‘JEFF ROSS: TAKE A BANANA FOR THE RIDE’: Jeff Ross. Photo: Emilio Madrid.

JEFF ROSS: TAKE A BANANA FOR THE RIDE
Written & performed by Jeff Ross
Directed by Stephen Kessler
Through September 28, 2025
Nederlander Theatre
208 W 41st Street
https://jeffrossbroadway.com/

By Scott Harrah

Raunchy comedian Jeff Ross reveals his surprisingly vulnerable side in his hilarious one-man Broadway show, Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride. He is best known as “the Roastmaster General” for his roasts of celebrities on Comedy Central. The 59-year-old Newark, New Jersey native has become infamous for politically incorrect, foul-mouthed but scathingly funny humor. Anyone who yearns for the glory days of “Borscht Belt” comedians from yesteryear—Jackie Mason, Don Rickles, Rodney Dangerfield, Henny Youngman and Joan Rivers, among others—will enjoy Mr. Ross’s blend of scabrous wit, Jewish sensibility, self-deprecating one-liners and his ability to poke fun at his many personal tragedies.

Despite being renowned as an “insult” comedian, audiences will be surprised at just how vulnerable and—dare I say it?—serious Mr. Ross is throughout the show. He peels back all the layers of his public persona, revealing a man who has faced so much adversity in life.

Bittersweet anecdotes

Mr. Ross’s show is primarily a series of bittersweet but funny anecdotes about his childhood in New Jersey and his early days in Hollywood. His mother died of leukemia when he was just 14. His quirky father ran a catering business in Newark but had a drug problem and died when Mr. Ross was just 19. Ross’s only immediate family member alive today is sister Robyn. So, he learned from a young age to remain positive and find ways to laugh despite personal tragedies.

He was mostly raised by his fun-loving eccentric grandfather Pop Jack, a man who insisted that young Jeff always “take a banana for the ride,” meaning to always be ready for whatever curveballs life throws at you. Pop Jack was a World War II veteran who proudly wore a ring made from a piece of a captured Nazi submarine. His grandfather often said he had “world-beater” energy.

The comedian lost his hair (which he calls his “Jew ’fro”) from alopecia, and now is completely bald and has no eyelashes. He makes countless jokes about his baldness.

Mr. Ross eventually became a star on the comedy circuit, but he had many unpleasant and sad experiences along the way, including losing several fellow comedians who were great friends: Norm McDonald, Bob Saget and Gilbert Godfried.

Proudly Jewish

One of the show’s funniest moments is the song “Don’t F**k with the Jews,” in which he names all the major accomplishments by Jewish people.  In 2025, Jewish people worldwide are facing unprecedented levels of antisemitism, so it’s refreshing to see a Jewish comedian who is unabashedly proud of his faith and heritage.

Colon cancer battle & audience insults

 He shares details of his recent battle with colon cancer. Mr. Ross jokes that having several inches of his colon removed has left him with a “semicolon.” In addition, he recounts how his oncologist tried to soften the bad news with humor. “Jeff, the good news and bad news. The bad news is you’re going to need six months of chemo. The good news is you lost your hair a long time ago.”

Toward the show’s end, he goes out into the audience and randomly makes people stand up, asks their name and then proceeds to make an unscripted, disparaging joke about them.

Jeff Ross isn’t Billy Crystal, but so what?

Don’t come to the show expecting a more structured one-man comic show like Billy Crystal’s 700 Sundays. There are similarities, of course. Both Mr. Crystal and Mr. Ross use autobiographical stories to talk about their late parents, Jewish relatives and nostalgic family memories. However, while Billy Crystal’s show focused on the short time that he knew his father (Crystal’s dad died when Billy was 15), Jeff Ross is brasher and portrays his dad as a deeply flawed man. No, he isn’t Billy Crystal, but so what?

Jeff Ross has his own unique comic style. He’s loud, raw and shamelessly vulgar (and he never fails to get laughs as a result). He is also sentimental at times, revealing all the pain and insecurities and resilience that have made him who is today. Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride isn’t a perfect show, but if you enjoy his in-your-face humor as much as this reviewer does, it’s one marvelously funny night out at the theater.

Published August 25, 2025
Reviewed at performance on August 19, 2025

‘JEFF ROSS: TAKE A BANANA FOR THE RIDE’: Jeff Ross in various scenes. Photos: Emilio Madrid.

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‘PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC’: (left to right) Molly Ranson, Nael Nacer & Aria Shahghasemi. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC
By Joshua Harmon
Through March 3, 2024
Directed by David Cromer
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
261 West 47^th Street
www.ManhattanTheatreClub.com
 

By Scott Harrah

Antisemitism unfortunately became a worldwide crisis in the wake of the Israel-Gaza conflict when the terrorist group Hamas broke the ceasefire with Israel on October 7, 2023 by attacking the Jewish state in a one-day massacre that is to date the worst slaughter of Jewish people since the Holocaust. However, hatred and violence aimed at Jewish people was a problem long before Joshua Harmon wrote Prayer for the French Republic, a three-hour epic about a French Jewish family’s centuries-long battle with antisemitism. The show was first mounted Off-Broadway in 2022, nearly two years before the current Israel-Hamas war began. Now on Broadway, the play is more timely, topical and all too real—one of the best dramas in at least a decade.

