Herman Hesse News

San Francisco’s revered 42nd Street Moon kicks off its 2021 “Moonbeams” season with Jason Graae in Perfect Hermany, a tribute to the late, great Jerry Herman, writer of such classic musicals as Hello, Dolly!, Mame and La Cage Aux Folles. The title Perfect Hermany is an unusually apt one as Graae is the perfect interpreter of Herman’s work, having starred in a much-lauded production Herman’s The Grand Tour in LA and toured for years with Herman in Hello, Jerry!, a revue of Herman’s work. Perfect Hermany is available for streaming on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through May 2, 2021. For additional information and to purchase tickets, visit 42ndStreetMoon.org. Among his many credits, Graae has appeared on Broadway numerous times, toured extensively as The Wizard in Wicked, performed with major symphonies across the country, recorded dozens of musical theater albums and has enjoyed a long association with 42nd Street Moon. He is known for the improbable combination of his antic, go-for-broke comedic style and the impeccable musicianship of his soaring tenor. He is the type of performer who can make you bust a gut one moment, and then melt your heart the next.   BroadwayWorld caught up with Graae last week from his home base in LA soon after he had completed filming Perfect Hermany. We talked about his long association with both Herman and 42nd Street Moon, his favorite Herman songs, a couple of key roles that somehow got away from him and a few he still hopes to have a go at. Graae is always a blast to talk to. It seems the guy just is incapable of not being funny, but he is also thoughtful and kind, and sort of a walking treasure trove of theatrical lore. The following conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

42nd Street Moon and Musical Theatre West join forces to bring a Jerry Herman evening starring Jason Graae to the internet airwaves.

Tune in on Saturday, March 21 at 1PM EST for SOUP TROUPE ONLINE. Hosted by co-founder Danny Feldman (Hide and Seek) and co-president Dani Wergiles, the BroadwayWorld Favorite Livestream is streamed every weekend to discuss soups and more with special guests. Join Michelle Beth Herman (Les Misérables) for stories, Q&As, and more.

The Fabulous Invalid podcast, has today released an epic two-part episode, Jerry Herman: Poet of the Showtune, celebrating Broadway legend and creator of hits such as Hello, Dolly!; Mame; La Cage aux Folles; and many more. Both Part One and Part Two of Poet of the Showtune are now available.

Carole Demas welcomes renowned musical director Ian Herman to her monthly series.

Andy Einhorn's tribute to his dear friend Jerry Herman YOU I LIKE: A MUSICAL CELEBRATION OF JERRY HERMAN virtually opened January 10, 2021. Safely filmed on the Pasadena Playhouse stage, familiar Jerry Herman classics (and not-so-familiar, undiscovered gems) will be wondrously performed by the uber-talented vocalists Ashley Blanchet, Nicholas Christopher, Lesli Margherita, Andrea Ross, Ryan Vona, and Andy himself.

Pasadena Playhouse, The State Theater of California, presents You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman, a virtual musical revue honoring the genius responsible for the Broadway classics Hello, Dolly!; Mame; La Cage aux Folles and many more, now through February 7, 2021 on PlayhouseLive.

The pandemic halted audiences from being able to experience live theatre in-person, but Cinevative worked alongside Pasadena Playhouse to capture new works on-stage for the Playhouse's new digital platform, PlayhouseLive, including the brand new, 90-minute tribute, 'You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman' set to premiere January 10th.

Pasadena Playhouse's upcoming musical revue honoring the icon who brought some of theater's best-known shows to the stage, including Hello, Dolly!; Mame; La Cage aux Folles and more, will be the first theatrical tribute to Jerry Herman by a professional theater company since the Broadway legend's passing a year ago.

Catch a sneak peek of Pasadena Playhouse's PlayhouseLive production of You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman, featuring Andy Einhorn on the piano with performances by Ashley Blanchet (Frozen), Nick Christopher (Hamilton), Lesli Margherita (Matilda The Musical), Andrea Ross (‘Maria’ in The Sound of Music National Tour) and Ryan Vona (Once). 

Pasadena Playhouse has announced the January 10, 2021 PlayhouseLive Online Opening Night of You I Like: A Musical Celebration of Jerry Herman, a virtual musical revue honoring the genius responsible for the Broadway classics Hello, Dolly!; Mame; La Cage aux Folles and many more.

Live From Skylight Run has had a series of successful concert in 2020 and will continue to in the new year, beginning New Year's Day.

On Thanksgiving Eve, Wednesday November 25, A Harvest Celebration with Vince Herman & Friends will air on Instrumenthead Live at 8pm EST and again at 8pm PST.

The show was based on Paul Reubens' 1981 cult classic stage production, The Pee-Wee Herman Show, with elements added from his children's show 'Pee-Wee's Playhouse'.  

Herman is known for his work on Broadway classics such as Hello, Dolly!, Mame, La Cage Aux Folles, Dear World, Mack & Mabel, The Grand Tour, Milk & Honey and many more. He has been nominated for five Tony Awards, and won twice, for Hello, Dolly! and La Cage Aux Folles. He received a Lifetime Achievement Tony Award in 2009, and a Kennedy Center Honors in 2010.

Paper Mill Playhouse has shared a flashback installment of its Humanitarian Symposium Series taking an inside look at the work of Jerry Herman.

From Hello, Dolly! and Mame to La Cage aux Folles, no one has written 'showtunes' with as much exuberance as Jerry Herman whose musicals offer an optimistic approach to the human condition, finding common ground with his audience by showing us that the differences between us are, in fact, what unite us.

'Jerry Herman on Broadway' is being presented by the Sandhills Repertory Theatre March 20-22 at the Hannah Bradshaw Activities Center Theatre at the O'Neal School. Jerry Herman is responsible for the finest that Broadway has to offer, including 'Mame', 'Hello Dolly', 'La Cage aux Folles', 'Mack and Mabel', 'Milk and Honey' and many more. Bette Midler just won a Tony award for the revival of Dolly and we will be doing an entire medley of all the hits from that show, and solos and duets from all the other shows along with amazing tap dancing by some of Broadway's finest. The same cast as 'Gershwin on Broadway' will perform !

When Jerry Herman's songs fill the air, it's always 'The Best of Times.' 92Y's Lyrics & Lyricists concert series proves that again with a strong presentation to enrich afternoons and night-time (February 22-24). The sturdy arts hub continues to honor Broadway's best, whether with a grand staged program like this or a casual classroom chat by Irving Berlin biographer James Kaplan.

A producer cannot just license any property s/he wants. Yes, MAME is available for licensing on the Concord Theatricals website, but if I wanted to mount it on Broadway it would be a little more complicated than shelling out cash. Hurdles for non-professional productions are not substantial, but many professional productions require levels of permission. Jerry Herman, who passed away on December 26, 2019, was a man unlikely to give permission for professional productions of his shows unless he thought they would be good.