Barbara Dixon, aka Broadway Barbara, is a has-been/never-been of the Great White Way. Always the chorine, never the star, her persona sugarcoats the prickly bitterness of Elaine Stritch with the eternal sunshine of Barbara Cook (Kick in a little Gwen Verdon to boot).
She's bringing her "Holiday Spectacular" cabaret show, chock full of Broadway dirty laundry and angst-bedazzled Christmas cheer (The dreidel song, too!), to Feinstein's at the Nikko on Dec. 5. Also, she doesn't exist. Broadway Barbara is the singing, dancing fictional concoction of actress Leah Sprecher.
Like Jiminy Glick, the fatuous talk show host embodied by Martin Short, or Moira Rose, the obliviously self-involved former soap actress played by Catherine O'Hara in "Schitt's Creek," Barbara is a weirdly endearing showbiz relic.
Sprecher drew on her own early experiences as a supporting player in musical comedies and the reminiscences of former leading ladies in their solo cabaret shows to develop the Barbara character. And Barbara has given Sprecher's career an unexpected second act.
Beyond her years
"Even as a kid, I was always cast in character roles for older women," said Sprecher, now in her early 40s, in an interview with the Bay Area Reporter. "I was one of the 'Pick a Little, Talk a Little' ladies in 'The Music Man,' and Aunt Eller in 'Oklahoma.' I would look at these pretty ingenues with beautiful voices and feel a little jealous. I wished I could be like that.
"When I was studying musical theater at UCLA, I was told that it would take me a long time to grow into my type. But I did find myself gravitating to older parts, because I found them more interesting anyway."
Sprecher's favorite college role was Joanne in Stephen Sondheim's "Company," a part originally played on Broadway by Stritch. After college, Sprecher moved to New York to pursue musical theater and found a modicum of success.
"In regional theater and on tours, I'd dance in the ensemble and usually cover an older woman's role. When I toured with the musical of [television sitcom] 'Happy Days,' I covered for Marion Cunningham. The guys who played my son and his buddies were older than I was."
After a few years, Sprecher returned to the west coast, floundering a bit as she tried to find the right niche for her talents. Along with several friends she'd met in New York, she helped found the Transcendence Theatre Company in Sonoma.
A woman of character
Eventually settling back in Los Angeles, Sprecher changed course from musical theater and threw herself into the city's vibrant improvisational comedy scene. She trained at the Groundlings School and, in relatively short order, found herself auditioning for the esteemed sketch company's Sunday night showcase cast. Her audition piece was Broadway Barbara's debut.
"I first came up with Barbara just for that five-minute sketch," said Sprecher. "She was auditioning for the lead in a production of '42nd Street,' trying to prove she still had the singing and dancing chops to cut it. It was the most successful sketch I'd ever done. The audience response was just great."
Over the next few years, even as Sprecher took on other projects, she heard Barbara in her head, like a siren song.
"I just kept thinking that this character was right for a full-length show."
In 2018, Sprecher finally committed to developing a full-length routine, 'Everything's Coming Up Barbara.' But she only had the opportunity to present the finished act a few times before in-person entertainment was shut down by the pandemic.
At around the same time, Sprecher first got together with Bradley Stevens, a comedy writer who is now her husband. The couple, who this year became first time parents, devoted the lockdown to bringing up baby, and Barbara.
They began writing and posting short Barbara videos on social media, which, to their surprise went, as Barbara might put it, va-va-viral. More than 400,000 TikTok and Instagram followers have delighted in Broadway Barbara's accounts of run-ins with legends, entrepreneurial schemes (Her signature line of body oils and shapewear is Barbara Dixon's Smells and Tights), and Fosse-style dance lessons.
"Eventually we realized that there was enough of an audience and enough enthusiasm that we were going to be able to start doing live performances."
Since 2021, Broadway Barbara has performed three distinct cabaret acts at venues from coast-to-coast.
"Over the past few years," said Sprecher, "I feel like Leah has retired from performing and Barbara has taken over. I feel so satisfied by this show because I never felt that I was able to bring all of what I have to offer to a role before: acting, singing, dancing, comedy. And it's all on my terms. I'm not waiting for someone to cast me."
The parallels and overlaps of Sprecher's real life career and her character's fictional story undoubtedly help explain why Barbara is always presented with as much empathy as parody. Her against-all-odds gumption and enthusiasm are infectious. You'll laugh at her, but you'll also root for her.
'Broadway Barbara's Holiday Spectacular,' December 5, 8pm, $75. Feinstein's at the Nikko. 222 Mason St. www.feinsteinssf.com
Never miss a story! Keep up to date on the latest news, arts, politics, entertainment, and nightlife.
Sign up for the Bay Area Reporter's free weekday email newsletter. You'll receive our newsletters and special offers from our community partners.
Support California's largest LGBTQ newsroom. Your one-time, monthly, or annual contribution advocates for LGBTQ communities. Amplify a trusted voice providing news, information, and cultural coverage to all members of our community, regardless of their ability to pay -- Donate today!