The story unfolds in a Paris apartment as Marcelle Salomon Benhamou (Betsy Aidem) is chatting with Molly (Molly Ranson), a distant American cousin visiting France on a study abroad program. She tells Molly about their convoluted family tree and how the Salomon family has been in France for centuries, with a renowned piano business on Rue du Faubourg Montmartre, run by Marcelle’s octogenarian father, Pierre (Richard Masur). As a secular American, Molly feels almost no connection to her Jewish roots. Marcelle discusses the Salomon family’s Jewish roots and many tragedies—some living through the Nazi occupation of France while others had the misfortune of living in Poland and Russia and were killed in concentration camps. Marcelle and her brother Patrick (Anthony Edwards) grew up with a Jewish father and a Catholic mother. She explains that her brother Patrick is mostly secular. Although Marcelle wasn’t orthodox, she is married to Charles Benhamou, a devout Sephardic man who grew up in French Algeria in the colonial era but had to leave once Algeria gained independence in 1962 because the country was no longer safe for Jews. Marcelle is a psychiatrist and has two grown children who still live at home, including son Daniel (Aria Shahghasemi), a math teacher who proudly wears a yarmulke at all times. Daughter Elodie (Francis Benhamou) is a lost soul but has strong opinions on Zionism and her Jewish identity.

When the rest of the Benhamou family arrives home, we see that Daniel has a bloody face and has been beaten in an antisemitic attack. Marcelle feels Daniel has made himself a target and could avoid violence by simply wearing a baseball cap to cover up his yarmulke.

The story is also told via flashbacks. Although most of the play takes place in 2016/2017,  there are flashback scenes to 1944 when Patrick and Marcelle’s great-grandparents Adolphe Salomon (Daniel Oreskes) and Irma Salomon (Nancy Robinette) are living in hiding in Paris during the Nazi occupation—having miraculously eluded the Gestapo. They are running the family piano store while they wait patiently for their son and grandson to return from a concentration camp.

The play begins in 2016 when Donald Trump was running for president of the United States, and right-wing nationalist candidate Marine LePen was running for president in France one year later in 2017. The Benhamou family believes LePen may eventually become president and Jews in France will be in grave danger as a result. Much of the play deals with Charles (Nael Nacer), a successful physician with a thriving practice, and his desire to move the entire family to Israel because he believes France is no longer a safe country for Jews. Marcelle has spent her whole life in France and does not wish to leave her aging father behind, but as antisemitic incidents in Paris continue to be on the rise, she is left with a tough choice.

Although the play has some true flaws and is long and rambling in parts, playwright Joshua Harmon’s tale is always fascinating and is must-see theatre for anyone. Director David Cromer keeps the action flowing at a rapid-fire pace, but should have done some tighter editing in act three. There are some amazing performances here as the cast works together as a cohesive ensemble.  Standouts include Nael Nacer and his gripping portrayal of Charles, the husband and father who will do anything to keep his family safe and is willing to risk everything to relocate to Israel. Molly Ranson does a fine job playing the show’s most unlikeable character Molly, the naïve, misinformed American cousin who knows almost nothing about Judaism and dismisses her roots as simply being “of Jewish extraction.” Ms. Ranson isn’t afraid to portray Molly as a clueless yet gutsy twentysomething who speaks her mind, even when her comments are inappropriate. The play’s best performance is given by Francis Benhamou as Elodie, an angry misanthrope who steals the show when she tells off Molly with her vitriolic rant about “ahistorical” young people who don’t read and get all their historical information from social media.

Anyone in America—especially New York City—who has Jewish friends or family knows these are some of the darkest days Jews have experienced since World War II. Perhaps that is why Prayer for the French Republic is so sobering and truth-telling right now, at a time when the very existence of Jewish people is being maligned by misinformed media and a growing faction of bigots on college campuses and social media. This is as epic as another Jewish stage saga, Stefano Massini’s The Lehman Trilogy; and as emotionally volatile and searing as Tracy Letts’ August: Osage County. Yet it has an urgent message that most plays do not: Jewish people in 2024 are afraid and feel nowhere is safe; not France, Europe, America, Israel—or anywhere.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published January 9, 2024
Reviewed at January 5, 2024 press performance.

‘PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC’: Betsy Aidem & Molly Ranson. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC’: Molly Ranson & Francis Benhamou. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC’: Aria Shahghasemi & Molly Ranson. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

‘PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC’: Nancy Robinette, Daniel Oreskes, Richard Masur, Ari Brand & Ethan Haberfield. Photo: Jeremy Daniel.

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‘HARMONY’: Allison Semmes (center) & cast. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

HARMONY
Music by Barry Manilow
Book lyrics by Bruce Sussman
Directed & choreographed by Warren Carlyle
Ethel Barrymore Theatre
243 West 47th Street
(212-239-6200), www.HarmonyANewMusical.com

By David NouNou

Throughout my entire theatre-going days, I have never seen a musical or play that was as well-intentioned as the new musical Harmony. However, there is a price to pay with such well-intentioned offerings. I am sure that none of the creative team or anyone could have ever foreseen what would play out overseas on October 7, 2023. As if politics didn’t divide the country enough, the Israel/Hamas war has created divisions in this country and around the world the likes of which Jewish people haven’t encountered since the early days of the Nazi era in 1933.

