NICKY GAYNER & TOM WAKELEY

Listen to
Her Heart

A celebration of Nancy LaMott

An intimate cabaret telling the story of one of America’s finest interpreters through the songs she made unforgettable.

Created by Nicky Gayner, Tom Wakeley and Nancy’s close friend, songwriter and record producer David Friedman.

Performed by Nicky Gayner and Tom Wakeley.

Book the show for your venue Watch the showreel
Tom Wakeley and Nicky Gayner taking a curtain call together at The Crazy Coqs
ON STAGE AT THE CRAZY COQS, LONDON
First presented at The Crazy Coqs · May 2026New York · 15 April 2027Available in the UK & internationally
“If Nancy were alive today,
everyone would know her name.”

NICKY GAYNER

ABOUT THE SHOW

A remarkable life.
Unforgettable songs.

Listen to Her Heart is an intimate and uplifting celebration of Nancy LaMott, one of the finest interpreters of American popular song.

Through the songs Nancy made unforgettable, Nicky Gayner and Tom Wakeley trace her journey from the clubs of San Francisco and New York to national recognition, performances at the White House and the success for which she had worked so long.

Nicky approaches the songs in her own voice, with warmth, emotional honesty and a deep respect for the lyric. Accompanied by Tom at the piano using Christopher Marlowe’s original arrangements, she honours Nancy’s artistry while offering her own interpretation of the music. This is a celebration, not an impersonation.

Nancy’s close friend, songwriter and record producer David Friedman is an essential creative collaborator on the production. His first-hand memories and personal insight are woven through the evening, bringing a personal perspective to Nancy’s story.

Nancy’s life contained illness, struggle and a tragically early death, but Listen to Her Heart is not defined by sadness. Filled with glorious music, humour and humanity, it celebrates her resilience, her wit and the joy she gave to everyone who heard her sing.

How the show began

Listen to Her Heart began with a shared love of Nancy LaMott’s music.

Nicky Gayner and Tom Wakeley first worked together on Nicky’s cabaret Musical Memories. Knowing how profoundly Nancy’s singing had affected Nicky, Tom approached her after the show with an idea: to create a celebration marking the 30th anniversary of Nancy’s death.

From the outset, they knew they needed the insight of someone who had truly known her. They approached David Friedman—Nancy’s close friend, record producer and the writer of many of her signature songs—and he became an essential creative collaborator.

Drawing on his personal memories, David worked closely with Nicky and Tom to write and shape the show, construct its dramatic arc and decide which songs were essential to telling Nancy’s story. Together, they created an evening that combines David’s first-hand recollections, Christopher Marlowe’s original arrangements and their shared determination to introduce Nancy’s remarkable legacy to new audiences.

THE WOMAN BEHIND THE MUSIC

Why Nancy LaMott
still matters

1951 — 1995

Nancy LaMott was one of the great interpreters of American popular song. Born in Midland, Michigan, she developed her craft in the clubs of San Francisco before becoming a beloved figure on the New York cabaret scene.

Nancy’s gift was not vocal display for its own sake. She seemed to understand every word she sang, finding the emotional truth within a lyric and making each listener feel that she was singing directly to them. Her warmth, humour, vulnerability and complete honesty continue to influence singers and move audiences today.

Discover Nancy’s story

Nancy and Karen Mason were among the early resident artists at Don’t Tell Mama, the New York cabaret venue established in 1982.

Nancy’s recording career began in 1991 when David Friedman founded MIDDER Music to produce her albums, with Christopher Marlowe as her pianist and arranger. In the few years that followed, she broke attendance records at leading New York cabaret rooms, and twice sang at the White House. At last, the wider recognition she had worked towards was arriving.

Nancy died in 1995 at the age of 43, just as her career was reaching new heights. The recordings she left behind ensure that her voice—and the heart within it—can still be discovered.

More about Nancy and her recordings

WHO WILL ENJOY THE SHOW?

You don’t have to
know Nancy.
You’ll feel you do.

You do not need to know Nancy LaMott’s music to be moved by her story.

Listen to Her Heart will appeal to lovers of sophisticated cabaret, musical theatre and the Great American Songbook, as well as existing admirers of Nancy and the songs of David Friedman. It is for anyone who enjoys an intimate evening in which beautiful music and compelling storytelling come together.

At its heart is a universal story: a gifted performer who endured years of illness and disappointment, refused to abandon her calling and was finally recognised as the extraordinary artist she had always been. Nancy’s journey—and the honesty with which she communicated through song—continues to resonate far beyond the world of cabaret.

For programmers

With two performers and an intimate scale, Listen to Her Heart is particularly suited to cabaret rooms, studio theatres, arts centres and festivals. It can also work well in jazz venues that present vocal or story-led programming, and as part of a special event, fundraising evening or celebration of American popular song.

The show offers established cabaret and musical-theatre audiences something rich and familiar, while introducing a remarkable artist to those discovering Nancy LaMott for the first time.

THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE SHOW

A shared love of Nancy’s music

David Friedman, Nicky Gayner and Tom Wakeley together at The Crazy Coqs
DAVID, NICKY & TOM · THE CRAZY COQS

Nicky Gayner

Performer & co-creator

Nicky Gayner is a London-based cabaret singer and actor whose work combines distinctive musical interpretation with warm, personal storytelling. She has performed at leading venues including The Crazy Coqs, The Pheasantry and Wilton’s Music Hall, as well as internationally in New York, Zimbabwe, Norway and the Maldives.

