Tom Lehrer Revue Comes To Garden City

Tom Lehrer, the razor-witted musical satirist whose songs have delighted three generations of Americans, is back in town, as The New Punctuation Army presents "Pigeons, Popes & Pollution: The Songs of Tom Lehrer" in Garden City on Saturday, Oct. 27, and Sunday, Oct. 28.

Conceived and directed by Phil Gellis, "Pigeons, Popes & Pollution" features 27 classic Lehrer songs, including such classics as "Poisoning Pigeons in the Park," "I Wanna Go Back to Dixie," "The Vatican Rag," "The Masochism Tango," "I Hold Your Hand in Mine" and "Pollution," performed by a cast of four that includes Lisa Ann Green, Barry Mastellone, Andrew Schwartz and Gellis himself. Music director Stephen O'Leary accompanies at the piano.

"I have been an admirer of Lehrer's work for over 30 years," Gellis says. "It has always been in the back of my mind that there's an audience out there that would love to hear those wonderful old songs again as much as I'd enjoy performing them. The three singers who are performing with me are all friends, and we all share a passion for Lehrer's songs. Lisa Ann Green, in particular, has been bugging me about doing this for 15 years."

Lehrer was a doctoral student in mathematics at Harvard University when he began to publicly perform his parodic songs, among them the hilariously genteel fight song, "Fight Fiercely, Harvard." A self-produced recording turned him into something of a cult idol among the young, and he spent the 1950s playing nightclubs and concert halls around the United States and England. In 1960 he resumed his studies at Harvard and largely retired as an entertainer, except for gigs as the resident songwriter for the satiric television program "That Was the Week That Was" (1964) and the children's series "The Electric Company" (1971). Since 1972 he has been a Professor at the University of California at Santa Cruz.

His three record albums, however, have continued to sell, as each new generation discovers songs that, though seemingly topical for their era, remain irreverent, iconoclastic and just plain fun.

"I think a big reason why Lehrer remains popular is that, unlike other musical satirists like Allan Sherman and 'Weird Al' Yankovic, Lehrer's songs are based on original melodies," Gellis says, "so listeners can focus on the lyrics and situations of the song, as opposed to comparing it to the original work. I used to love listening to Weird Al's stuff, but once I reached an age where I wasn't familiar with the songs he was satirizing, he lost a lot of his appeal for me. With Lehrer, the humor comes from the songs themselves, not from any clever mimicry of the base material."

The show is being produced by The New Punctuation Army, a Manhattan-based original-theater company whose New York productions include "ID," "Two for the Show," "Baseball, Sex and Other Facts of Life" and "A Gilbert & Sullivan Christmas Carol." "Pigeons, Popes & Pollution" represents the first show the company has produced on Long Island since 1986.

"It was too appealing a project to turn down," said NPA artistic director Gayden Wren, who is producing the show. "Phil is one of Long Island theater's great triple threats as an actor, singer and director, and I've always loved Lehrer's songs. When I heard that Phil is doing a Lehrer show, and got a look at this amazingly talented cast, I knew we had to get involved."

Gellis does have a final warning to prospective audience members, however. The New York Times famously reviewed a Lehrer performance by observing, "Mr Lehrer's muse is not fettered by such inhibiting factors as taste." No naughty words appear in "Pigeons, Popes & Pollution," but nonetheless the show has a little something to offend practically anybody.

"Tom himself put it better than anyone else could: 'If, after hearing these songs, just one human being is inspired to say something nasty to a friend, or perhaps to strike a loved one, then it will all have been worthwhile,'" Gellis says. "Hopefully people will check their political correctness at the door and come ready to laugh.

"Pigeons, Popes & Pollution: The Songs of Tom Lehrer" will be presented on Saturday, Oct. 27, at 8 p.m. and on Sunday, Oct. 28 at 3 p.m., with both performances taking place at the Ethical Humanist Society of Nassau County, 38 Old Country Road in Garden City. Admission is $15; for tickets, directions or other information, call (516) 216-1173 or (631) 567-8264.