Harmony begins at a concert in 1933 at Carnegie Hall in New York City where six performers, three Jewish and three non-Jewish, who were known as The Comedian Harmonists were performing. This group did exist. They were world renowned. They performed in most capitals of the world. They had recordings, were in movies, but all of their fame, music, recordings and movies were obliterated and destroyed once the Nazis took over.

We go back in time to 1927 – 1929 Berlin, when the group was being formed, their early struggles, and how they wanted their act to develop. Basically, they wanted to perform in harmony. The group was formed by Harry (Zal Owen) and consisted of Young Rabbi (Danny Kornfeld), Bobby (Sean Bell), Chopin (Blake Roman), Erich (Eric Peters) and Lesh (Steven Telsey). Their lives become more complicated when Young Rabbi who is Jewish marries a non-Jewish girl, Mary (Sierra Boggess) and Chopin who is not Jewish marries the Jewish anarchist, Ruth (Julie Benko).

There is another character, Rabbi (Chip Zien) who is both narrator and commentator of the proceedings from the rise of The Comedian Harmonists to their demise. Just as in A Beautiful Noise where there is the old Neil Diamond and the young Neil Diamond, the older character becomes more of an intrusion than propelling the story forward. The difference here is Rabbi also plays multiple small parts, with lots of schtick, assuming that is to add comic relief to the proceedings. Rabbi is also the conscience of the show; and how he stood by idly and did nothing as the events were unfolding. Could all of their lives have been spared if he insisted on staying in America instead of returning to Berlin?

Act I comes to an end with a swastika emblazoned on the back wall, and the results are grim. Act II begins in one of the most misguided and absurd openers ever conceived. It is 1934 at a performance of The New Ziegfeld Follies where Josephine Baker (Allison Semmes) is performing atop a white piano with The Comedian Harmonists as her backup singers in white tuxedos in a song entitled “We’re Goin’ Loco!” Loco indeed. This must have been Barry Manilow’s way of cheering up the audience for the devastation to come, a tribute to Lola from his hit song “Copacabana.” Only to be told by Rabbi that this was a fantasy that never really took place.

From that point on you can connect the dots of what’s to come. Again, let me reiterate, the intentions are formidable. As I am writing this review, in the background is the news on TV with what is happening at elite universities and college campuses among students and professors alike, condemning Israel for defending itself and the rise of antisemitism across the country. It’s absolutely chilling to see what happened in 1933 is happening now in 2023. I cheer and applaud Mr. Manilow and Mr. Sussman for taking such a risk in musicalizing and bringing to life The Comedian Harmonists. The score is haunting and meaningful, but the book is very heavy-handed and lugubrious and there is no way of improving it. Not even the dependable director/choreographer Warren Carlyle can alleviate the proceedings. If anything, Mr. Carlyle should have been a better editor and deleted a lot of unneeded moments.

The six voices and harmonizing of Mr. Bell, Mr. Kornfeld, Mr. Owen, Mr. Peters, Mr. Roman and Mr. Telsey as the sextet is phenomenal as are the voices of Ms. Boggess and Ms. Benko. They have all been given solid songs and they all deliver with conviction.

Chip Zien is a Broadway veteran and has extensive credits from Into the Woods and Falsettos to the recent revival of Caroline, or Change. He plays older Rabbi and also narrates the proceedings which is so unnecessary, because they are self-explanatory. He is given the 11th hour song “Threnody”. Its definition: “a wailing ode, song hymn or poem of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person.” Think of it as Cervantes singing “The Impossible Dream” from Man of La Mancha or Jean Valjean singing “Bring Him Home” from Les Misérables. You are on your feet for the delivery of the song by the artist. Here one finds oneself applauding this incredible powerful song and not the performer. He lacks the power, charm and charisma to carry such an undertaking.

Harmony is a very tough sit-through, but it is an evening that is provocative and thought- provoking only to see how history might be repeating itself.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published November 16, 2023
Reviewed at November 14, 2023 press performance.

‘HARMONY’: Chip Zien. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

‘HARMONY’: Julie Benko & Sierra Boggess. Photo: Adam Riemer.

‘HARMONY’: (left to right) Blake Roman, Steven Telsey, Zal Owen, Danny Kornfeld, Eric Peters & Sean Bell. Photo: Julieta Cervantes.

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‘JUST FOR US’: Alex Edelman. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

JUST FOR US
Written by Alex Edelman
Directed by Adam Brace
Through August 19, 2023
Hudson Theatre
141 West 44th Street
(855-801-5876), www.JustForUsShow.com

By David NouNou

Starting with a Robin Williams joke, ending with attending a White Nationalist get-together in Queens, New York, and in between a tale of Santa attending his Orthodox Jewish family’s home at Christmas time—these are some of the anecdotes Alex Edelman regales the audience with in Just for Us. He has written this solo monologue about his “Jewishness” and his Orthodox family, the trials and tribulations of being Jewish, and the different degrees of being Jewish. What makes this tale of the Jewish experience so much fun is its freshness and sincerity.

Mr. Edelman is a comedy writer, born in the WASP part of Boston to a Jewish family, who had to make a lot of changes in his life starting with his long Hebrew name, condensed to Alex Edelman. What is unique to Mr. Edelman’s humor is the dark humor infused in his material. As the saying goes, “He’s not afraid to go there.” He can laugh at life’s foibles and ironies. His impish, boyish looks also help maneuver this slippery slope between comedy and reality. He is mischievous and manic which in many instances heightens the humor.

