them all together and you have “Cabaret 11.” Leggiero hosted the 11th anniversary showcase of Villages’ talent Saturday in Savannah Center. Money from the two shows goes to The Villages Regional Hospital Auxiliary Foundation.
“Thank you for coming and thanks to you we have raised over $100,000 for the Villages Regional Hospital Auxiliary Foundation,” Leggiero told the huge crowd early on. Savannah Center was set up in Cabaret style, with tables filling the main floor.
Leggiero has been a driving force for the fund raiser and he seemed to have an extra glow in his smile. He opened the night wearing Willie Nelson braids singing “On the Road Again,” with a trio of cute chorines.
Leggiero had a busy night.
Shirley Martin donned a blonde wig and tight silver-sequined dress doing her best Mae West and Leggiero wound up next to her on stage.
Slinky Shirley gave Ray her advice on how to keep a man: “Be a woman of very few words and lots of action.”
Then, later in the evening, Leggiero went for a stroll in the audience, handing out red carnations to women while singing a spirited version of “It’s So Nice to Be With You.”
Mary Jo Vitale inspired the audience with “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” She gave the Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel song a spiritual edge that could be felt throughout the room.
Jan Lavin took a cue from Bette Davis’ rare singing appearance in the 1943 film, “Thank Your Lucky Stars.” Davis sang the single woman’s World War II lament, “They’re Either Too Young or Too Old.”
Lavin, looking elegantly radiant in a blue ensemble, provided just the right amount or irony and frustration to the number.
The Dorels – featuring lead singer Toni Booker along with Earl Cash, Bill Rascoe, Henry “Tres” Tresvant and Cliff Cook – offer a Motown flavor to pop standards and did just that on the Four Seasons’ “December, 1963.”
Then came a couple of remarkable performances by Chris Bolus and harmonica man Phil Caltabellotta.
Bolus gave a history lesson on a rousing cover of Elvis’ “It’s Now or Never.”
“The song was from an opera,” Bolus said and then started singing, “O Sole Mio.” Later in the show, Bolus really brought the house down with an explosive version of Presley’s “American Trilogy.”
Caltabellotta never fails to impress and he was in classical form on this night somehow playing “Figaro” on his harmonica. “The opera lasts a couple of hours, so I don’t have time to play the whole thing,” he said.
Ultra-talented opera singer Larry Rivellese roared through a number, while Janice Swartz brought a classy, jazz-styling to “Mr. Bojangles.”
Diana Arlt offered some smooth and meaningful country sounds on “How Do I Live,” and Gillian Bolus made like Edith Piaf singing “La Vie En Rose.” Joe Beddia, aka the Godfather, earned some laughs talking about his problems on airplanes.
Singer Sally Spieth entertained patrons in the lobby with help on keyboards from Sara Kallioinen.
Everyone chipped in to do their part to help the hospital.
“That’s what makes this night so special,” Leggiero said.
