Les Paul and Mary Ford, Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gormé, Louis Prima and Keely Smith, Sonny and Cher—and now Shana Farr and Craig Rubano, who have come together to debut their singing partnership in All the Things You Are—the music of Jerome Kern.
Farr is an award-winning singer, actress, producer and recording artist whose career includes leading roles in musical theater, operetta and classic plays; and vocal triumphs at the likes of Jazz at Lincoln Center, Birdland, 54 Below and London’s Crazy Coqs and The Pheasantry. Rubano made his Broadway debut as Marius in Les Misérable, followed by many more roles on the Rialto. Taking a break to pursue advanced degrees in theology, The Rev. Dr. Craig Rubano now serves as Settled Minister of the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County in New Jersey. In 2024 he returned to performing with his award-winning cabaret show, Take the Moment.
All the Things You Are: Love, Laughter and Music of Jerome Kern, debuts at Chelsea Table + Stage on Monday, October 26 and Thursday, November 19, both at 7 PM. Musical Direction is by Jon Weber.
NiteLife Exchange (NLE) asks Shana Farr (SF) and Craig Rubano (CR) Six Questions:
NLE: Shana, what led you from musical theater to making your solo cabaret debut in 2009 with Pure Imagination?
SF: In 2008, I was taken on a date to see a show at the Oak Room, and it was my first real introduction to the intimate art form of cabaret. I didn’t fall in love with 
the guy, but I certainly fell in love with what I experienced that evening! There was something extraordinary about the connection between the performer and the audience, the music, the lyrics and hearing songs I had known all my life suddenly revealed in entirely new ways. And that performer was Steve Ross!
I soon returned on my own, and the second performer I saw was KT Sullivan. After seeing several more shows and exploring other venues, I thought, “Well, perhaps I should try this thing called cabaret.” And I was hooked!
Of course, I’ve learned an enormous amount over the years. Coming from musical theater, where you’re usually portraying a character, cabaret asks something quite different of you. You learn to break down that fourth wall, allow yourself to be vulnerable, and take liberties with melodies and rhythms in ways that let the lyrics truly tell your story—whatever that story may be. It’s an art form that continues to challenge and surprise me, and that’s part of what I love about it.
NLE: Craig, following your Broadway success, what led you to make your solo cabaret debut in 2000 with Finishing the Act: Act One Finales from Broadway?
CR: I had always been drawn to the Act One fina
le as a theatrical moment in a Broadway musical—usually, something has happened to put a wrench in things, so there’s a bit of a cliffhanger,and often, a main character gets a song about how they are going to survive, carry on, thrive. I conceived of the idea of doing an entire album and show of these inspirational moments—not to recreate the moments in the shows in which they appeared, but to tell a new story, something of my own. I was lucky enough to have a dear aunt and uncle of blessed memory who, with their QVC connections, helped to make the album something extraordinary, with a full orchestra, and I asked for help from all the people in the cabaret and Broadway world with whose work I was impressed at the time. It’s still an amazing thing to me that it all happened! The show came second, and my physical trainer at the gym wanted to invest in making that also a thrilling presentation, with a five-piece ensemble. It was all just a whole lot of fun!
NLE: Shana, you recently performed at the closing night of the 37th Annual New York Cabaret Convention. What did you perform, with whom, and what did the experience mean to you?
SF: I performed Rodgers and Hart’s “With a Song in My Heart” alongside SteveRoss—who has become a wonderful mentor to me over the years—and my partner in crime for our new show, All the Things You Are, Craig Rubano. Steve created the beautiful arrangement and guided us in bringing it to life. To share the stage with these two extraordinary gentlemen, both of whom I admire so much, was a real joy. And to perform for that wonderful audience, celebrating the Great American Songbook in such a magnificent setting, made the evening all the more special. It was one of those moments when you simply think, “How lucky am I to be doing this?”
NLE: Craig, you and Shana are both celebrated interpreters of the Great American Songbook. How did you come to collaborate, and what drew you to the music of Jerome Kern?
CR: Shana had conceived the show with Steve Ross. I went through and listened to every Kern album I could get my hands on, did a lot of research about the composer’s career, and came up with some things I really wanted to include. Then it was a ma
tter of putting things into a sequence that made sense to tell a story through the music and lyrics, with minimal patter. The concert is really a one-act theatrical piece with an arc that takes in a love relationship between two people, with all of its opening jitters,doubts, highs and lows, break-ups, commitment and, finally, growing older together. Then, Shana and I got together with Jon Weber to put things into keys that made sense, as well as creating musical segues and cues that allow things to move forward without external explanation. I’m really excited about this project.
NLE: Shana, Jerome Kern was one of the most influential and prolific composers of his era, creating enduring songs with a long list of lyricists and librettists. How did you and Craig choose which songs to include in your show?
SF: This show actually began with Steve Ross and me several years ago, exploring Kern’s extraordinary catalog and discovering how the songs might connect to tell a larger story. What fascinated me was the possibility of creating something theatrical without a traditional script, allowing the songs themselves to become the dialogue. One song introduces an emoti
on, another complicates it, and suddenly a relationship begins to unfold.
Kern’s music lends itself beautifully to this kind of storytelling. His melodies can be sweeping and romantic one moment, playful and surprising the next. And while the language may come from another era, the emotions are timeless. Falling in love, being disappointed, making a fool of yourself, hoping someone feels the same way—we really haven’t changed all that much!
When Craig joined the project, he brought new perspectives and nuances to the songs, and together we explored which ones best served the story we wanted to tell. Having the brilliant Jon Weber involved in the creative process has been a joy, and incorporating some of Steve’s wonderful arrangements makes it even more special.
Ultimately, our choices weren’t simply about including Kern’s greatest hits. We wanted each song to earn its place by moving the story forward, revealing something about the characters or changing the relationship between them. That’s what makes this more than a collection of beautiful songs. It’s a little musical play, told almost entirely through Kern’s extraordinary marriage of melody and lyric.
NLE: Craig, can you tell us about your “Rev. Craig Presents…” performance series at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Monmouth County in Lincroft, New Jersey?
CR: Your readers may not know that I am a full-time minister, with a congregation in New Jersey, and 2027 is the 70th anniversary of its founding. I am always finding ways to combine my singing with my ministry (and vice versa), so the idea was to create a vehicle for us to bring All the Things You Are to Monmouth County [Wednesday, December 9]. Two other potential projects appeared in my mind at that moment (An Evening with D.C. Anderson and Rescuing the Music of Jewish Polish Composers, with musicians straight from Poland) and I thought a music series to benefit the congregation would be a lovely gift from me to its members and friends. So, it’s a three-month series (for now!).