Director Adam Brace (who passed away on April 29, 2023) was working with Mr. Edelman for a long time, fine-tuning this comedic gem. They trimmed it to 90 minutes of constant merriment. The pace is nonstop, and Mr. Edelman is in total control of the stage and his charm makes the evening that much more pleasurable.

Most Jewish humor came from what was known as the Borscht Belt. Would-be comics went to the Catskills to test, and sometimes pilfer, material from other Jewish comics, to use on their Jewish audiences who went there for their summer vacations. Having played in Melbourne, Australia, at the Edinburgh Fringe in Scotland, Soho in London, off-Broadway, and finally to the Hudson Theatre, here in New York, Just for Us has managed to hit the comedy spot in various continents. With antisemitism on the rise, to Mr. Edelman’s credit, he has cleverly taken Jewish humor and translated it to 21st century humor. It is great seeing younger and older audience members enjoying the same humor. Whether the material is related to social media or Chanukah, everyone was getting the humor, everyone was in on the fun. Kudos to Mr. Edelman for bridging the gap between the young and the old.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published July 6, 2023
Reviewed at July 5, 2023 press performance.

‘JUST FOR US’: Alex Edelman. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘JUST FOR US’: Alex Edelman. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘PARADE’: Micaela Diamond & Ben Platt. Photo: Joan Marcus.

PARADE
Book by Alfred Uhry
Music & lyrics by Jason Robert Brown
Conceived by Harold Prince
Directed by Michael Arden
Through August 6, 2023
Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre
242 West 45^th Street
(212-239-6200), https://paradebroadway.com/

By David NouNou

A lot has happened since Parade originally opened in 1998 at the Vivian Beaumont Theatre. In its original form, it was compelling theatre; now it is very difficult to sit through. Not that the subject matter has changed—it’s the times that have changed. If anything, Parade is more relevant today than it was back then. Watching antisemitism in full display now, bigotry, the state of Georgia currently in turmoil and making headlines about an injustice perpetrated by a former president—plus, the divisiveness that is splitting the country on so many different issues—there is a lot to process here.

The story is set in Georgia, the time is 1913-1915, and it is about the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl, Mary Phagen (Erin Rose Doyle), and the subsequent arrest, trumped-up trial, unjust sentencing and lynching of a Jewish factory superintendent, Leo Frank (Ben Platt).

Leo Frank moved from Brooklyn to Atlanta to be with his Southern Georgian Jewish wife, Lucille (Micaela Diamond), whose uncle offered Leo a superintendent’s job and hopefully a better life to be able to raise a family. He is totally uncomfortable in this environment because he is Jewish and feels out of place. It is Memorial Day 1913: Mary Phagen (Miss Doyle), has come to the pencil factory on a Saturday for her weekly pay of $1.20. The next day she is found dead in the basement of the factory. The suspects at the time are the black janitor, Newt Lee (Eddie Cooper) and Leo Frank.  Prosecutor Hugh Dorsey (Paul Alexander Nolan) is coerced by Tom Watson (Manoel Felciano), a writer for The Jeffersonian, an extremist right-wing newspaper, and conspire to release Newt Lee reasoning “hanging another Negro ain’t enough this time. We gotta do better.”

Leo is sentenced to jail to eventually hang. His wife Lucille goes to Governor Slaton (Sean Allan Krill) to show the inconsistences of the trial, which Slaton reluctantly looks over, and ultimately finds enough evidence of conspired lying decides to transfer Leo to another jail, only to be hauled away at night by “rebels seeking revenge” and hanging him.

The book by Alfred Uhry is fascinating and intriguing, while the score by Jason Robert Brown is too lugubrious and unmemorable. For such an intense subject matter, the play could have used more book and less score to make the point of injustice more effective. You yearn for the scenes that have Leo and Lucille speaking frankly to each other or Lucille making her point to Governor Slaton. Originally directed by Harold Prince, director Michael Arden has taken a darker approach to the proceedings. It’s apropos for the times.

What mesmerized me most and made the evening more tolerable was Ben Platt. With the role of Leo Frank, he has finally shed his teenage persona of Evan Hansen, and taken the mantle of Broadway’s next leading man. He is so convincing as Leo that I could not see a sign of Evan. He is solid, as an actor and a singer and genuinely believes in his role.

Two other performances that leapt out were Micaela Diamond as Lucille Frank, her unrelenting pursuit to exonerate her husband and the love behind her motives are palpable. The other performance is from Sean Allan Krill as Georgia Governor Slaton, with his commanding voice and charming Southern gentility; he delivers genuine compassion in trying to resolve this heinous case. The rest of the cast is the usual stereotypes one would find in the South.

Parade is making a meaningful and lasting impression on this year’s theatrical season. It’s mirroring the times in which we live.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published March 22, 2023
Reviewed at March 21, 2023 press performance.

‘PARADE’: The cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: (left to right) William Michals, Jackson Teeley, Paul Alexander Nolan, Eddie Cooper & Max Chernin. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Alex Joseph Grayson. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Jay Armstrong Johnson & Jake Pedersen. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Erin Rose Doyle & Jake Pedersen. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Paul Alexander Nolan & Alex Joseph Grayson. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Benn Platt. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Micaela Diamond. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Manoel Felciano. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘PARADE’: Stacie Bono & Sean Allan Krill. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘FUNNY GIRL’: Lea Michele & Ramin Karimloo. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

FUNNY GIRL
Book by Isobel Lennart
Revised by Harvey Fierstein
Music by Jule Styne
Lyrics by Bob Merrill
Directed by Michael Mayer
Through September 3, 2023
August Wilson Theatre
245 West 52nd Street
(877-250-2929), funnygirlonbroadway.com

By David NouNou

What a difference a leading lady makes.

