Chicago’s Queen of Cabaret Denise Tomasello celebrates career with Park West concert

The legendary Denise Tomasello, Chicago’s Queen of Cabaret, marks her five decades long career milestone as she makes a triumphant return in I’m Still Here at the iconic Park West, Saturday, June 8^th at 7:30 pm. For her first Chicago concert in over five years, Tomasello brings her unique, one-of-a-kind, Vegas- style concert with her 17-piece orchestra.  Denise will take her audience down memory lane for an evening filled with songs and backstage stories including a special film of her career highlights with never-before-seen photos, backstage stories including her personal relationship with Frank Sinatra Jr.

Join Denise, who was crowned “Chicago’s Queen of Cabaret” by the Chicago  Sun-Times, Tribune, WGN Radio, Broadwayworld.com, Skyline and Daily Herald, as she performs selections from her recent acclaimed tribute concerts to Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, Tony Bennett, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli and Barbra Streisand, as well as classics from the Great American Songbook and Broadway showstoppers and signature songs that have made her, as the Chicago Sun Times said, “a Chicago musical institution.” 

Denise is a rare performer in that she can connect with her audiences in a way that makes a large concert venue such as the Park West and gives it the intimacy of a small cabaret room. Icon Jackie Mason called Denise ‘a female Dean Martin,” as she has the talent to entertain her audiences with her music and quick wit and repartee, making each performance incredibly special.

Denise Tomasello brings to life a throwback to the entertainers of an era long gone by. Her inimitable voice, spontaneity with an audience, and bigger than life personality prompted the Chicago Sun Times to boast “let’s make one thing clear, Tomasello was cabaret before cabaret was cool,” and Chicago Tribune Rick Kogan said of Denise “wildly glamorous and wickedly amusing, she can handle a love song as well and when she sinks her teeth into belters delight the room sizzles.” 

The Park West is located at 322 West Armitage, Chicago. The concert is on Saturday, June 8^th, and begins at 7:30 with doors opening at 6:30pm. Tickets range from $35-$75 and are available at parkwestchicago.com, jamusa.com and AXS.com. Please be aware that a convenience fee will be charged online and over the phone. Tickets may be purchased with reduced fees at the Park West box office. The Park West box office is open Monday -Friday 12-5pm.

The award-winning Tomasello has headlined with legendary entertainers Don Rickles (Hollywood Casino), Jackie Mason (Tropicana-Atlantic City) and Alan King (North Shore Performing Arts Center/Centre East). In 2021, she performed as the finale in the award-winning documentary film Live At Mister Kelly’s, while Barbra Streisand opened the film.  A movie about the legendary night club, it also featured Bette Midler, Bob Newhart, Herbie Hancock and Tom Dreesen.

Tomasello headlined record breaking, extended runs and SRO audiences at the city’s top supper clubs and music venues: Sage’s, George’s, The Metropole and The Pump Room. She moved onto bigger stages with the same gusto and aplomb, headlining sold out solo concerts at The Park West and The Auditorium.

Denise moved to the national spotlight, casting her spell at the nation’s top nightspots and stages: New York’s Town Hall and Eighty Eights;Michael Feinstein’s The Cinegrill, The Gardenia and Rose Tatoo in Los Angeles; and the Tatou-Beverly Hills.

And decades after being a Chicago musical institution, Denise still shows that she is, as the Chicago Tribune said, “the consummate cabaret performer.” Audiences continue to flock to see Denise at her sold-out, one-woman shows at The Drake’s Grand Ballroom, The Metropolis, Des Plaines Theater, and Davenport’s.

Denise Tomasello still works her magic and casts her spell on Chicago audiences with Carla Gordon of New York’s Cabaret Scenes Magazine saying, “one wonders little, as to why she has been the queen of Chicago’s club corridor for decades.”