Tony Yazbeck
54 Below, NYC, September 7, 2023
By Alix Cohen
Tony Yazbeck
Those of you who know Tony Yazbeck from On the Town or Flying Over Sunset won’t be surprised when I write that he’s a marvelous tap dancer and that his vocals run a close second to his dancing. He is also charming. During “On the Sunny Side of the Street” (Jimmy McHugh/Dorothy Fields from Lew Leslie’s International Review), he slid and shifted across the stage before he started tapping. Unable to keep still, Yazbeck bounced even as he welcomed us. “Thinking about what to do tonight…It’s all about gratitude for being part of this community” he said warmly.
This is the first time Yazbeck has included “New York, New York” in one of his shows; that’s from the revival of On theTown (Leonard Bernstein/Betty Comden & Adolph Green), the musical that put him on the map. The actor’s enthusiasm still seems like that of a wide-eyed, midwestern Gabey. As he sings“This is my city!” From Oklahoma (he was in the 2002 revival), Yazbeck then offered a waltzy, subdued “Oh! What a Beautiful Mornin’.” (Richard Rodgers/Oscar Hammerstein II). His reflective pauses created the the sense that he was making an observation, and at the ending he showed off his attractive tenor. We believe.
“All I Need is The Girl” (Jule Styne/Stephen Sondheim from Gypsy) began with some steps taken every few lyrics. Yazbeck’s break-out tap dancing shook the stage like thunder as he came down hard and clean. Embodying neither Astaire’s grace nor Kelly’s athleticism, his style is closer to the dancer he later declared was his hero, Gregory Hines. His declarative, more is more choreography deftly utilized his whole body. The stage had been cleared for movement, and move he did as he covered every bit of space. Even when “taking a break” his feet worked double time. “Now, all I need is the girl!” he sings. “I’m here!” shouted a woman from the audience; he then visited her table.
Morgan James
Guest Morgan James sang a jazz-flavored “Hallelujah I Love Her So” (Ray Charles) and looked hot under the collar (no collar) as Yazbeck distractingly tapped. Alone on stage, she then performed “The Music That Makes Me Dance” (Styne/Bob Merrill from Funny Girl). This attractive artist appeared to have solid pipes and a good voice, but she was too strident to have any effect.
Yazbeck told us a little about himself. He started tapping at four years old. At 11, with “not so safe stuff” going on at home, his mom signed him up to audition for Gypsy in New York. He booked it and traveled with a production that starred Patti LuPone. After a college break-up, the young man returned to the city and was cast in Annie Get Your Gun. (He’s a guardian angel up there somewhere.) “It Had to Be You” (Isham Jones/Gus Kahn) and “The Way You Look Tonight” (Jerome Kern/Dorothy Fields from Swingtime) were lovely and understated. Perched on a stool, he delivered the songs with sensitivity and focus.
At one point Yazbeck said,“So let’s talk about tap dancing for a sec. The years I spent during the pandemic I took it out on the floor. Tap, for me, is a form of prayer. It sends a simple message of how I feel.” George and Ira Gershwin’s “I Can’t Be Bothered Now” arrived all raw rhythm and energy.
Andew Nemr & Tony Yazbeck
Yazbeck’s second guest, Andrew Nemr told his own story of his having danced early. While each man talked, the other emphatically tapped, upstaging the speaker. I can’t imagine what the thought was here. Nemr then had a solo routine to Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints.” (No vocal.) The choreography was as dense as the jazz.
Two favorite songs of Yazbeck’s six-year-old son “Leonard—after Bernstein” followed. “Pure Imagination” (Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory) was hushed and sweet, but it had an unnecessarily swollen denouement before it ended with dulcet tenor. “Moon River” (Henry Mancini/ Johnny Mercer from Breakfast at Tiffany’s) was performed as he tapped in street shoes—“leathers”—which softened the sound but also swelled beyond lullaby.
Yazbeck sang “What I Did for Love” (Marvin Hamlisch/Edward Kleban) 450 times in a production of A Chorus Line; he observed that he thinks he was then “too young to get it.” That’s certainly not true now. He began thoughtfully singing “We did what we had to do.” He, smiled, shook his head as if bemused; it ended BIG. “I Got Rhythm” was brief and joyful.
Music director/pianist Jerome Korman’s arrangements were pedestrian, and his vamping was unrelated to what the star was saying. Yazbeck’s unscripted sincerity almost made up for all the references to gratitude and the several instances of just running on. Should he consider a director? Tony Yazbeck is extremely talented and engaging.