From the ridiculous (absurdly miscast) Beanie Feldstein, to the sublime, Lea Michele, Funny Girl has finally received the sensational revival it has always deserved. After the electrifying overture (one of Broadway’s best), and the curtain went up on Beanie Feldstein last year, tedium set in from the onset. Last night, after the electrifying overture and the curtain went up, electricity started crossing the stage in the form of Lea Michele.

The book centers on Brooklyn-born Fanny Brice (Lea Michele) who although wasn’t pretty like a Miss Atlantic City, broke into showbusiness through sheer grit, determination and raw talent. She started in vaudeville at Keeney’s Theatre, where she meets gambler/con artist Nicky Arnstein (Ramin Karimloo), works her way up to be in the Ziegfeld Follies, gets to serenade Nick singing “People,” leaves the Follies to be with Nick, which brings us to the end of Act I and the immortal “Don’t Rain on My Parade”.

It is in Act II where the book becomes mawkish. As Fanny’s stock goes up, Nicky’s goes down. She makes the money; he gets wiped out and ultimately gets thrown in jail for three years for embezzlement. Eventually comes the parting of the ways. With Ms. Feldstein, the second act book was very weak. However, when you have an electrifying Fanny, the flaws of the book were not as noticeable. The score has always been sublime. Whether written as ballads, torch songs or comic relief, the songs that Jule Styne and Robert Merrill wrote tried to showcase Fanny as the great singer/comedian that she was. But as we all know, the songs ultimately showcased Barbra Streisand and now it showcases her most worthy successor, Lea Michele.

After seeing the woefully miscast Funny Girl revival in April 2022, honestly speaking I had no idea at what to expect with Ms. Michele. Admittedly, I saw Barbra Streisand and Sydney Chaplin do Fanny and Nick in 1964 at the Winter Garden Theatre and of course, I was blown away by Ms. Streisand and can’t recall much of Mr. Chaplin.

I can tell you this: You are not going to see another rendition so good for at least another 60 years. Ms. Michele nails the Brooklyn Jewishness that Fanny possessed. She has been given multiple wig changes that if you’ve seen pictures of the actual Fanny Brice, there is a closer resemblance here than even Ms. Streisand could capture. Her singing prowess is Herculean, there are lots of songs for her to sing, and with her big voice, she brings down the house with each one of them, from: “I’m the Greatest Star,” “People,” “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and the underappreciated “The Music That Makes Me Dance.”  Her final dramatic parting of ways with Nick, and pulling herself together to go out on stage is Fanny/Lea intertwined as one, blows the roof off the theatre.

At our April 2022 performance, Ramin Karimloo was out of the show. The second thrill of the night was seeing Mr. Karimloo. Not only does he have a sublime voice for singing; he can act  and bring nuances to his character, especially as his fortunes begin to falter, and he is sinking financially, by the end you can see the man crumble. That aside, he is gorgeous (pity the real Nicky Arnstein came nowhere close) and wait until the “Sadie, Sadie” number in Act II, and catch a glimpse of that body sculpted by Michelangelo.  Although not sung in the original show, it was written for the movie—the song “You’re a Funny Girl” was sung by Fanny—but here Mr. Karimloo, with his big voice, does a lovely, haunting rendition of it. It was criminal that the Tony committee neglected to nominate him last year in the best musical actor category.

At our performance, Tovah Feldshuh was out that night as Mama Brice and Broadway veteran Liz McCartney ably filled in. Thankfully, Tony nominee Jared Grimes as Eddie Ryan, Fanny’s choreographer and confidant, is still in the show, slaying the audience with his great tap number in Act I.

The pairing of Lea Michele and Ramin Karimloo is casting heaven. When it came to the start of Fanny and Nick’s relationship and their love scenes together, what was once absurd and laughable in 2022 is now nothing short of watching spontaneous sizzling combustion on stage. Their chemistry together is palpable and the audience is weak-kneed.

In this version, you can actually enjoy Michael Mayer’s direction, and he brings this show to life with Ayodele Casel’s tap choreography and Ellenore Scott’s choreography. Both are noticeable now and they are dazzlers. They all have a purpose now.

What a shame Funny Girl with Lea Michele, and Ramin Karimloo, won’t qualify for this year’s Tonys, as they would surely have won in every category. Don’t wait another 60 years. See Funny Girl now—and you’ll still be talking about it in 60 years.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published March 1, 2023
Reviewed at February 28, 2023 performance.

‘FUNNY GIRL’: Lea Michele. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘FUNNY GIRL’: Tovah Feldshuh & Jared Grimes. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘FUNNY GIRL’: Lea Michele. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘FUNNY GIRL’: Lea Michele. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘FUNNY GIRL’: Ramin Karimloo & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘THE WANDERERS’: Eddie Kaye Thomas & Sarah Cooper. Photo: Joan Marcus.

