Is That All There Is?

IS THAT ALL THERE IS celebrates Miss Lee’s amazing life and marvelous music. Author Alex Ryer was intrigued by something she once heard Miss Lee say; “If you peeled me like an onion, at the very center of Peggy Lee is a little girl from North Dakota named Norma Delores Egstrom.” Ryer’s one woman show takes a cue from Miss Lee’s astute observation and begins at the end of Miss Lee’s life, moving backward in time to her humble North Dakota beginnings, in a setting resembling the popular 50s television variety shows. During the 1940s and 50s, when popular music spoke a universal language, Miss Peggy Lee was the epitome of cool jazz and sizzling blues. She was the female Frank Sinatra, a platinum doll of a woman who ruled the music world with songs that told a story and felt a feeling. Peggy Lee not only sang the great Americal Songbook, she helped write it. Peggy Lee passed away in January 2002, leaving behind a legacy few if any latter-day crooners might hope to equal, though they all claim her as an inspiring influence. Rita Coolidge, Maria Muldaur, Carol King, K.D. Lang, Nnenna Freelon, Natalie Cole, Maureen McGovern, Bette Middler, Diana Krall – even youngsters like Jane Monheit cite Peggy Lee as a guiding light.