Craig Pomranz knows how to touch an audience with his voice. In a show about the heartache of broken romances, he managed to warm the hearts of his listeners through his excellent song choices and spot-on delivery.  He was particularly effective on what he called the definitive song about breaking up — “Where Do You Start?” (Alan and Marilyn Bergman/Johnny Mandel)— sung with a tenderness that had some listeners, along with Pomranz himself, wiping away tears, and on a bouncy, bluesy reading of “Once Too Often” (Mack Gordon/James V. Monaco) from Pin Up Girl.

As with any Pomranz show, there were several cleverly conceived medleys:  Irving Berlin’s “What’ll I Do?” teamed with “By Myself (Arthur Schwartz/Howard Dietz); a lovely “I Guess I’ll Hang My Tears Out to Dry” (Jule Styne/Sammy Cahn), sung in his sweet upper register, connected with “It Never Entered My Mind” (Rodgers and Hart) in his rich, resonant lower tones — performed as if he was speaking the words for the first time; and the traditional “Greensleeves” joined with a warm version of “The One I Love (Belongs to Somebody Else)” (Isham Jones/Gus Kahn).

For fun, Pomranz sang “Nobody’s Chasing Me,” the rarely performed Cole Porter delight from Out of This World, adding his own self-penned lyrics to update the frustrations love can create.

Any show about breaking up has to include “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do” (Neil Sedaka/Howard Greenfield), which Pomranz sang effectively in his upper range. He closed the show on a positive note with the hope that “Love Is Just Around the Corner” (Leo Robin/Lewis E. Gensler).

Providing strong support throughout — with soft vocal harmonies and occasional comic lines along with his piano accompaniment — was the always-effective Stephen Bocchino.  The show was conceived and produced by Ron Cohen.

Elliot Zwiebach
Cabaret Scenes
April 21, 2012
www.cabaretscenes.org