“Director Pamela Hunt's mounting is, by necessity, simply staged. But a knockout trio of performers, accompanied on piano by music director Eric Svejcar, keep the evening frothy and fun…Pedi masterfully handles the bulk of the comedy numbers…Displaying a vibrant belt and a showbiz spirit, D'Abruzzo really digs into numbers like ‘Wherever He Ain't’…Stephanie Umoh brings touching sentiment and graceful phrasing to ballads such as ‘It Only Takes A Moment.'
Read more

"The appealing show, featuring a talented trio, breezily glides through Herman's musical catalogue…The numbers largely proceed without historical context or thematic linkage. As a result some songs in the parade of ballads and anthems begin to generically blur together...A modest, yet authoritative, reminder of the additional riches penned by the composer/lyricist. While not everything gleams in this jewel box of a revue, it is worth sampling the treasures anew.”
Read more

“Composer/lyricist Jerry Herman's greatest hits are back in a gorgeously sung revival of ‘Jerry's Girls’ as part of The York Theatre Company's ‘Musicals in Mufti’ series, ‘musical theatre gems in staged concert performances.’ Led by a cast of three talented song stylists, Stephanie D'Abruzzo (‘Avenue Q’), Christine Pedi (‘The Lady of a 1000 Voices’) and Stephanie Umoh (‘Ragtime’), the score is as melodic and buoyant as one could wish.”
Read more

"Svejcar’s arrangements of Jerry Herman’s tunes astounded the theatergoers, lifted their spirits and put everyone in the happiest of summer moods...Director Hunt has successfully encouraged and allowed Christine Pedi and a pair of Stephanies–D’Abruzzo and Umoh–to do justice to Herman’s style, wit and lyrics, each in her own inimitable way...Only one drawback. I felt 'Movies Were Movies'...needed to be sung by the baritone voice for whom it was composed."
Read more

"With a few exceptions, director Pamela Hunt does little to celebrate Herman’s songbook. Part of the problem is the show’s construct, which feels like a Jerry Herman repertory company audition...These standalone numbers, while melodic and beautifully written, need the backbone of the stories from which they are taken...Umoh is by far the most successful at interpreting the material...If you’re a superfan, you might enjoy the evening despite its inconsistencies."
Read more

“There is absolute delight in the concert revival of ‘Jerry’s Girls’…Director Pamela Hunt has built in a steady supply of movement that keeps the show zipping along…The expertise of D’Abruzzo, Pedi, Umoh and pianist Svejcar provide sparkling entertainment and do justice to Herman…Apart from the striking solos, the three work beautifully together in creating a charming ambiance.”
Read more

"The songs are the show. Directed by Pamela Hunt, too often the singers in this performance were overly dependent on the scripts...It was Umoh, with a secure, warm soprano, who was the standout performer...Musical director/pianist Svejcar ginned up the energy with vibrant pianissimo and, behind the ballads, delivered sensitive accompaniment without undue theatricality...What would help, however, was a bit more time to clinch the lyrics and rehearse together."
Read more

“A stellar trio...Umoh gets the biggest solo of the evening towards the end – a smashing 'I Am What I Am' from 'La Cage aux Folles' – but everybody stops the show at some point…Music director and pianist Eric Svejcar, a fine musical theatre composer in his own right, is very sensitive to the dramatic ebb and flow of the evening. So, too, is director Pamela Hunt…All in all a terrific representation of the Herman songbook. Recommended.”
Read more