Review: Robert Klein Stars in FROM MOSES TO MOSTEL: A HISTORY OF THE JEWS (ACCORDING TO MUSICAL THEATRE)

Saturday night at Town Hall, Robert Klein was just getting to the big finish of his bluesy song about having a colonoscopy when, wouldn't you know it, a cell phone rang. Embarrassingly enough, it was his own cell phone and, surprisingly enough, the caller on the other end was God.

Okay, maybe it wasn't too surprising. After all, the concert he was hosting was titled FROM MOSES TO MOSTEL: A HISTORY OF THE JEWS (ACCORDING TO MUSICAL THEATRE).

Created by Town Hall's artistic director, M.A. Papper and music director Frank London of The Klezmatics, the script by Glen Berger, used the premise that God had figured out that, in Broadway parlance, Earth's previews have been pretty shaky because human beings don't take direction well. The almighty has decided that recasting will be required and Klein has been chosen as the prophet to tell mankind that we're being replaced with a race of slugs.

The shticky script, frequently hitting below the borscht belt, had our host desperately trying to defend mankind's place on Earth through the beauty and humor of songs written for musicals. His efforts were backed by London's on-stage orchestra and an appealing quartet of vocalists, Joanne Borts, Rob Evan, Steve Rosen and Rachel Stern.

As expected, there were biblical Broadway tunes like Bock and Harnick's "Here In Eden" and "Beautiful, Beautiful World" from THE APPLE TREE, "Put Him Away" (with Klein as a seemingly deranged Noah) from Rodgers and Charnin's TWO BY TWO, "Close Every Door" from Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT and "Heaven On Their Minds" from the latter pair's JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR.

Others were assimilated into the scenario. As Job, Klein coughed and wheezed through Harold Rome's "I'm Not A Well Man" from I CAN GET IT FOR YOU WHOLESALE and Mel Brooks' "The Inquisition" from his film THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD, PART 1 was a rousing start to the second half. The most interesting selection of the night was the darkly optimistic "When Messiah Comes," said to be Zero Mostel's favorite song from the score of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, despite being cut before the musical's Broadway opening.

Directed by Eleanor Reissa, the pleasant evening had some good laughs, fine singing and terrific musicianship, but the one-night event seemed under-rehearsed with the stage awkwardly crowded at times and Klein reading much of his script from multiple Teleprompters. It's a fun idea involving some talented people in need of cleaner execution.

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