photo by Bruce-Michael Gelbert
Mica & Paul Leschen
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Mica is a familiar figure in Cherry Grove, as a sometime candidate for Homecoming Queen, but on June 22, she disclosed additional talents, as she shared her trials, triumphs, and tribulations, in narrative and song, in a debut show at the Ice Palace, where she was ably supported by the skills of Paul Leschen, at the keyboard, and DJ Chuck McTague, on sound and lights.
Mica greeted us with a song from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Sunset Boulevard” (“It’s as if we never said goodbye”) and sang, of her story, “The rest is still unwritten” and “There’s always gonna be another mountain.” She let us know that, in childhood, she held a cardboard, foil-covered star in “Peter Pan” and sang in a barbershop ensemble and, later, in the choruses of school musicals.
In college, when she first tried drag, Mica also joined a church choir and sang on a Grammy-nominated gospel record, and here, she offered a gospel medley that included “His eye is on the sparrow” and “I am just a prayer away.” Her “Make your own kind of music,” “I’m looking for a miracle,” and “Say a little prayer for me,” augmented by turns and kicks, further aided her in telling her tale.
Examining her “struggle to find love,” which led her to experimenting with on-line dating, on gay and hetero sites, Mica sang “Skylark,” “Like a Virgin,” “Sweet Thing,” and “I can’t find my baby.” Falling in love with a friend inspired her to sing “How do I get you alone?” For an encore, Mica declared, “I can’t make you love me if you don’t.”