Review: UNLIKE AN OTHER MAN: DAVID SABELLA SINGS PETER ALLEN at The Laurie Beechman Theatre

Singer, actor and vocal coach David Sabella, whose extensive cabaret and Broadway resume (Chicago) is well-known to Broadway World readers, made his solo artist debut at the recently re-opened Laurie Beechman Theatre on November 12 with Unlike An Other Man: David Sabella Sings Peter Allen.

The show, which Sabella wrote and self-directed, was supported by pianist and musical director Mark Hartman, bassist Sherisse Rogers; drummer Mike Lunoe; and Jeremy Clayton on sax, flute and clarinet.

The show is an homage to Peter Allen, the legendary Australian singer-songwriter, musician and flamboyant entertainer, who died more than 30 years ago. Allen was as well-known for the songs he wrote for other performers as he was for the songs he recorded himself. The most interesting choice was starting the program with a Broadway-style overture, the quartet playing snippets of several very familiar Peter Allen songs.

Sabella, with a wireless mic, worked his way through the crowd while singing “If You Were Wondering.” Sabella, dressed in a shimmering tux jacket with black pants and open shirt, is a gifted vocalist with a four-octave range that reaches countertenor. A dynamic performer with excellent stage presence and energy.

Sabella made extensive use of Hartman’s harmony chops in songs like “When I Get My Name in Lights” (from The Boy from Oz). He joked, “And that concludes the up-tempo portion of the evening,” as a great many of Allen’s songs were ballads. The first of these, “I Honestly Love You” (with lyrics by Jeff Barry) was a huge hit for Olivia Newton John. Sabella sang it beautifully, elegantly and from the heart, with Hartman’s harmonies on the bridge.

A high point came with the evocative “I Could Marry The Rain” (co-written with Marc Shaiman), with a stunning vocal by Sabella, performed with great passion.

Sabella told a few stories of the wild days of New York nightlife in the world before AIDS, the Christopher Street pier and “Mr. Right Now.” “Being the City that Never Sleeps didn’t necessarily mean you would make it through the night.” This led to another highlight, Allen’s evocative medley from his Taught By Experts Album, “Six-Thirty Sunday Morning/“New York, I Don’t Know About You.” It was beautifully arranged, and fully brought the listener into the scene.

While Sabella left the stage to change costumes for the next segment, Hartman took a solo turn for the “one song Peter Allen made that was actually biographical,” the devastating, touching “Tenterfield Saddler,” about Allen’s grandfather, George Woolnough and his father, Richard, who committed suicide when Peter was only 14.

Sabella, now in a snazzy white tuxedo to reflect the 80s period of Allen’s life, brought up the energy with a decidedly upbeat “Everything Old is New Again.” He noted that he, like Allen, “didn’t dress like to to go unnoticed,” calling Allen “the Elton John of cabaret.”

At long last, Sabella performed Allen’s signature song, “I Go to Rio,” to close the show. An impromptu conga line snaked through the audience. Allen no doubt would have approved, or even started it himself.

Sabella concluded with a heartbreaking encore, “Once Before I Go,” which Allen wrote for his late partner, Gregory Connell, who died of an AIDS-related illness some eight years before Allen met the same demise.

Afterward, Sabella held a 50-50 raffle for the Bella Vox Performing Arts Foundation.  (The show was also a fundraiser to benefit this organization.)

For more information about David Sabella, visit sabellavoxstudios.com. For more great shows at The Laurie Beechman Theatre, visit www.thebeechman.com.