Jason and Goliath

Consummate showman Jason Graae, in what should have been a small character role as a minor court functionary in the Los Angeles Opera production of The Merry Widow, manages to neatly fold, pack, and walk away with the show. Evidence of this can be seen here, but you do have to sit through a clip of a curiously reticent Rod Gilfry as Count Danilo, singing "I'm Off to Chez Maxime," as well as lovely snippet of Susan Graham, in the lead, warbling "Vilia," before you get to Mr. Graae stealing the number "Girls, Girls, Girls." Those who don't know Jason will correctly assume him to be the ham stage right.

It may not have been entirely fair to allow a musical theatre fixture such as Jason to run amongst the opera set, however. When they meet on the middle ground of operetta it's clear who has the advantage. Susan Graham plays her role almost as a subdued Dolly Levi (blame her Harmonia Gardens first entrance, I suppose) in exceedingly good voice, while Gilfry, who has done his fair share of musical theatre on the side, gets a bit angstian. Graae, however, is all about selling the number, each and every moment of it. He also gets a great deal of mileage out of his accent, officially "Pontevedrin" but, in fact, a cheerful amalgam of just about everything east of the Urals. Jason is soon to appear in a brief run of Graae's Anatomy at the El Portal in North Hollywood but one day, and soon, I hope, we'll be seeing him in a stirring tribute to another eminent scene stealer, Danny Kaye. It's high time.

--Wenzel Jones