It’s not underground, actually — it’s just down a short flight of stairs from the Palladium lobby — but the Side Door Cabaret is the closest thing to a basement boîte à la the Village Vanguard as you’ll find in these parts. Palladium Executive Director Paul Wilborn is a piano man himself, so he knows how to set the scene — round tables, low lighting, slightly raised stage. Even more important, he knows how to program, bringing in top-flight jazz, roots and blues performers as well as Broadway spellbinders like Susan Egan who sing as if they’re having a private conversation with everyone in the room. Coming attractions include jazz vocalist Whitney James and cast members from St. Petersburg Opera’s Sweeney Todd. 253 Fifth Ave. N., St. Petersburg. 727-822-3590, mypalladium.org
Watch: Paul Wilborn — executive director of The Palladium in St. Pete, whose Side Door Cabaret won Best Underground Music Series — with his wife, actor/director/teacher Eugenie Bondurant, who puts everyone else's posture to shame. They talked with CL's David Warner during the Best of the Bay awards reception on Sept. 19 at Creative Loafing.
This article appears in Sep 20-26, 2012.