THE WANDERERS
Written by Anna Ziegler
Directed by Barry Edelstein
Through April 2, 2023
Laura Pels Theatre
111 West 46th Street
(212-719-1300), www.RoundaboutTheatre.org

By David NouNou

The Wanderers is one of the season’s best new plays, on or off Broadway. Although the themes about relationships and the narrative are universal, it would help if audience members are Jewish (or know some common Jewish phrases) to appreciate the beautifully textured and nuanced Hebrew and Yiddish sayings, both of which can only be spoken and used in its original context.  However, the show has broad appeal and you don’t have to be Jewish to truly appreciate what a beautiful story it is, with outstanding performances by the cast.

There is a lot to process here. Starting with a Hassidic marriage where the groom, Schmuli (Dave Klasko) is embedded in the strict regimentation of the religion, while the bride, Esther (Lucy Freyer) is more worldly due to her reading of books and breaking the rules of how a Hassidic woman should behave. This marriage produces two daughters and a son, Abraham.

Abe (Eddie Kaye Thomas) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author married to Sophie (Sarah Cooper), a frustrated and unsuccessful writer raising two children of their own. They grew up together, almost at birth. Abe’s mother, Esther was best friends with Sophie’s mom Rivka who had married a Black man from Mississippi and had been ostracized from the Hassidic community. Sophie was like Esther’s adopted daughter, Esther pushed for their marriage that she deemed it be basherts, the Yiddish word meaning “destined to be.”

The fifth character is the stunning Julia Cheever (Katie Holmes), a world-renowned actress who attended one of Abe’s seminars and is infatuated by his prose. She sends him an email explaining her admiration, and needless to say Julia represents the ideal shiksa for Abe. This starts an 18-month email correspondence that consumes Abe.

No more can be said, because once this groundwork is in place, the viewer has to navigate through the maze of intricacies playwright Anna Ziegler has created. Whether it is marriage, religion, infidelity, guilt, raising children, success or failure, ostracism or death, reality vs. fantasy, Ms. Ziegler has woven this play like a tapestry that has to be appreciated from every angle for every detail.

The ensemble performances by all are exceptional and gut wrenching. Eddie Kaye Thomas, as Abe, known for his role of Paul Finch in the 1999 – 2012 American Pie movies, the seducer of Stifler’s mother (Jennifer Coolidge), is excellent in this adult role. He shows depth and all the angst of midlife crises. No less effective are newcomers Sarah Cooper, Lucy Fryer and Dave Klasko.

The main attraction to the show is Katie Holmes as the elusive Julia Cheever. Ms. Holmes is nothing short of breathtaking from her first entrance in the gorgeous crème-colored outfit designed by David Israel Reynoso to her final navy-blue pantsuit, she exemplifies the ideal woman men fantasize about. She has so matured and is much more self-assured since her 2008 Broadway debut in Arthur Miller’s All My Sons.

Kudos should be given to director Barry Edelstein for navigating his cast through this human maze of human relations and emotions intersecting the past and the present. Ms. Ziegler and Mr. Edelstein have provided theatregoers one of the most absorbing must-see plays of this season.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published February 24, 2023
Reviewed at February 23, 2023 performance.

‘THE WANDERERS’: Lucy Freyer & Dave Klasko. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘THE WANDERERS’: Eddie Kaye Thomas & Katie Holmes. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘THE WANDERERS’: The cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: The company. Photo: Joan Marcus.

LEOPOLDSTADT
Written by Tom Stoppard
Directed by Patrick Marber
Longacre Theatre
220 West 48th Street
New York, NY
(212-239-6200), www.Leopoldstadtplay.com

By David NouNou

Leopoldstadt is an epic generational saga. It’s a semi-autobiographical play tracing playwright Tom Stoppard’s family tree. Not to sound pretentious, but honestly speaking, almost any Stoppard play is a Broadway theatrical event. Some of them are verbose, from Arcadia to Coast of Utopia. It is great to see that this time he has tapped into something that is very personal to him. Is it perfect? No. Is it too talky? At times. Does it feel real? Always.

It is Christmas Eve in 1899 Vienna in the Jewish quarter on Leopoldstadt, where an extended upper-class Jewish family is celebrating Christmas and lighting a Christmas tree. This particular family has some members that have branched out into marrying outside the faith and assimilating to the values in Vienna at that time. The household is headed by Grandma Emilia (Betsy Aidem), still a Jew, her son Hermann (David Krumholtz), distancing himself from Judaism and marrying a Christian, Gretl (Faye Castelow), Emilia’s daughter, Eva (Caissie Levy) married to Ludwig (Brandon Uranowitz) both still Jewish. The extended family being Ludwig’s brother and sister. All Jews with the exception of Hermann and Gretl, but they dominate the force in the family. The long-winded concept here is whether remaining a Jew and boasting of the heritage that has given Vienna its artists, thinkers, doctors and luminaries or changing your religious beliefs and enjoy the freedoms afforded one by being a non-Jew.

In 1900, Gretl is having an affair with a Viennese dragoon, Fritz (Arty Froushan) just to get a feel of what it’s like being with a Christian again and to make the viewer wonder if the family tree was extended even further.

Soon it is 1924. The next generation is in the forefront, headed by Hermann and Gretl’s son, Jacob (Seth Numrich) who is really more secular and disillusioned by life and things aren’t as flourishing as they were earlier. Things are beginning to get tougher for the Jews like Hermann and Ludwig and their extended families. Austria is turning its back on the Jews.

