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Cabaret star Rubano steps out with danceable new show
By TERRY PERKINS
Special to the Post-Dispatch
Thursday, Nov. 11 2004
A memorable cabaret act begins with a concept. Sometimes, that idea is as
straightforward as performing classic songs - some familiar, some not - by a
specific composer or songwriting team. The concept may involve performing songs
from a specific time frame, perhaps Broadway tunes from the 1930s. Whatever the
concept, the key for the artist in creating a memorable performance is to add
an extra dimension of meaning and nuance through the selection and
juxtaposition of the selected songs.
St. Louis native Craig Rubano, who began focusing on a cabaret career after
success in leading roles in Broadway hits such as "Les Miserables" and "The
Scarlet Pimpernel" in the 1990s, has certainly proved his ability to come up
with memorable concepts. His 2000 debut recording, "Finishing the Act," a
winning collection of Act 1 closing numbers from Broadway musicals, won the
award for recording of the year from the Manhattan Association of Cabarets and
Clubs.
Rubano is following up that success with a new recording, "Change Partners:
Life's a Dance," which will be released within the next few weeks. And Rubano
also has just begun a five-performance run of the show at the Grand Center
Cabaret at the Sheldon Concert Hall, with shows scheduled through Sunday. The
new show collects songs by different songwriting partners - and eventually
evolved to also include a subtheme of songs about dancing.
"This is what I really love," Rubano says during a recent telephone
conversation from his home in New York City. "The whole process of putting a
show together is interesting to me: coming up with a theme that pulls
everything together, the research involved in finding the right songs, the work
in putting together the arrangements and song order."
Rubano's impressive academic resume - an undergraduate degree from Yale and a
master's in English and comparative literature from Columbia University - has
certainly given him an edge when it comes to finding and exploring common
threads in artistic works.
But how did Rubano end up on Broadway and singing cabaret rather than
publishing literary treatises?
"When I was at Yale, I was in the a cappella group the Whiffenpoofs," Rubano
says. "So I was always drawn to performing as a hobby. When I was at Columbia,
I sang in some professional church choirs. Then I was in a workshop production
of a musical based on Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray.' I got a call
from a casting director who had seen that and who asked me to audition for a
role in a play. So I did it on a lark and ended up getting the role. I had to
make a decision and decided on Broadway. The second role I got was in 'Les
Miz'!"
Rubano traces his interest in performing to summer visits to the Muny. Although
his parents moved away from the area when he was 6, the family came back to St.
Louis every summer to visit relatives, and Rubano has vivid memories of seeing
musicals in Forest Park.
"I think I've been to the Muny almost every summer of my life," he says. "One
of my first memories of seeing a show there was hearing 'Climb Ev'ry Mountain'
from 'The Sound of Music.' It closed the first act of the show, so when I did
my first recording and my cabaret show 'Finishing the Act,' it was almost a
given that that would be the closing number."
Rubano appeared in Grand Center Cabaret back in 2000 - the same year he
performed at the Muny in "An Evening with Richard Rogers." He's definitely
looking forward to returning to his hometown and performing at the Sheldon.
"I've had good reports from earlier cabaret-series shows this season," he says.
"And I know the acoustics at the Sheldon are incredible. Singing these songs in
that venue will be a treat."
Craig Rubano
What: Grand Center Cabaret
When: 8 p.m. today-Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday
Where: Sheldon Concert Hall, 3648 Washington Boulevard
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