Baby Beats & Beyond: impressions of Dan Zanes’ Holiday House Party World Premiere at Herbst Theatre

[photopress:DZ_bench_2008hires.jpg,full,pp_image] (l-r: Colin Brooks, Sonia de los Santos, Dan Zanes, Saskia Sunshine Lane, John Foti, Elena Moon Park; photo by Gala Narezo) I seem to always get a bit misty eyed at Dan Zanes concerts. The first time I saw him and his Friends band perform, back in late March, I was touched by the encore song. "Sweet Rosyanne" not only closed the formal show but was what the group of musicians continued to play as they marched from the stage through the theater and into the lobby. That they kept playing as others followed them out and then hung around to take pictures, sign autographs and just chat spoke volumes of their accessibility and general friendliness. I had another such tear-welling moment when I caught the world premiere of his new Holiday House Party revue Saturday at noon. The morning started with a pleasant surprise. It was my first strictly duo outing for me and my niece Tarn, and as we approached Herbst Theatre we saw not people trying to sell excess tickets (as one might normally find) but rather a scene that resembled recess at the local elementary school. Children were playing on the metal sculpture outside of Herbst as parents looked on: [photopress:Photo_112908_005.jpg,full,centered] Once we made our way in, Tarn was taken in by the gorgeousness of the theater's art deco decor. I, in turn, was taking in the set design. As promised, it reflected the look of a cozy, over-sized living room. Pop and rock acts have tried this as a way to indicate to the audience that they were presenting an acoustic show or set within a show. But it works with Zanes, since his sincerity and easy style makes it seem natural that we audience members actually were guests in his living room. Zanes entered the stage and performed "Welcome Table" unaccompanied save for his own electric guitar playing. Once he engaged with the audience and explained the premise of the revue (that a bunch of his musical friends were coming to his house for a party but that a snow storm would keep us all indoors — if they even made it), it was clear that we were in for a real live version of the televised specials hosted by Bing Crosby and Perry Como in the past and Pee Wee Herman and Stephen Colbert a bit more recently. For several of the subsequent numbers, musicians would join Zanes by "coming in from the snow." First it was his band — Sonia de los Santos (vocals, guitars and mandolin); John Foti (accordion, saxophone, penny whistle, vocals and more); Elena Moon Park (violin, trumpet, vocals, ukulele and more); San Francisco native Saskia Sunshine Lane (double bass, vocals and more); and Colin Brooks (drums, vocals) — to perform "Hello," appropriately enough. Basya Schechter came in next to perform the traditional "Ocho Kandelikas" but with a south-of-the-border twist. The guests kept rolling in — tap dancer Derick K. Grant and shadow puppeter/pick up vocalist-instrumentalist Julian Croach Crouch; buzuq player-vocalist Tareq Abboushi and Arabic percussionist Zafer Tawil; and the Villa-Lobos Brothers (Ernesto, Alberto and Luis) plus son jarocho dancer Claudia Valentina Montes. A few familiar North American holiday songs were performed amidst Arabic, Mexican and Jewish numbers. I became particularly moved when I realized that all 15 participants on stage were engaged in Moon Park's singing of a Korean new year's song, which she described as "catchy, in the key of G, which is also catchy!" The sense of cultural inclusion, which Zanes really dove into on his latest, fully Spanish language album ¡Nueva York!, was in full effect on this particular number. There will be two more performances of the Holiday House Party at noon and 5 p.m. today before it heads slightly north to Davis and then to Seattle. I'd highly recommend taking your family or even a group of your fellow grown up friends, as it is truly a recommendable all ages — and all backgrounds — holiday experience. Tickets, which go for $25 and $35, should still be available here.