FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 6, 2017 • THE QUEENS COURIER 11
Tragedy can’t stop Flushing woman’s cabaret dreams
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
At age 17 in the summer of 1979, lifelong
Queens resident Renee Katz was
unwittingly thrust into the national spotlight.
A talented fl utist, pianist and vocalist,
Katz was preparing to graduate from the
High School of Music and Art in Manhattan
in mere days when, on June 8, 1979, in a
random act of violence, she was pushed in
front of an oncoming E train at the 50th
Street station in Midtown. She had been on
her way to school for her fi nal exams.
Katz managed to maneuver herself to
avoid being killed, but the train severed
her right hand. Th e teenager was rushed
to Bellevue Hospital Center, where microsurgeons
worked for 16 hours to reattach
her hand. Th ey were successful, but Katz’s
musical career was disrupted.
A media frenzy ensued, Katz remembered.
“I got pushed into that limelight,” she
said. “I didn’t ask for it. But I had a really
good role model in my dad a Holocaust
survivor and a really supportive family.
And I’m a pretty positive person.”
Today, she’s an occupational therapist
by day, cabaret singer by night, mother
of a teenage son and lover of the arts.
Katz has stayed productive, focused and
humble. In just the last few years, the artist
has published a book of poems, recorded
a CD and just fi nished her fi rst set of
major cabaret shows — all titled “Never
Been Gone.”
“Music is my one constant,” Katz said.
“It’s my one love. And it’s never too late
to return to your fi rst love.”
A multi-modal art performance, Katz’s
cabaret journey show features musical
numbers, poetry readings and a slideshow
with supporting photographs, quotes and
thoughts. Th e performer just fi nished a
set of shows at Manhattan’s Don’t Tell
Mama earlier this month alongside pianist
Tedd Firth, and is looking to book
more.
Katz said she loves the cabaret style for
its intimacy.
“It’s an intimate art form where you
can actually have a connection with your
audience,” Katz said. “You’re very close
to people. I’m very musical, and I’m very
emotional, so it just works for me.
Katz said she hopes to take her show to
more venues throughout the year, including
hospitals and colleges. She also plans
to work on a new album.
When she was still 17, Katz said she was
off ered a contract by ICM to produce a
movie about her life. She refused.
“I was 17. I hadn’t lived,” Katz said. “I
didn’t want the movie to just be about
horror.”
Th rough her poetry, music and performances,
Katz said, she has taken creative
control of her own life.
“I did it the way I wanted to do it,” she
said. “Th ere’s nothing wrong with telling
your story.”
Keep up with Katz’s upcoming performances
and artistic career at www.
reneekatzmusic.com
Photos by Maryann LoPinto
Renee Katz takes the stage at Don’t Tell Mama earlier this month.
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