Kiki & Herb, Alive On Broadway

Friday, David and I attended the opening night of Kiki & Herb’s Broadway debut in their new show, Alive On Broadway, at the Helen Hayes Theatre, where the septuagenarian duo served up their fantastically twisted takes on Gnarls Barkely, Dan Fogelberg, The Cure, Public Enemy, and many others. The storyline is familiar at times to longtime fans, but Kiki’s (Justin Bond) meandering narrative was by turns hilarious and profound.

The absolute show-stopper was Kiki’s heart-wrenching performance of Mark Eitzel’s Patriot’s Heart, which brought the room to tears. This show delivers the political Kiki and she eviscerates everybody from Bush/Cheney to the Pope. Kenny Mellman as Herb, her adorable gay “jewtard” accompanist, has an expanded role in Alive On Broadway, and he opened the show with a solo number before welcoming Kiki onstage to a standing ovation. Sure, lots of Broadway acts get standing O’s at the end, but how many get them at the beginning? David and I left with our faces sore from smiling. The show has a limited run, ending September 10th. Get tickets here.