I LEFT MY HEART Pays a Meaningful Tribute to Tony Bennett

I Left My Heart:
A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett
created by David Grapes & Todd Olson
directed by David Grapes
Laguna Playhouse, Laguna Beach
through August 21

A couple of years ago a winning salute to Frank Sinatra called My Way: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra by David Grapes and Todd Olson was on stage at the Laguna Playhouse. It has gone on successfully to hundreds of productions worldwide. Now the same duo Grapes and Olson present I Left My Heart: A Salute to the Music of Tony Bennett at the Laguna Playhouse through August 21. I liked the Sinatra piece a lot; I loved the latest one tributing Tony Bennett. Maybe because Sinatra has received many tributes and Tony Bennett, none - and as the boys say, "It's high time. Long overdue!" Important to remember that this is not a Bennett impersonation nor are the arrangements necessarily exactly like Bennett's; it is a loving salute to his music. Ingenious Vince Di Mura is once again musical director of this stylish little theatrical concert featuring the talents of three terrific actors/singers, who make the show shine even brighter.

These three Danny Gurwin, Rob Sutton and Dan Callaway not only have fantastic voices but loads of charisma and exuberance to keep the show rolling forward with spark and flare. Gurwin is a born MC, so he delivers most of the anecdotes about Bennett's music and philosophy. Sutton has all the good looks and style of a Broadway leading man and Callaway' delivery is astounding. He blew me away with "That Old Black Magic", "Come Rain or Come Shine"and "Fly Me to the Moon". Bennett, as pointed out in the show, thought of himself as a jazz singer first and foremost and believed firmly that the harder you worked, the luckier you would become. Good old fashioned advice for a man now 86, who demolished the generation gap by winning plaudits for his MTV Unplugged album and special at a time when rap and hip hop have been consistently outnumbering classic standards in airplay. When asked to record Janis Joplan, Bennett asked Count Basie if he should switch styles. "No!" ,he offered, "Why change an apple?" The boys capture Bennett's easy going style and generosity of spirit that have made him the top living vocalist.

Sinatra was known as a womanizer and very complicated; Bennett has always exuded very traditional values; he's a pacifist with grounded ideas. Both men: what genius! Whereas Grapes' and Olson's piece My Way shows the complexity of Sinatra through his music, I Left My Heart presents the simpler, far less complex personality that is Tony Bennett. But, regardless of how you view it, Bennett's music, like Sinatra's, is the best there is. Highlights of the show include: "Steppin' Out With My Baby", "Boulevard of Broken Dreams", "Stranger in Paradise", "Best Is Yet to Come", "Embraceable You" "Puttin' on the Ritz" and those glorious movie hits like "The Days of Wine and Roses", "As Time Goes By", "The Shadow of Your Smile" and "Love Story (Where Do I Begin?)". Two lesser known hits "You Must Believe in Spring" by the Bergmans, Michel Legrand and Louis R.M. Demy Jacques and "A Child Is Born" by Thaddeus Jones and Alec Wilden are unbelievably beautiful with lyrics of substance, which perhaps prevented them from becoming instant overnight hits.

Vince Di Mura at the piano, Ernie Nunez on bass, Darrel Gardner on brass, and Richard "Drew" Hemwall on drums rock the theatre, and scenic and costume design by Bruce Goodrich are simplistic and elegant. Grapes' direction is superb as the boys and musicians - all musicians actually - blend together expertly and render with panache.

See this little show and you will not be disappointed! On an entertainment scale of 1-10, it's a 10+.

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