London Festival of Cabaret

Nellie McKay

Event Has Passed

Last Show: Sunday 8 th May 2016

The Pheasantry (Chelsea)

The New Yorker has warily described Nellie McKay as “funny and touching, ceaselessly clever and scarily talented.” UK born, US raised singer-songwriter McKay switches deftly between cabaret, pop, vocal jazz, folk and film music. She first attracted attention with her 2004 debut album 'Get Away From Me', recorded with Beatles sound engineer Geoff Emerick. Two years later she won a Theatre World Award for her portrayal of Polly Peachum in the Broadway production of 'The Threepenny Opera'.

Read more ...

"If I was a duck, I'd swim in this record"

Robin Williams

McKay has performed onscreen in the films 'PS I Love You' and 'Downtown Express'; she has written original music for the Rob Reiner film 'Rumor Has It'; she has recorded a further five albums – the most recent ‘My Weekly Reader’ is a typically unique re-imagining of the 1960s. On top of this, McKay has written three acclaimed musical biographies, the latest of which 'A Girl Named Bill – the Life and Times of Billy Tipton', performed at celebrated NYC cabaret venue 54 Below, was named by the New York Times as One of the Best Concerts of 2014.

Despite being born in London, this special run of shows for the London Festival of Cabaret marks McKay’s debut cabaret performances in the city.

"If I was a duck, I'd swim in this record" Robin Williams

"I don't listen to that kind of music anyway" Joan Rivers

"We played this album at my wedding – Nellie's a lot of fun" Charles Manson

“Nellie is without a doubt the single most self-sabotaging individual I have ever met" Mike Nichols

"I see an audit in her future" Dick Cheney