Praise The Lord

It’s fair to say that most people today have never heard of Lord Buckley. In fact, it’s probably fair to say that, even at the height of his career in the mid-1950’s, the world at large didn’t know his name. Nonetheless, this self-styled “prophet of the hip” had a tremendous influence on the careers of performers from Lenny Bruce to Robin Williams. Now, a brilliant actor by the name of Jake Broder is paying tribute to this pioneering comedian in a show titled His Royal Hipness Lord Buckley in the Zam Zam Room.

Hilarious, outrageous, and wildly original, Lord Buckley was an American — born Richard Myrle Buckley in California in 1906 — who put on an English accent (along with some spiffy tails) but spoke in a blistering combination of black street language, bee-bop cool, and Chilton chat. Working in downtown clubs, he wrapped that language around the story of Jesus as well as putting his own unique spin on everything from the tale of Jonah and the whale to the story of Ebenezer Scrooge. He always used a lingo that was, in the words of Robin Williams, “spoken jazz.”

Turning one of the smaller theaters in the 59E59 complex into a nightclub setting, director-designer Phillip Breen recreates the atmosphere of a Lord Buckley show and Broder does the rest, rolling out a river of almost forgotten jargon that makes perfect sense when you know how to listen to it, almost in the way that Shakespeare’s language does. Broder is vocally nimble; his voice is a raspy call to comedy. That call is answered, in part, by his sidekick, played by David Tughan; he makes amusing announcements and delivers the straight version of Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” while Lord Buckley translates it into the language of the hip. (This is the centerpiece of the show, and it’s very funny.) The writing is largely the original work of Lord Buckley, with additional material taken from Lenny Bruce and some newer work supplied by Tughan and David Chidlow. A curious combination of a period piece with timeless routines that are lightly peppered with contemporary references, Lord Buckley offers a delicious taste of show business history.

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A Fein(stein) Romance

Every year at this time, Michael Feinstein returns to the New York nightclub that bears his name and conjures up a show to celebrate the holiday season. This year’s entry, A Holiday Romance, has a particularly reflective air.

Taking stock of the year that passed, Feinstein celebrates the fact that Stephen Sondheim turned 75 by performing the great composer-lyricist’s “Being Alive” and commemorates the loss of Bobby Short by singing Cole Porter’s “Can-Can.” The act has an eclectic mix of material, including a couple of deeply romantic Harry Warren ballads and a rousing rendition of the Jerry Lee Lewis classic “Great Balls of Fire.”

A polished performer, Feinstein keeps the act bright and breezy with the requisite jaunty Christmas songs as well as the comic “Hannukah in Santa Monica” number. He is so much the showman, in fact, that he completely holds your focus even as a sizeable band of six musicians and three backup singers watch silently while perched very close to him on the small stage. We should add that Feinstein is in particularly good voice these days; his vocal range is as expansive as his warm and playful personality

The emotional high point of the evening is his moving rendition of “L’Dor V’Dor,” a piece of music that is as much a prayer as it is an anthem. Feinstein sings it entirely in Hebrew, revealing the depth of his heritage in a soulful voice. In a perfect segue following this song about generations, he introduces his father, Ed Feinstein. Amidst some jokes and hugs, the proud dad sings a duet with his famous son; it’s sweet without being saccharine, largely because of Michael’s undercutting quips. Feinstein’s at the Regency is aglow with holiday cheer now that its namesake is making music there.

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[To contact the Siegels directly, e-mail them at siegels@theatermania.com.]