By Bart Greenberg***Filled with energy and charm, Gian Raffaele DiCostanzo made his cabaret debut with his well thought-out show Connecting the Dots at Don’t Tell Mama. This may be his first time on a New York stage, but he’s a very familiar face and voice in the cabaret world as the technician at many shows at the same location. The handsome 
young man proved he definitely has been paying attention to other performers and learning well from their examples while remaining totally himself.
Of course, it helped that he had assembled an experienced team to support him: director Lennie Watts and music director Tracy Stark at the piano. There was also excellent musical support from guitarist Mike Rosengarten, bassist Sean Murphy and drummer Stephen Guerra, as well as two backup vocalists, Jasmine Michelle Smith and Edward L. Simon. With all these people on stage, it would have been easy for DiCostanzo to get lost, so it was a testament to his personality, his strong voice and his excellent enunciation, that he remained front and center throughout.
The title of the show referred to the singer connecting the various aspects (the dots) of his life, from his eccentric small-town family childhood to his touring the country as a performer to his (very
) complicated romantic/sexual journey. Along the way he ably delivered some very funny tales, such as his mother’s inability to master FaceTime and his dad’s pet grooming business. These family reminiscences of course led to some songs, including a highly emotional “Proud of Your Boy” (Alan Menken, Howard Ashman) paired with a wonky version of “Trashin’ the Camp” (Phil Collins). His amorous history was very nicely summed up in a lengthy medley that included “Puppy Love” (Paul Anka), “The Little Things You Do Together” (Stephen Sondheim) and “Torn Between Two Lovers” (Peter Yarrow, Phillip Jarrell) among others: this combination was both a good vehicle to display the singer’s versatility and smart cabaret storytelling.
DiCostanzo has had a
career-long association with the musical Jersey Boys, having played various roles in various productions. He recreated some of his on-stage moments with a medley of “Beggin’” (Bob Gaudio, Peggy Farina), “Let’s Hang On” (Bob Crewe, Sandy Linzer, Denny Randell) and “Who Loves You?” (Gaudio, Judy Parker), bringing along three very talented co-stars from various productions: William Spinnato, Dorian Quinn and Nikita Burshteyn. Showing some more versatility, the star accompanied himself on the guitar on a soulful rendition of “Old Friends” (Ben Rector). Early in the evening, DiCostanzo sang Post Malone’s “rockstar” with its lyric, “I just want to be a rock star.” Connecting the Dots went beyond just rock, but DiCostanzo definitely proved himself a star.
Photos by Bart Greenberg