The story moves forward to 1938. Kristallnacht has the grandchildren witnessing their parents and grandparents being turned in by their fellow Austrians and neighbors to be persecuted, attacked, arrested, having their home and properties seized, separated from each other and sent to concentration camps.

In 1955, back in the same living room in Vienna, Nathan, great-grandnephew of Ludwig and Eva (Brandon Uranowitz), has returned to gather the family album and recall his ancestors to Leo (Arty Froushan), an Englishman, who in fact is the grandson of Ludwig and Eva but was transported to England in 1938 as a child by his parents and doesn’t recall his Jewish background. Leo never knew anything about Judaism, his family tree or that Nathan in fact is his cousin. Nathan is aided by his aunt Rosa (Jenna Augen) to recall the family tree, and it is she that announces the outcome of each member in the family tree.

The play overall is beautifully structured but it is the last scene, in 1955, stripped of any verboseness, that just sticks to the basics. Be prepared to get out the handkerchiefs. One can’t help but compare this to the brilliant generational epic The Lehman Trilogy where three stars played over a hundred roles and each was clearly defined. In Leopoldstadt, there are so many extended family members that it is hard to conceptualize who begat whom and to put them in order in each of the scenes. Before each scene, a scrim is revealed to show the family tree and the begats, but by the time you put the jigsaw together, the scrim is gone and you start all over again.

This is an epic ensemble acting company consisting of original British actors from the West End intermingled with American actors. For the most part, the acting is good but can hit on stereotypes.  However, three-time Tony nominee, Brandon Uranowitz—who is equally adept at musicals, comedy or drama—is the star of the piece and has finally landed a star-making role. His dual roles as Ludwig and Nathan are separate characters that are both intriguing and heartbreaking, and the life he breathes into each of them is brilliant.

Patrick Marber, a wonderful British director and screenwriter, has the difficult, formidable task of navigating a huge cast that includes many children, different generations, and trying to give cohesion to an epic generational saga. His insights and Mr. Stoppard’s words give great depth to the proceedings and makes it a memorable theatrical experience.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published October 8, 2022
Reviewed at October 7, 2022 press performance.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Joshua Satine. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Brandon Uranowitz, Aaron Shuf & David Krumholtz. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Faye Castelow & David Krumholtz. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: The company. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: The company. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Japhet Balaban & Eden Epstein. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Tedra Millan & Seth Numrich. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Reese Bogin, Sara Topham & Ava Michele Hyl. Photo: Joan Marcus

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Brandon Uranowitz & Arty Froushan. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: Jenna Augen & Aaron Neil. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘LEOPOLDSTADT’: The cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

The post ‘Leopoldstadt’: Viennese Jewish family’s saga appeared first on StageZine.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Billy Crystal. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

MR. SATURDAY NIGHT
Book by Billy Crystal, Lowell Ganz & Babaloo Mandel
Music by Jason Robert Brown
Lyrics by Amanda Green
Directed by John Rando
Nederlander Theatre
208 West 41st Street
(866-870-2717), https://mrsaturdaynightonbroadway.com/

By David NouNou

Mr. Saturday Night brings back the old-fashioned musical, and I say this in the best sense of the word. The show is structured and framed with a wonderful book that is tailor-made for its leading man/star. It has a pleasant score that can be heard and understood without the overuse of amplified miking and digital backtracking. Here we have simple songs that are sung and not shouted, all to be enjoyed to propel the narrative. A simple show that uses the strengths of its star, in this case Billy Crystal recreating the role of Buddy Young, Jr. from the 1992 movie of the same name.

Set in 1994, Buddy has just finished performing in a retirement home, and his act didn’t go over big. Sitting in his living room watching the 1994 Emmys, he sees his name in the “In Memoriam” segment, and reflects on his life on how it has come to this. Starting in a Catskills hotel as a last-minute replacement for Milton Berle, he becomes a big hit and meets his future wife, Elaine (Randy Graff), both taking place on the same night. That same night his brother, Sam Yankleman (David Paymer, recreating his Oscar nominated-role in this part), met Elaine earlier that evening to go out with her and was also supposed to go on with Buddy as a duo act, but nerves got the best of him. He lost the girl and the act and settled to become Buddy’s manager and gofer.

Buddy became TV’s beloved “Mr. Saturday Night” until temper tantrums and the pressures of the job get to him. He is fired from TV, and his career spirals downward. It affects his relationship with his wife, who plays referee between him and their daughter, Susan (Shoshana Bean), who craves his attention. The brothers have a falling out because Sam has had enough of Buddy’s abuse and moves to Florida. Buddy manages to insult and ostracize everyone in the business, until one day an assistant talent agent, Annie Wells (Chasten Harmon) gets to see Buddy, and gets told off by him. She researches his acts, and things start picking up in some bizarre ways.

