Revue celebrates the lighter side of retirement

Pat and Jerry Zaback of Hauppauge have a long history of introducing Long Island audiences to singing nuns, opera phantoms and other memorable musical theater characters.

Their next show features something they hope will become another smash production: singing and dancing retirees.

Pat, who is in her 60s, and her husband, Jerry, 78, were in the Clearwater, Fla., area when they came upon a musical revue called "Ain't Retirement Grand."

"When we're in Florida, we go and see every show, and we went to see it at a VFW Hall," said Pat, the artistic director of BroadHollow Productions in East Islip. "We absolutely loved it, and we spoke to Gil [Perlroth, the author], who plays the piano for it."

Jerry, who is BroadHollow's executive producer, added, "We came back here and we talked about it - we couldn't get it out of our mind."

The revue, which will have its Long Island debut in two weeks, is a collection of original skits and songs performed by four characters living in a 55-plus community. Pat describes it as "very upbeat and fun."

Older Long Islanders have embraced a number of musicals aimed at their demographic group. "Menopause The Musical," for instance, recently sold out a seven-week run at BroadHollow, and also was presented at the Landmark on Main Street in Port Washington.

However, the Long Island regional theater scene is generally dominated by hit musicals, comedies and dramas whose reputations have been established by long runs on or Off-Broadway. But they decided to take a chance on "Grand" because "It's extremely relevant," Pat said. "All the topics that they hit - seniors either are going through or will go through as they get older."

The Zabacks hope to entice audiences for the two-day run by charging $10 a ticket. They'll be invited to stay after the show, ask questions and comment on what they've seen. The couple hopes to use that feedback to tweak "Ain't Retirement Grand" for an Off-Broadway run down the road.

Brentwood's Mary Ellin Kurtz, 55, one of the two women in the four-character show, said, "It's always interesting to be part of something new and original."

The characters in "Grand" sing about eating Early Bird restaurant specials at 4 p.m., spending money instead of leaving it to their kids, and hating to exercise, even though they know it's good for them.

And nothing is off-limits. In one scene that reflects the older-women-to-older-men ratio, one of the male leads finds that, even though he's no hunk, he is in demand among the ladies of his community. He sings, "I'm the catch of the day/All the ladies adore me/ They display all their wares /As they sashay before me."

Cast members, who were selected by the Zabacks from the stable of BroadHollow veterans, say they have natural insight into the show's characters partly because they are in the same age bracket. "We're at an age when we can contemplate retirement," said Warren Schaefer, 65, of Dix Hills, a film and video producer who plays one of the two male roles. Schaefer acts in regional theater as a sideline and, because he believes in "Grand," he has been offering his home for rehearsals.

Schaefer said he and other cast members, including Jack Howell of Merrick, who turns 75 on Sunday, have been involved in helping shape the revue for Long Island audiences. "The actors are all putting in our two cents as to how we perceive some of these things and trying to punch the whole thing up."

Dr. Heddy Zirin, 62, a pediatrician from Huntington Station, plays the other female role. Acting has been her hobby since childhood. She has appeared in BroadHollow productions for 25 years and played Golda there in "Fiddler on the Roof."

Zirin's favorite bit in "Grand" is about a recently retired man who follows his wife around the house, pestering her by constantly asking (through song), "What'cha Doing?"

"This is for the aging and elderly who will laugh at the familiarity of the material and the life experiences," Zirin said.

Perlroth, 82, is scheduled to be here to see the show's Long Island debut, but he's no stranger to the area. He lived in Huntington in the 1960s and '70s, while working for Grumman's public relations department. A professional musician, Perlroth also wrote Madison Avenue jingles and has penned 20 musicals.

He's updating the lyrics of "Grand" to keep the humor sharp, and recently added references to the prescription drug Cialis, Betty White and Twitter.

Perlroth thinks the show reaches far beyond its Florida origins and that its humorous take on getting older has universal appeal. "Retirement life is retirement life," he said, "You become a grandparent, and everybody faces the same problems."