To paraphrase a Jerry Herman lyric, Jason Graae I like. In a show saluting Herman’s music and lyrics, Graae used the song, “You I Like” (The Grand Tour) at the top of his show (as well as at the end) and, while most performers would be content to finish a song with a flourish, Graae finished it with a katzatsky (a Russian folk dance) — typical of the kind of impish humor Graae sprinkles into his shows to create an evening of pure entertainment.

Graae has the ability to put an amusing spin on a word here and a gesture there that can put an audience into hysterics, then tear its heart out with a pair of lovely ballads: “It Only Takes a Moment” (Hello, Dolly!), combined with “Loving You” (the film version of Mame).

He was magnificent in a spine-chilling version of “I Am What I Am” (La Cage aux Folles)—sung simply and sweetly, with no histrionics—plus a couple of songs from The Grand Tour—a play in which he starred on this same stage in 2005: the beautiful “Marianne” and the sly “Mrs. S.L. Jacobowsky.”

Besides singing, he also did a bit of dancing—but only a bit.  After bringing out a tap board and donning tap shoes, he sang “Tap Your Troubles Away” (Mack and Mabel). Then, during an instrumental break, he just stood there nodding his head in time to the music, then tapping his toes a few times before he resumed singing again.

Graae also demonstrated his multiple musical talents by playing the oboe in an opening medley—all the while keeping a twinkle in his eye that indicated it was OK to laugh at how serious he was—and later accompanying himself on the piano while singing “My Best Girl” (Mame) to his mother seated in the audience.

Typical of his sense of humor was Graae’s description of his first meeting with Herman when he auditioned for a national tour of Hello, Dolly!  “At the end of the audition, as I was walking off the stage, Jerry said, ‘Thanks for coming,’” Graae told the audience. "That’s the kind of personal relationship we have.”

Graae was ably abetted at the piano by Musical Director John Boswell, who also sang a bit.  The show was directed by Lee Tannen.  For anyone who didn’t get to see Graae’s show at the Colony, it was recorded live and will be released on CD by Bruce Kimmel’s Kritzerland label.

Elliot Zwiebach
Cabaret Scenes
May 14, 2011
www.cabaretscenes.org