As I stated earlier, old-fashioned musicals tailor their material for “The Star” and Billy Crystal, along with Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel, have scripted this musical to showcase their star, Billy Crystal, in the best light possible—and shine he does. Mr. Crystal has lived Buddy Young. His delivery of one-liners and his act are among the funniest you’ll hear or see this year. We all loved him as the host of the Oscars for nine years and he brightened many a dreary telecast with his instantaneous impromptu quips. However, here he is Buddy Young Jr., an unlikable character, and I think younger audiences may have difficulty separating the two. Audiences who have been weaned on Mr. Crystal’s movies—City Slickers, When Harry Met Sally, Analyze This and Throw Momma from the Train—have loved him for these “nice guy” roles, but may have trouble accepting this cantankerous Buddy. Younger audiences now marvel over the drama of Phantom of the Opera, the musical diversification of Hamilton, the pageantry of Wicked. Over the years, I’ve enjoyed watching audience reactions and how tastes change. It’s such a pity that audiences today don’t understand Borscht Belt humor and the Jewish/Yiddish sensibility that makes it so hilarious, the gentle side of musicals, and songs that are not necessarily remarkable but sweet to listen to.

There are eight characters in this musical headlined by Mr. Crystal. You can see his heart is invested in the character of Buddy, and his scenes with David Paymer as his brother, when they do their schtick, is truly sidesplitting and their dramatic moments are heartfelt.

Randy Graff, as the long-suffering wife, is a breezy delight. She always tries to make things easier by making a brisket. Shoshana Bean is in excellent voice as Susan, trying to discover her self-worth. Chasten Harmon as Buddy’s ardent agent/believer, can deliver the goods in singing and acting. John Rando, the director, spotlights his casts to perfection. He also oversees three very hard-working actors each playing multiple roles: Jordan Gelber, Brian Gonzales, and Mylinda Hull.

The show is great fun for an evening in the theatre. Billy Crystal and David Paymer, you both look and are “mah-velous.”

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published May 5, 2022
Reviewed at May 4, 2022 press performance.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Billy Crystal (center) & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Jordan Gelber, Brian Gonzales & Billy Crystal. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Billy Crystal & Jordan Paymer. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Billy Crystal & Shoshana Bean. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Randy Graff & Billy Crystal. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Randy Graff. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Shoshana Bean. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Brian Gonzales, Mylinda Hull & Jordan Gelber. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: David Paymer. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Chasten Harmon. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

‘MR. SATURDAY NIGHT’: Billy Crystal & Chasten Harmon. Photo: Matthew Murphy.

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‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Sharon D. Clarke (center) & cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

CAROLINE, OR CHANGE
Book & lyrics by Tony Kushner
Music by Jeanine Tesori
Directed by Michael Longhurst
Through January 9, 2022
Studio 54

254 West 54th Street
(212-719-1300), www.RoundaboutTheatre.org


By David NouNou

Topical, controversial and ambitious would be three words to describe Caroline, or Change. It’s a show with a mystique for its devoted fans and a cult following, but it has also had a bumpy road from the onset. The original opened in 2004 at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre with Tonya Pinkins as Caroline and Anika Noni Rose in her Tony-winning role as Emmie, her daughter, and lasted for only 136 performances.

Set in Louisiana in 1963, we first see Caroline, the African-American maid (Sharon D. Clarke), in the basement doing the laundry for the Gellmans, a white Jewish family. She has been working at this job for most of her adult life. She has been dealt a tough hand. In addition to physical abuse, her husband abandoned her and left her with four children to raise. Caroline is a very bitter woman. She can talk and communicate better with inanimate objects than human beings. The objects that have a human form are: a washing machine (Arica Jackson), a dryer (Kevin S. McAllister), and her radio (Nasia Thomas, Nya and Harper Miles).

The one person who does pierce her armor is an eight-year-old boy, Noah Gellman (Adam Makké). Despite her personal feelings, she likes him and tries to protect and guide him. Noah leaves his loose change in his pockets and Caroline finds them and puts them in a laundry cup to return to him. In order to teach Noah the value of money, his stepmother Rose (Cassie Levy) tells Caroline to keep that change and supplement her income with it. This prompts a dilemma for Caroline on whether to keep the money to help her by giving some pocket money to her children or to leave it in the laundry cup.

The topicality of this musical is very pertinent today what with all the racial issues and Judaism, both of which are under attack; putting them together becomes an explosive issue. The message of the story being coexistence, both in 1963 and today.

The show was set to open in 2020, but the pandemic forced it to shut down. In the midst of a pandemic, the nation went reeling with the death of George Floyd and the aftermath of racism sent shockwaves around the world. This makes the message of coexistence in Caroline, or Change that much more pertinent.

The problem of the show isn’t in the message as much as it is in the messaging. The score is unmemorable and the book is so overwrought. Being Jewish myself, I always found the Jewish aspects of the book by Tony Kushner to be cliché to the point of ad nauseam, the language and the Yiddish idioms spoken by the Gellmans at times sound like a TV episode of “The Nanny” with Nanny Fine’s family.

There is a silver lining here: Sharon D. Clarke as Caroline. She originated the role in London in 2018 and she’s sensational. The songs may be unmemorable but the voices in this show are phenomenal.

Edited by Scott Harrah
Published November 3, 2021
Reviewed at November 2, 2021 press performance.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: The cast. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Caissie Levy & Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: (Left to right): Nasia Thomas, Harper Miles, Nya, Arica Jackson, Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Adam Makké & Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Tamika Lawrence & Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Nya, Harper Miles & Nasia Thomas. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Nasia Thomas, Kevin S. McAllister & Sharon D. Clarke. Photo: Joan Marcus.

‘CAROLINE, OR CHANGE’: Nasia Thomas, Kevin S. McAllister, Sharon D. Clarke, Arica Jackson & Harper Miles. Photo: Joan Marcus.

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