Local cabaret singer Stoner participating in 60-hour variety show marathon in New York

Life is a cabaret these days for Amy Friedl Stoner, who is about to get 15 minutes of fame.

The Cedar Rapids chanteuse staged her first solo cabaret show in May at the Opus Concert Cafe adjacent to the Paramount Theatre. Now she's embarking on a paramount performance at the internationally acclaimed Metropolitan Room in New York City.

She will be singing from 6:45 to 7 a.m. Iowa time Jan. 3 as part of the cabaret club's attempt to set a Guinness World Record with a 60-hour variety show. Folks back home can sign up to watch a livestream at LivAmp.com.

The event begins at 6 a.m. Central/7 a.m. Eastern time Jan. 1 and runs nonstop through 6 a.m. Central/7 a.m. Eastern time Jan. 4. Stoner will be rubbing elbows with some of the biggest names in the New York cabaret scene, and she's excited to be among the few invited to make their venue debut during the marathon.

'At first I was kind of bummed,” she said. 'I was hoping to get an hour at the Metropolitan Room. But the cool thing is, they tried to get 200 entertainers, and Bernard Furshpan, who is the manager of the Metropolitan Room, said he wanted the cream of the crop of these people.”

That cream includes Tony Danza, Richard Pryor Jr., Marilyn Maye, Billy Stritch, and KT Sullivan. They are among more than 235 performers representing a true variety of styles - comedy, drag, magic, puppetry, poetry, burlesque, belly dancing, spoken word and lots and lots of music.

Stoner is looking forward to the networking opportunities, which is how she landed the gig in the first place. A friend in New York City sent her an article about the event and encouraged her to apply. She met Maye and Stritch this summer at a cabaret conference in St. Louis and was invited to sing with Maye at an Okoboji concert a couple of weeks later.

'She's a class act,” Stoner said. 'It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime things.”

Maye then invited Stoner and husband Matt to come to her New Year's Eve gig at the Metropolitan Room. And they'll be there.

Stoner became Facebook friends with Stritch, and when she mentioned applying for the marathon, he said he would 'tell Bernie he needs to have you.” Two days later, Stritch told her she was in, and the official confirmation came shortly thereafter.

Stoner, who is paying her own transportation and lodging bills, will have more coaching sessions with Stritch during her New York stay. She's going to take a lot of music to have him recommend pieces for the cabaret gig. One number she'll likely include is 'Baby Mine” from the movie 'Dumbo,” which she sings every night to her 2 1/2-year-old son, Weston.

And while she'd love to have this appearance lead to more performance and coaching opportunities in New York, she's elated for this one.

'A lot of (the draw) is the experience and meeting people, and to watch and learn,” she said. 'I'm trying to go out there with no expectations. Getting this great experience and being able to sing in that room is just a really big honor, because it's so famous.”

Back in Eastern Iowa, she's recently finished her fourth year performing in Lynne Rothrock's Christmas Cabaret and will be performing a Carole King project with the local Mirage combo Feb. 20 to 21 at the Opus Concert Cafe. She'll also be returning to Davenport's Piano Bar and Cabaret in Chicago and is lining up some work in St. Louis, as well.

A frequent leading lady at Theatre Cedar Rapids and other area stages, the much shorter singing engagements are a better fit for Stoner's current role as the mom of an active toddler.

'As he gets older, I may get back in theater,” she said.