Jerry’s Girls delivers Jerry Herman’s Broadway optimism

By Savannah Whaley

Broadway composer and lyricist Jerry Herman understood divas. His musicals brought us Mame Dennis (Mame), Dolly Levi (Hello, Dolly!), Mabel Normand (Mack and Mabel) and Albin (La Cage aux Folles) which starred legends Angela Lansbury, Carol Channing, Bernadette Peters, Barbra Streisand, Lucille Ball and George Hearn.

It’s little wonder Michael Ursua, the multi-hyphenate actor-director-musician, jumped at the chance to direct Jerry’s Girls, a celebratory revue of 35 songs from those musicals and others, for the Pompano Players at the Pompano Beach Cultural Center in January.

“Jerry Herman is my favorite composer, so I know every single stitch of his music and all of his lyrics,” Ursua said. “I was fortunate enough to meet him when I musically directed Mame at the Wick Theatre. Leslie Uggams was Mame in that production so Jerry Herman came to see it. He was kind and complimentary.”

This salute to Herman’s works belongs in South Florida since he graduated from the University of Miami and wrote his first musical, Sketchbook, there before launching a career that would garner him multiple Tony® and Grammy® awards as well as inductions into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Theatre Hall of Fame and The Kennedy Center Honors.

Most recently, Ursua directed Hello, Dolly! at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center, where he is in his third season as the artistic director of the Broadway Series. He promises diehard Herman fans and those new to the works will find unexpected delights.

“It’s a really thoughtfully constructed revue,” Ursua shared. “It offers really interesting plays on some of the numbers you won’t expect that keep you involved and interested, especially if you don’t know the songs. Jerry Herman’s music is always uplifting and, as everyone says, you can hum the tunes.”

Those Broadway belts and ballads will be backed by a six-piece live band under the musical direction of David Nagy. Lourelene Snedeker, Patrece Bloomfield and Abbey Alder headline the production and are joined by Cassidy Joseph, Caroline Macchiarola, Jacqueline Rose, Alexandra Van Hasselt and Lauren Wickerson.

“He really did musicalize the resilience of the human spirit,” Ursua noted. “His strong robust female characters all take charge of their situations. They’re all making things work, finding solutions and just trying to be happy in life. It’s the best medicine for the time.”

In fact, the Menier Chocolate Factory in London chose to revive Jerry’s Girls last summer. It speaks to the timelessness of the show that premiered on Broadway in 1985 and enjoyed a successful national tour. 

For this production, choreographer Alex Jorth is creating the energetic dance movements that Herman’s soaring songs demand with the talent and professionalism Ursua, his husband, expects.

“Maybe it’s our personalities but knocking wood, we don’t any have conflicts,” Ursua said. “It’s perfect. That’s a strong word, but it is. It’s good to bounce stress off each other. He knows what I just went through, and I know what he just went through. It sounds ridiculous, but it’s great. It’s a great combination.”

Since coming to South Florida in 2013, Ursua has received a Silver Palm Award and a Carbonell Award as well as numerous Carbonell nominations. He has also served as musical director and conductor for numerous national tours, local and regional productions working with such talents as Lee Roy Reams, Sally Struthers and Andrea McArdle. He is excited to welcome audiences to his latest production.

“Herman’s big anthem was [Mame’s] ‘It’s Today,’ Ursua recalled. “He always said his mom would throw random parties. ‘What’s the reason?’ It’s today. Jerry’s Girls is just very uplifting. It is tried and true showtunes material.”

Ursua originally arrived in South Florida to assist with the opening of the Wick Theatre in Boca Raton as executive director and resident musical director. As a director, he has led multiple regional and local productions including such shows as Sister Act, 42nd Street, Peter Pan, Always…Patsy Cline and She Loves Me.

This season, he is also directing Delray Beach Playhouse’s upcoming productions of The Producers and The Bridges of Madison County. His acting credits include roles in such shows as Priscilla Queen of the Desert, La Cage aux Folles and The Secret Garden. He is also the creator, producer and host of Florida Sings Showtunes, an online entertainment that was designed to support local musical theatre artists during the pandemic.

“I think everyone knows South Florida has a robust theater scene,” Ursua said. “I think our productions can rival many of those from all over the country at some of the biggest companies. Actors who do not live here, even those in New York, will tell you that they know the scene down here and there’s a lot of opportunity.”

Ursua credits producer Kevin Barrett who heads up both Arts Center Management Theatricals in Pompano and the Broadway Series in Lauderhill with supporting theater in Broward.

“He is very much leading the charge to try to reboot theater companies not only in some of the places that already exist but then going into some places that didn’t really have a theater company and giving it a whirl,” Ursua said. “Lauderhill is doing great now with the Broadway Series. We’re in our third year now and have a great subscription base going. He is helping to cultivate different options for theaters and opportunities for local performers. There is a lot of casting happening that is not local and it’s a shame. I love casting local. We have such a huge pool of people.”