Read full biography

Her solo productions include Nicky Gayner’s Empty Nest, Hooray for Love, Musical Memories and her annual London cabaret Unashamedly Christmas. Nicky first discovered Nancy LaMott’s music while recovering from major back surgery. Nancy’s honesty and ability to find the story within a song had a profound influence on Nicky’s own singing. In Listen to Her Heart, Nicky honours that influence while bringing her own voice, experience and emotional connection to Nancy’s repertoire.

Tom Wakeley

Pianist, musical director & co-creator

Tom Wakeley is a pianist, musical director, conductor and vocal coach with extensive experience in the West End, cabaret and music-theatre training. His credits include Chicago, Miss Saigon, The Phantom of the Opera, City of Angels, She Loves Me and Oliver! He made his Carnegie Hall debut as an accompanist in 1985 and has worked as a vocal coach at RADA since 1993.

Read full biography

Tom first worked with Nicky as musical director of Musical Memories. Knowing her longstanding love of Nancy LaMott’s music, he proposed that they create a show to mark the 30th anniversary of Nancy’s death. As pianist and musical director of Listen to Her Heart, Tom performs Christopher Marlowe’s original arrangements and helps bring Nancy’s distinctive musical world to life.

David Friedman

Director, writer & co-creator

David Friedman is an award-winning American composer, songwriter, conductor and record producer whose creative partnership with Nancy LaMott helped bring her talent to a wider audience. He founded MIDDER Music to record Nancy, produced her albums and wrote many of the songs most closely associated with her, including Listen to My Heart, Help Is on the Way, We Can Be Kind and We Live on Borrowed Time.

Read full biography

His career encompasses Broadway, Disney and the award-winning musical Desperate Measures. David served as musical director for Broadway productions including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Song & Dance and Beauty and the Beast, and conducted the scores for several of Disney’s best-loved animated films.

For Listen to Her Heart, David worked closely with Nicky and Tom to write the show, shape its dramatic arc and select the songs through which Nancy’s story is told.

Christopher Marlowe

Original arrangements

Listen to Her Heart is performed using arrangements created by award-winning pianist and musical director Christopher Marlowe during his musical partnership with Nancy LaMott. Heard throughout Nancy’s recordings, Christopher’s arrangements were central to the distinctive musical language they created together.

PERFORMANCES

From London to New York

15 APRIL
2027
FORTHCOMING · NEW YORK

Don’t Tell Mama

Listen to Her Heart comes to the celebrated New York cabaret room where Nancy was an early resident artist. Bringing her story here gives this performance a very special sense of homecoming.

Ticket information to follow
LONDON
2027
RETURN PLANNED · DATES TO BE ANNOUNCED

The Crazy Coqs

A return to The Crazy Coqs is planned following the show’s first London run in May 2026.

MAY
2026
PREVIOUS PERFORMANCES · LONDON

The Crazy Coqs

Listen to Her Heart was first presented in a three-performance run at The Crazy Coqs, with Nicky Gayner and Tom Wakeley performing Christopher Marlowe’s original arrangements and creative collaborator David Friedman joining them in London.

Three performances · Final night sold out

AUDIENCE REACTIONS

In their words

“The story was captivating and the songs beautifully woven into the narrative.”
Audience member, The Crazy Coqs
“I felt I knew Nancy by the end.”
Audience member, The Crazy Coqs
“A feel-good evening.”
Audience member, The Crazy Coqs
“I knew nothing about Nancy La Mott apart from recognising some of her songs. I am now a big fan.”

Nigel, audience member, The Crazy Coqs

WATCH & LISTEN

A little of the evening

A glimpse of the music, the storytelling and the partnership at the heart of the show.

Listen to Her Heart · Showreel · 3 minutes

FOR VENUES & PRESENTERS

Bring the show
to your audience.

Listen to Her Heart is a two-person production that can be adapted for cabaret rooms, studio theatres, arts centres, festivals and other intimate performance spaces.

Enquire about a booking

Fees and availability on request.

Download presenter pack (PDF)
Running time
75 minutes · No interval
Performers
Nicky Gayner & Tom Wakeley
Availability
All locations considered
After the show
Audience Q&A by arrangement
Space, access & rehearsal
  • Minimum stage size: 3 × 4 metres
  • A dressing room is required
  • Ideally allow at least 2½ hours for get-in and preparation, or arrange an earlier technical rehearsal with a break and time to change
  • A venue sound and lighting technician is preferred
Piano, sound & lighting
  • A tuned grand piano is preferred
  • Two microphones and two boom stands
  • A PA system and one stage monitor
  • Both voices amplified; acoustic piano amplification is not required
  • At least one 13-amp electrical socket; overseas power arrangements to be agreed

An 88-key weighted digital piano can be used when an acoustic piano is unavailable. A keyboard and sound equipment can also be provided by prior arrangement.

The show has a specific lighting cue which can be adapted or omitted for festivals, tented performances and venues with limited lighting facilities.