Drama Queens, a five-star arts journal focusing on female artists

Judy Pancoast’s Carpenter’s Show Review by Jen Bush

Judy Pancoast is a singer, songwriter, recording artist, and Grammy nominee for Best Children’s Album.  She wrote an exciting musical called Girl On The Moon.  Ms. Pancoast is a little bit Country and a little bit Rock and Roll!  After formal training and a degree in music she paid her dues performing different genres of music from Honky Tonk to straight up Rock and Roll. Ms. Pancoast’s Christmas spirit paid off when her one hit wonder Christmas song took the world by storm and can now be heard outside countless homes with synchronized holiday decorations.  To say Ms. Pancoast is a fan of The Carpenters is a vast understatement.  It goes much deeper than that which brings us to the events of the evening. 

At the age of 11 when Judy Pancoast’s sister told her that she had to listen to The Carpenters because she sounded just like Karen Carpenter, that set her on an artistic journey of a lifetime.  Don’t Tell Mama welcomed Judy Pancoast to the stage to openly share an evening of her love letter to The Carpenters, a band that inspired her, influenced her and shaped her musical artistry.

The evening consisted of Ms. Pancoast sweetly singing an array of already sweet songs interspersed with deeply personal and candid stories of her sometimes painful childhood.  Your heartstrings will be pulled when you witness Ms. Pancoast’s childhood angst being transformed into art.  Even if you’re not a fan of The Carpenters you’ll be both touched and riveted by the tales she weaves.

You’ll hear all the hits you expect to and even an original song written by Ms. Pancoast when she was a youth.  The perfect segway was when she followed up her story of meeting The Carpenters with singing Top of the World because she was truly on top of the world.

Not every story is about The Carpenters.  As if the show wasn’t touching enough, the accompanist of the evening, Michael Pierce has been a friend of Ms. Pancoast’s since college.  He is not only a dear friend of Ms. Pancoast but an accomplished musician who greatly enhanced the performance.

Ms. Pancoast is an experienced singer.  Her lovely interpretations of the Carpenters hits will leave you feeling good.  By the end of the performance, I guarantee you’ll feel Ms. Pancoast “close to you”.