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| Jerry Herman |
By Darlene Donloe
Anyone who is a musical theater fan knows the brilliance of Jerry Herman.
The opening night of ‘You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman’ was presented, virtually, on January 10, by Pasadena Playhouse Live.
The show includes scores Herman composed including Mame, La Cage aux Folles, and Hello, Dolly!, as well as several of his lesser-known works.
The show is the first major revue of the composer and lyricist's work since his death in December 2019.
Herman, known for his rich lyrics and powerful melodies, scored a dozen Broadway musicals and five Off-Broadway revues, composed many of the nation’s most popular songs, and received Tony Awards for “Hello, Dolly!” and “La Cage aux Folles.”
With Andy Einhorn in the role of creator, narrator, and phenomenal pianist, viewers are transported to Broadway via the numerous musical numbers performed by an ensemble of veteran Broadway actors that include Ashley Blanchet, Nicholas Christopher, Lesli Margherita, Andrea Ross, and Ryan Vona.
Known for building his songs slowly until they reach a crescendo, Herman, who was born in New York in 1931 and passed away in 2019, knew how to craft a song by drawing in his audience with obscure and message songs that were structured in a way that had interesting, entertaining, and satisfying stories. An eternal optimist, Herman’s songs speak of life and love and everything in between.
The stories about Herman that were shared by Einhorn, gave the audience insight into who this master craftsman was and how and why he operated the way he did. For instance, one story he shared was about Louis Armstrong’s version of ‘Hello, Dolly!,’ knocking the Beatles out of the top spot on the Billboard chart and how the song turned out to be one of Herman’s biggest tunes.
The show directed by Mark Ciglar and created by Einhorn flowed seamlessly from one wonderous show tune to another from productions of Dolly, The Grand Tour, Mame, Mack & Mabel, and La Cage aux Folles.
The show opened with ‘Dolly,’ and proceeded to showcase other hit songs like ‘Before the Parade Passes By,’ ‘I Belong Here,’ ‘It’s Today,’ ‘Time Heals Everything,’ ‘I Won’t Send Roses.’
Other classics included The Best of Times, A Little More Mascara, I Am What I Am, Dear World, ‘Milk and Honey,’ Mame, Bosom Buddies, Gooch’s Song, We’re Almost There, Put On Your Sunday Clothes, Movies Were Movies, Marianne, Just Leave Everything To Me, and more. All of Herman’s songs had a distinctive sound.
Prior to the show, a pre-show discussion was led by Einhorn featuring Bernadette Peters and David Hyde Pierce, who shared personal stories about working with Herman.
What a fun show!
Kudos to Einhorn on his narration and piano playing, and double kudos to the brilliant voices of Ashley Blanchet, Nicholas Christopher, Lesli Margherita, Andrea Ross, and Ryan Vona.
A great production! Bravo, Pasadena Playhouse Live!
The show was filmed using multiple cameras at the Pasadena Playhouse for their digital platform, PlayhouseLive.
'You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman' is streaming on PlayhouseLive. Video-on-demand streaming continues through February 7.
On the DONLOE SCALE, D (don’t bother), O (oh, no), N (needs work), L (likable), O (oh, yeah) and E (excellent), ‘You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman’ gets an E (excellent).
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