Review: A CELEBRATION OF JEWISH BROADWAY at The Green Room 42 Makes For a Great Ari Axelrod Birthday Party

It was quite a birthday for Ari Axelrod on Saturday. While civilians host parties in their homes, invite friends to join them at their favorite bar or restaurant, or give in to their spouse's annual attempt at a surprise party, cabaret artists throw themselves a show. And why not? But, as with any party that a person decides to throw, there is always the underlying worry that nobody will come. After all, who wants to give the shindig that nobody came to, especially when it's a cabaret show where an audience is an essential part of the proceedings? Well, Ari Axelrod had nothing about which to worry: he threw a party and everyone came. And then some.

This reporter has now seen A CELEBRATION OF JEWISH BROADWAY four times. That is not the norm, for my time is better spent seeing shows and artists that are new, shows and artists about whom journalistic coverage is both warranted and necessary. However, it is both unusual and unlikely for me to miss an Ari Axelrod show because the gentleman is well on his way to being the greatest male cabaret performer of the time in which he lives. Furthermore, the piece of theater that is A Celebration of Jewish Broadway is, hands down, one of the most expertly crafted and executed works of cabaret artistry this aficionado has witnessed, since that day back in 198something when, first, my shadow darkened the doorway of a cabaret. Four times Ari has played this show, and four times he has played to a Standing Room Only audience. Four times Axelrod has expounded on his love of Broadway musicals created by Jewish artists, and four times something new and exciting has happened. Four times Ari Axelrod has taken this journey with an audience, and four times he has proven himself to be a musical storyteller of such excellence as to justify comparison to Charles Aznavour, the greatest male musical storyteller of all time.

Charles Aznavour's torch has been passed down.

The title of Axelrod's show is a good one because it tells audiences, with simple, straightforward clarity, what they will be seeing. It can, however, be a confusing one because those not in the know might think, "Jewish Broadway... you mean, like, Fiddler on the Roof?" The public perception of what Jewish Broadway is might be a narrow view, and it might seem like a niche show. What if a person doesn't care about religion, or Judaism, or (heaven forbid) Fiddler on the Roof? Why should they go see this Celebration of Jewish Broadway? Because of Kiss Me Kate, that's why people should go. Because of Irving Berlin, that's why people should go. Because of West Side Story, Porgy and Bess, Once Upon a Mattress, that's why people should go. Axelrod's show isn't about going to Synagogue (although the topic does come up) and it isn't about going to the Holy Land (although the subject does come up); Axelrod's show is about Broadway. That's it. Broadway, as it happens, has lain, lo, these many years, in the hands of Jewish composers, composers like Stephen Sondheim, Jason Robert Brown, and three generations of Rodgers - Richard, Mary, and Adam Guettel. And Axelrod, a man whose Jewish heritage is everything to him, is so proud of their contribution to his favorite art form, the Broadway musical, that he just has to to talk about, he just needs to sing about it, and he just loves to draw the attention of the public to the similarities between music to be heard in Synagogue and music to be heard on Broadway. On Saturday night there were a few moments when Ari told his audience to reply, organically, to what he was about to sing. He sang and nearly the entire congregation... um, audience... sang back in what can only be described as a Jewish call-and-response. It was an effective way to draw those parallels, but it was also proof positive that most of his audience was made up of fellow Jewish men, women, and gender non-conforming people. This non-Jewish goy and his husband did not feel on the outside looking in, though; we were lifted up by both the community and the ingenuity. We were there for it, and everyone should be there for it, regardless of their personal demographic. If a person loves Broadway music, if a person loves musical storytelling, if a person loves great cabaret, this is where they should be.

Except that this program should maybe not stay in the cabaret rooms. It hurts to say it because cabaret is my love, it is my passion, it is my interest. I would never, not in a million years, want to take something so splendiferous away from the world of cabaret. But A CELEBRATION OF JEWISH BROADWAY belongs on Broadway. It doesn't belong in a Broadway barn, but it could play one of the smaller houses, like the Helen Hayes or the Booth. The intimacy of venue is paramount with this program because Axelrod's connection to the audience is as important as his connection to the material. While there are few artists this writer has seen connect to their songs (and their prose) like Axelrod does, there is nobody working today that has the ongoing actor-audience relationship that Ari has. On Saturday night, from the stage, in mid-performance Axelrod heard muffled voices behind the fat velvet curtain that shields the Green Room 42 audience from the noise of the entrance, and he stopped the show, cried out, "Is that PHYLLIS?!" and then left the stage to bring in his traveling friends Phyllis Weiss Kinsler and Leslie Fox, newly arrived after a day of airport drama delays, and better late than never. Escorting his Floridian friends to their seats in the front row, Ari introduced the members of the "Boca Brigade" to the (now howling hysterically) audience, and returned to the exact place in his script where he left off. In cabaret, that connection with the audience is of utmost importance, and Ari Axelrod could easily bring that intimacy to a theatrical venue, as an orator and as a performer.

Whether employing a straight-forward and traditional approach to "Corner of the Sky" that showcases unbelievable vocal abilities or utilizing incomparable acting skills to demonstrate his versatility in a Milk and Honey segment, Ari proves, over and over, the value of his talents to the art form of musical storytelling. Whether bringing down the house with Leo Frank's epic soliloquy from Parade or Jamie's rant from The Last Five Years, Axelrod eats every word and every note of JRB's characters and compositions. Nowhere, not before his first-ever performance of the song and not after this most recent one, will a person find a more unique and uniquely expressed "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" and nobody could ever have thought a musician could squeeze as much feeling out of a conga as Axelrod does during the West Side Story dance number "Cool" - and these are just examples of the skill and artistry that have brought Ari Axelrod to the point, just a few years into his career as a Kabarettist, where he can be hailed as the best.

And if you don't believe this cabaret journalist when he says that Ari Axelrod is the best, just seek out his next performance and find out for yourself. You won't be sorry, and you will be nodding your head in agreement.

The CELEBRATION OF JEWISH BROADWAY Musical Director is the magnificent Larry Yurman.

The CELEBRATION OF JEWISH BROADWAY artistic consultant is director Jeff Harnar.

Find great shows to see at The Green Room 42 at their website HERE.

Visit the Ari Axelrod website HERE.

Ari Axelrod's surprise birthday cake was created by Lisa Graye from Little Graye Bakery - website HERE.

Ari Axelrod gets a five out of five microphones rating for performing his entire show without the use of a lyric sheet, tablet, or music stand.

Photos by Stephen Mosher

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