Broadway legend Seth Rudetsky returns to London with Divas By The Decade, a dazzling celebration of musical theatre’s most iconic women. Known for his razor-sharp wit and encyclopedic knowledge of Broadway, Rudetsky brings decades of diva stories and unforgettable performances to Crazy Coqs.
From Ethel Merman to Barbra Streisand, this cabaret-style show dives deep into the voices and personalities that shaped the stage. Expect hilarious anecdotes, rare audio and video clips, and Rudetsky’s signature musical brilliance.
Divas By The Decade plays at Crazy Coqs on Sunday 5 October 2025, with performances at 5pm and 7.30pm. Book tickets here.
You’re bringing Divas By The Decade to Crazy Coqs, what can you tell us about the show?
I use videos and recordings to show the audience the women who have made the biggest impact on musical theatre! Each woman has her own trading card projected behind me with her name, classic roles, Diva ingredient (what makes her so special), and then a “fun fact,” which is an inside story I found out from my years of digging for Broadway dish.
For instance, I have one for Lillias White (who just starred in Hadestown on Broadway). I list her classic roles: The Life and How To Succeed. Her diva ingredient is “making it her own,” which leads me to showing the video of the Funny Girl concert I produced and conducted, where she brought down the house with her unbelievably unique and brilliant performance of “Don’t Rain On My Parade.”
Watch it here
The fun fact is listed as “bad advice,” and (spoiler alert!) it’s a story she told me about a show she did in the early ’80s called Rock and Roll: The First 5000 Years. Everyone played a famous recording artist, and Lillias sang the Aretha Franklin songs.
She told me that another woman in the show was hired to sing the Janis Joplin songs, but a few days into rehearsal she decided to quit to become a pop star. Everyone was like, “Why would you quit a Broadway show with a steady paycheck to pursue something that might not happen? Stay with the show for the entire run and THEN try to be a pop star!” The woman ignored her and quit the show to pursue her dream.
End of story: the show lasted for one week, and the woman who quit is named Madonna!
You’ve worked with some of Broadway and the West End’s most iconic performers. What’s it like sharing the stage with such legendary talent?
It’s literally a dream come true. When I was a kid listening to records, I dreamed of just meeting these women. The fact that I’ve been able to work with them is beyond what I hoped.
And that I get to “make” them perform the songs I’ve always been obsessed with? Unbelievable! I had Chita Rivera on my Broadway cruise and had her do “All That Jazz,” which I listened to relentlessly all through elementary school.
I taught my passengers the vocal parts to the Tonight Quintet, and Chita sang Anita! I mean, she first did that in 1957 when I wasn’t born, and I got to see her do it from a prime seat—behind my piano!
Your ‘Deconstructing Broadway’ series has become a fan favourite. How does Divas By The Decade build on that concept?
100%! I’m deconstructing all of these incredible women. Showing moments on video that are brilliant (and/or hilarious) and playing recordings that showcase their brilliance… or huge mistakes.
Betty Buckley modifying her vowels is devastating to the ears. I warn pregnant women to leave the room. It’s devastating because Betty is the queen of pure vowels! She did it on the (bad) advice of a music director.
I then cleanse the palate by playing the same song after Betty realized she needed to sing pure vowels. It’s thrilling!
You’ve had an incredible career across theatre, radio, and writing. What keeps you inspired creatively?
I really can’t resist. I see amazing theatre and I want to do it, too. I hear incredible singing and I want to tell everyone why it’s amazing, so I film a deconstruction or I talk about it obsessively on the radio.
I walk into a bookstore (yes, I LOVE to visit Foyles) and it’s like taking an anti-depressant. My mood is lifted so much by being around books! I buy a ton and I start to think of the next book I want to write.
You’ve raised millions for charity through Stars in the House. How important is community and activism in your work?
I think artists are so incredibly lucky because it is so easy for us to raise money for tons of causes. We don’t have to schmooze people into donating—we can just put on a show and people will buy tickets. And then all that money can go to charity.
And money isn’t the only thing people need. Music truly heals. As soon as I began my professional life, I started volunteering—bringing singers to hospitalized AIDS patients who were in jail. I can’t describe what a huge difference music made in their lives every week. And OUR lives!
So many times I would walk into the AIDS/prison ward with a performer who was cranky about a bad audition or some other showbiz hardship, and by the end of the show, they would be so happy. Because they would be sharing music on the most basic level… just to share it. Not to get a job, not to get applause… just to do what makes them happy, which in turn made the prisoners happy. It was so beautifully symbiotic.
Right now, I’m helping my husband who is spearheading a project to combat the misinformation about people who want to be US citizens. We hope to take it all across the USA. Art can change lives!
What would you say to anyone thinking of booking to see Divas By The Decade?
Come to the show whether you’re a total insider or whether you don’t know anything about musical theatre. There is so much amazing music and so many hilarious (if I do say so myself) stories!
