Connie Evingson, an adept singer with a cool jazz style, is a popular Twin Cities performer. She premiered and developed her Peggy Lee homage at Illusion's Fresh Ink workshop series and then brought the show in for a regular commercial run. Evingson does not impersonate Lee, although her blonde looks and Scandinavian background would qualify her for that approach. Instead, she sings in her own style many of the songs identified with Lee and, in between numbers, narrates snippets of biographical material.
She is backed up by a terrific quintet led by pianist/arranger Sanford L. Moore and featuring an outstanding woodwind performer in Dave Karr. The performance is perfectly entertaining, but it never really catches fire because of the cool, distanced performing style espoused by Evingson. Peggy Lee may have a cool surface, but there is real heat underneath that energizes her interpretations. Evingson, skilled as she is, rarely digs beneath that surface coolness, so her two hours on stage have a sameness that leads to diminishing interest. Only in a few instances in the second half, notably with "Fever" and "Black Coffee," does she break through and involve herself more deeply with the material. Evingson has since performed parts of this program in concert with the Minnesota Orchestra, and in a strictly cabaret setting. Either of these venues might prove more suitable to Fever; as a legitimate attraction, the show is proficient, but it simply needs more punch.
