By Merle Exit
A night at the theater begins with a cocktail hour that includes an open bar, buffet of hors d’oeuvres and passed around canapés. The lobby is enveloped with local politicians and their friends and family as well as the attendees, who are anxiously awaiting for the production to start.
The show is “Legislative Acts,” and the performers are Queens politicians.
For several years, Jeffrey Rosenstock produced these shows at Queens Theatre in the Park. Now that he has moved his talents over to the Kupferberg Center at Queens College, what better way to raise program funds than to pair with Kevin R. Free, director; Mark Wagner, music director; and Carrie Plew, choreographer, to produce a hit for everyone?
This musical comedy, put on Saturday, was a parody of classical movies, well-known TV series, Broadway shows and a variety of other songs all done to beam the spotlight on Queens.
Much attention was paid to Melinda Katz not just for her singing talent, but also because she will be the next borough president.
She sang the opening number, “Oh, What a Beautiful Morning,” contributed to “Brotherhood of Queens”and was featured in two other numbers that focused on her becoming president.
“Change in Queens” brought three women on stage with past Borough President Claire Shulman, current Borough President Helen Marshall and Katz along with state Assemblyman William Scarborough doing the singing. As Shulman and Marshall walked off stage, Katz was left to sing “On My Own.”
You can always expect laughs when Shulman gets on stage, especially when she plays opposite Peter Vallone Sr.
“Save the World!” was perhaps the one skit that got the biggest audience reaction. The senior Vallone was dressed in a Superman outfit with Shulman wearing a Wonder Woman costume. Not only did they make fun of one another, but remembering lines was a hard task for both and they knew it.
In the past, performers had cheat scripts in hand. This time, they placed teleprompters at the front of the stage, but it didn’t help every performer, which earned laughs from the crowd and Shulman.
City Councilman Mark Weprin must have secretly wanted to be in show business as it was obvious that he can both sing and act. His take-off on “I Want to Be a Producer,” from the Mel Brooks musical “The Producers,” became “I Want to Be a Councilman” and was a hit. Also, a running gag that he was not his brother David popped up a few times during the show.
“Ticket to Ride” featured city Comptroller John Liu doing a stint on a skateboard, at least after a few tries. Assemblyman Phillip Goldfeder and county Clerk Audrey Pheffer were the stars of “Goldfeder,” a parody of “Goldfinger,” as he donned a gold jacket and Pheffer a sexy black dress and blonde wig.
Glen Riddell, Daniel Dromm, Ron Kim, Michael Simanowitz, Michael DenDekkar and an ensemble composed of Queens College theater majors, joined in the number.
“Queens in Queens” was a laugh generated by openly gay Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer as he hosted “Jeopardy!” with contestants Rory Lancman, Gregory Meeks and Elizabeth Crowley.
The finale was a true focus on Queens’ diverse population as the entire cast sang “We Are the World.”
Fancy desserts were the final act in an air of “thank you” and feedback with the politicians.
The evening served as a fund-raiser for two of Queens College’s community outreach programs, Big Buddy, which pairs college students with homeless children, and Women and Work, which helps victims of domestic violence train for the workforce.
