60 female house songs for cabaret and musical singers
Looking for a female song from a musical to help you connect directly with an audience? What you need is a “house number”!
A House song bridges the gap between the audience and the singer, when the character steps out of the story on stage and speaks directly to the viewers, know that he (and the drama) are being watched.
There aren’t many actual House songs in musical theater, but there are a number of songs that you can modify to make your performance cross that invisible fourth wall between you and the audience.
In this article I propose 60 songs for women from the Musical Theater repertoire that could be sung as a House song. I’ve classified them into three categories: the real House song, the audience number, and the soliloquy.
In the first category, the real House song, the musical is deliberately written for the character to step out of the drama and talk to the viewers. My first thoughts are Spamalot (the diva’s lament) and City of Angels (you can always count on me). When You’re Good To Mama from Chicago comes to mind immediately. Other true House songs include Sweet Charity’s Big Spender (originally a chorus number but can be sung by one person), Follies ‘I’m Still Here, Follies’ Broadway Baby, Jerry Springer’s I Just Wanna Dance, Jonny One Note by Babes in Arms, and Nobody Does It Like Me – Cy Coleman’s song from the musical SeeSaw. And Miss Byrd from Closer Than Ever shares her secret through the fourth wall.
Many of the songs from the Victorian Music Hall era double as house numbers, like Waiting At the Church, If It Wasn’t For the ‘Ouses In Between, and even ballads like The Boy I Love Is Up In The Gallery. Then there are the songs written in a musical style like Girl in 14G and The Alto’s Lament.
In the second category, the character sings to an audience in his world as part of the plot. Good and Evil from Jekyll and Hyde is a great example, as Lucy sings to drinkers at the pub where she works. Then there’s Don’t Cry For Me Argentina (Evita), I Speak Six Languages from the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Carmen Jones’s Beat Out Dat Rhythm, Copacabana’s Man Wanted, and Anything Goes’ Blow Gabriel Blow. Jenny’s saga from Lady in the Dark is sung in court, and you might get away with Life of the Party by Wild Party.
The even focus song is the third type of house number; it is usually a soliloquy in which the character asks questions. One of the best known songs is I Cain’t Say No from Oklahoma. Then there’s I’m Shy from Once Upon A Mattress, Everybody Says Don’t, and There Will Don’t Be Trumpets from Anyone Can Whistle, and I’m A Stranger Here Myself from One Touch of Venus. Check out Falsettos’ Holding To The Ground, My Brother Lived In San Francisco from Elegies for Angels Punks and Raging Queens, Kiss Me Kate’s I Hate Men, and Aida’s My Strongest Suit. In a slightly more old-fashioned vein, there are I think I’d like to remind myself today of starting here, starting now, Tale of the Oyster (fifty million French) and The Physician (Nymph Errant).
You can use a strong story song like Waiting For The Music To Begin (Witches of Eastwick) if you use it to tell the audience your story. Another perfect example comes from A Chorus Line, where Diana Morales sings Nothing to Zach, who is sitting in the (real) audience throughout the show. So it’s easy to turn it into a House song and speak directly to your audience. Other songs include Gimme Gimme by Thoroughly Modern Millie, I Know Things Now by Into the Woods, Defying Gravity by Wicked and Always The Bridesmaid by I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change.
Back to Sondheim for Marry Me A Little’s The Ladies Who Lunch from Company, The Story of Lucy and Jessie (from select Follies productions) and Can That Boy Foxtrot (a duo that can be sung as a soloist) by Marry Me A Little, or cut from Follies , depending on who you read to.
Then there’s Everybody’s Girl from Steel Pier, Old Fashioned Love Story from Wild Party, When You Got It, Flaunt It from The Producers, and How Did I Termin Up Here from Romance Romance. You could consider Wonderful Town’s One Hundred Easy Ways or You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown’s My New Philosophy, and experiment with a song like South Pacific’s Cockeyed Optimist.
Another great source for House songs is the Music Magazine. Closer Than Ever by Maltby and Shire is a good example for songs like Back On Base, or The Bear, The Tiger, The Hamster and The Mole. Or you could consider Songs for a New World by Jason Robert Brown for I’m Not Afraid of Anything. You can also do what musicals are currently doing and attack the pop / disco / rock scene for suitable songs – Holding Out For A Hero started out as a Bonnie Tyler song, but is now on both Footloose and Shrek II.
It’s unusual for a slower song to work as a house number, but here are some suggestions: Maybe I like it this way from Wild Party, that’s him from One Touch Of Venus, Why Him from Carmelina, Bill (from Oh Lady! Lady! And Showboat covers) and of course, Funny Girl by Funny Girl.
Remember that the point of a House song is to speak directly to the audience, so be sure to look your audience in the eye while performing.
Enjoy.
