The auditorium at Gold Hall in the Hewlett-Woodmere Public Library was filled with the iconic songs from Joel Grey’s illustrious Broadway career during “Shades of Grey: A Musical Tribute to Joel Grey.”
The show was conceived, directed, written and performed by Bob Spiotto along with musical director, special arrangements and accompaniment by Stephen Pagano.
The repertoire included songs from “The Littlest Revue,” “Stop the World- I Want to Get Off,” “Half a Sixpence,” “Cabaret,” “An American in Paris,” “George M!,” “Goodtime Charley,” “The Grand Tour,” “Chicago,” and “Wicked.”
Having over 40 years experience working in the entertainment industry Spiotto said he had always liked Joel Grey and had the background after performing as the Master of Ceremonies in “Cabaret” in high school.
“I always watched his career and watched all the things he did,” Spiotto said. “I just loved all the parts that he played and thought at some point I needed to be doing a one man musical tribute to Joel Grey.”
Spiotto worked on this tribute on an off for many years and finally decided what songs he wanted to sing and connected with Pagano off of a colleagues recommendation to solidify the music and show order.
“Steve and I got together and it was like fireworks,” he said. “We went through it and when we were done we ere both in shock. We felt like we had a show and it was almost ready to go.”
Spiotto said he really enjoys performing this tribute show and it thankful that Joel Grey has had such a long-standing Broadway career for all the materials available to do.
“I don’t impersonate these people I pay tribute to,” Spiotto added. ‘I just try to embody his spirit.”
Along with his spirit and passion for performing in front of a live audience, Spiotto aims to “edutain” the audience with his shows by intertwining history and trivia in to the performance.
“It’s both entertainment and educational but not to the point that people feel like they’re sitting in a lecture,” Spiotto said. “I really want them to be edutained throughout the course of it.”
Pagano has been working with Spiotto since 2011 after a personal recommendation from a colleague and ever since then they have been performing together.
“He’s just so amazingly talented,” Pagano said. “It was like fireworks when we first started working on this arrangement. We get along so good and we finish each others theatrical sentences.”
Having played the piano for 60 years, Pagano is comfortable with all of the musical medleys and loves the personal musical touches he adds to the songs.
“The quality of the music is so high and Joel Grey had such a great career,” he said. “It’s been a thrill and I can’t believe it’s been 15 years. It’s still such a joy to do it.”
This was the first time the HWPL has worked with Spiotto and Pagano and they are already in plans to schedule another performance.
“They’re professionals and it was so much more than I expected, I’m really delighted,” said Marie Drucker, librarian and programs director at the HWPL.
The Lynbrook Public Library recommended Spiotto to Drucker.
“We have very sophisticated audiences here and they love music,” she said. “I think this just fit right in with the neighborhood.”
