Gig / O.C.R.

A WINNING MUSICAL...steeped in the tradition of old-time, goodtime musical comedy! A splendid opening number travels, builds and sustains the feel, the flow and the life of a real musical, following the style of COMEDY TONIGHT and TRADITION! Under a consistently traceable Sondheim influence, Mr. Cohen is a mellower, softer disciple, chronicling disillusion without a trace of the cynical or the sinister, only the wistful, with a touch of the poignant. Alvin, Klein, THE NEW YORK TIMES (New Jersey edition)A GREAT SHOW! If originality and style mixed with solid music and clever lyrics, all blended with humor and pathos still count in the theater world, this show should have a solid future ahead! NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIOA FUNNY AND TOUCHING NEW MUSICAL. Cohen's writing, both of dialogue and lyrics, is clever and poignant. His music is similarly telling...Cohen vividly depicts the vicissitudes of life as a paid musician. THE BOSTON GLOBEFOUR STARS! HIGHEST RATING! THE GIG is a rich look at 'regular guys'! THE SACRAMENTO BEETHE GIG IS A CHARMER - WARM, HUMAN, FAST, FUNNY, UPBEAT & FRESH THE RECORD (Sacramento)Upon pressing the play button, Cohen launched into his bravura opening sequence (Farewell Mere Existence, Hello Jazz!) and I was instantly engrossed. Cohen takes six solitary characters, adrift in separate lives, and linked only by their Wednesday night jam session, and in 11 minutes builds the basis for a musical. From there on, I found myself listening intently to just about every moment of The Gig. Cohen, as in No Way to Treat a Lady, is a keen and clever composer/lyricist, with an offbeat sense and a penchant for sly surprises. Steven Suskin, PLAYBILL.COM (Review of the CD)