| Finally,
A Cook Who's Divalicious |
| Chef sings the Praises
of Cheese |
| By Karen Calabria |
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Growing up in Boreum Hill, Jackie Gordon whiled away
her childhood "always singing and always cooking."
"It felt natural to cook and sing together —
I just had to figure out how," Laughed Gordon.
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| Mission accomplished. |
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| Gordon, of Divalicious, Inc. in partnership
with Terrance Brennan of the Artisanal Cheese Center,
will debut "Say Cheese: tongue titillating tasting
of artisanal cheese and wines and the songs they inspire"
on April 28, 7:30 p.m. at The West Bank Cafe — Laurie
Beechman Theater, 407 W. 42nd Street. |
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| A pioneer in the field of eatertainment,
Gordon returned to the borough in early September 2001,
after a decade spent working as an actress in Melbourne,
Australia. |
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| The concept of food as entertainment originated
while Gordon was performing in her first one-woman show
in Australia, Black Pearls and Strange Fruit." The
show eventually took first prize at the Melbourne Fringe
Festival. |
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| As an actress who had also worked as a chef,
she sent a press release to the dining section of the
local newspaper. When the write-up appeared in print,
Gordon's frustration with the article eventually turned
to inspiration."Black Pearls and Strange Fruit"
was toted as a dinner show, in which Gordon exercised
her cooking abilities as well as her vocal cords. |
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| "It gave me the idea — wouldn't
it be great to combine great food and great music?"
recalled Gordon, who attended Brooklyn Tech High School. |
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| That was all the motivation
the singing chef needed to hit the ground running. |
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| Her first foray into the world
of eatertainment came with "The Fried Chicken Theory
According To Jackie Gordon," a one-woman show that
explored the collective history of soul music and soul
food. |
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| When I began writing, the show
became about the food. It was really a history lesson.
The food came from slavery. I told stories about my family
and food, about how my great-grandmother cooked her way
to America," recalled Gordon. |
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| The Fried Chicken Theory focused
on food as an "Integral way of life," which,
in turn, influenced the music. She regaled audiences with
tales of Billie Holiday's mother's fried chicken joint,
and of when Aretha Franklin and Luther Vandross recorded
their album together — they holed themselves up in
the studio with bucket upon buckets of fried chicken. |
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| All the while, the audience
packed in savory mouthfuls of Gordon's lavish menu of
soulful favorites — macaroni and cheese, collard
greens (made with turnips and beet greens since collards
are not native to Australia) and, of course her signature
fried chicken. |
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Gordon, now a dual citizen of Australia and America,
returned to her native Brooklyn with the aim of introducing
New York to the concept of eatertainment After opting
for a show about cheese over runner-up theme chocolate,
Gordon set to work finding corporate sponsorship.
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| "All cheese has a story,
especially Artisanal cheeses," explained Gordon.
"Artisanal is the best — I figured it wouldn't
hurt to start there." |
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| Terrance Brennan, chef/proprietor
of New York's Artisanal and Picholine founded the Artisanal
Cheese Center in June 2003. The center is the first of
its kind in the United States and house five cheese-maturing
caves where more than 250 of the finest cheeses are ripened
before being sent out to market. |
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| When she first explained the
concept to him, Brennan "looked at me as if I was
a bit mad," but was eventually won over. |
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| Gordon's approach was to redefine
the connotations of cheese. "There's a little bit
of snobbery associated with cheese. I want to make it
more tangible, take it off its pedestal, bring it to a
wider audience," said the singing chef." |
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| "In the past five years,
the variety of fine cheeses available at cheese stores
and specialty food shops and online has increased tenfold,
and choosing can be challenging for consumers facing a
burgeoning selection of hundred of cheeses," said
Brennan. " People will leave this show armed with
a multi-sensory experience and knowledge of what makes
artisanal cheeses stand out from the rest." |
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| Indeed, audiences will have
the chance to sample eight cheeses, paired with four Diageo
Chateau and Estate wines, with a song to accompany each
cheese. In addition to providing a general history of
cheese, Gordon will detail the history of each cheese
featured in the show. There will also be a gallery of
images, projected on a screen behind Gordon, during the
presentation of each cheese. |
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| "Everyone will be getting
a real "chedducation!" Gordon laughed. |
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| The founder of Divalicious,
Inc., an organization that pairs fine food and music,
also had the opportunity to pen her own music for the
show, including the tune. "If I Could Date Cheese"
and another ditty about tasting wine with cheese. |
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| For the show, Gordon has prepared
Divalicious Ruby Sun Splash Relish, a tomato relish that
nicely compliments the cheese. It will be served on the
side, to be used as a chutney. |
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| Among the cheese being features
in the show is a soft-ripened Portuguese cheese named
Serpa. The sheep's milk cheese contains linoleic acid,
which helps to clear arteries and aids in the digestion
and fights osteoporosis. Serpa is also thistle-renneted,
making it a totally animal-free product for vegetarians, |
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| When she's not performing,
Gordon is the founder of Divalicious, Inc., an organization
that creates private and public events with a mix of fine
food and entertainment. "Divalicious is about encouraging
people to eat better foods — not necessarily healthier,
but better quality foods," says Gordon. |
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| "Say Cheese" will
begin its run of 14 performances on April 28, running
through June 11. Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. Tickets
are $60.00 each (price includes cheese and wine samples
an accompaniments). Tickets are available through Ticket
Central, www.ticketcentral.org. |
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| For more information about
upcoming Divalicious, Inc. events and services, visit
www.divalicious.biz on the web. |
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| For more information about
Artisanal Cheese Center, or to schedule tastings or enroll
in a class, visit www.artisanalcheese.com. |
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