ARTS & CULTURE
Trodding the Boards Brian Sands bsnola2@hotmail.com
“Uncle” Wayne Daigrepont at Andrea’s Restaurant on June 19
When Jefferson Parish moved into Phase 2, live entertainment began to make a comeback. And what a pleasure it was recently to head out to Andrea’s Restaurant (3100 19th St., Metairie) to enjoy the music and esprit of the ridiculously talented Wayne Daigrepont. With impish humor, “Uncle” Wayne, as he’s known around town, holds court in Andrea’s’ Capri Blu Piano Bar on occasional Fridays. A diminutive man with an outsize personality, “Uncle” Wayne may always be quick with a joke and a laugh but there’s nothing goofy about his piano stylings. Notes tumble forth when this adorable pixie sits down to make music. His marvelous playing may be reminiscent of Liberace but, rather than feathers and sequins, he sports a Tweety Bird vest and straw boater. And always a
smile. “Uncle” Wayne prompts people to request songs from the catalog of 900+ that he knows. Gershwin, Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hammerstein and all the other classics (and not-so classics) from the Great American Songbook are his bag as well as most show tunes. Except for late 20th and 21st century ones. The Phantom of the Opera is about as recent as he gets. From The Wizard of Oz’ If I Only Had a Brain to beautiful medleys of the scores of Cabaret and The Sound of Music, with effortless ease Daigrepont brings modern baroque interpretations to songs that are instantly recognizable. Asked to do something from Fiddler on the Roof, rather than the typical klezmer approach, “Uncle” Wayne provided an inventively jazzified take on the numbers of this beloved musical. When someone suggested he play “17” (don’t ask), he immediately responded with Sound of Music’s Six-
“Uncle” Wayne Daigrepont at Andrea’s
teen Going on Seventeen. Sharp as a tack he is. Want something classical? He can even do Carmen. Exquisitely.
Audience sing-alongs are encouraged and often theater people in the crowd will step up to sing a song or
8 · The Official Gay Magazine of the Gulf South™: www.AmbushMag.com · June 16 – 29, 2020 · Official Southern Decadence Guide™ · www.SouthernDecadence.com
