Cabaret Queen Marilyn Maye Headlines Hamptons Summer Songbook Kickoff

The curtain rose on what promises to be an unforgettable summer of song as Hamptons Summer Songbook by the Sea launched its 2025 season with legendary cabaret star Marilyn Maye in a special July 4th weekend celebration at LTV Studios in East Hampton.

Titled “Meet Marvelous Marilyn Maye,” the show ushered in the new season with fireworks of talent and timeless American music where the star paid tribute to the Tonight Show’s presenter Johnny Carson who would have turned 100 years old this year and who had Maye perform live on the show no fewer than 79 times. After the performance, Marilyn participated in a short Q&A session with Joy Behar, and a further surprise was the presentation of a citation to Marilyn from NYS Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright.

Produced by Donna Rubin and Josh Gladstone, the series’s Creative Director at LTV, Hamptons Summer Songbook transforms a working television studio into an atmospheric cabaret venue, complete with café-style seating, impeccable acoustics, and a gleaming Baby Grand piano.

Attendees included Marilyn Maye, Donna Rubin, Josh Gladstone, Joy Behar, Bill Boggs, Howard and Eleanor Morgan, Lynn and Bruce Surry, Bruce Michael and Clif de Raita, Dale Novick, Julie Monroid, NYS Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright, and Jean Shafiroff.

Following the July 5th kickoff, the series continues through August 30 with a dazzling lineup of performers including Lee Roy Reams, Liz Callaway, Eric Comstock and Barbara Fasano, KT Sullivan and Mark Nadler, and international sensations Moipei, among others.