When Steve Ross sits down at the piano, he projects visions of Fred Astaire sporting a top hat, white tie and tails, for the elegant Ross at the keyboard is the very essence of “Putting On The Ritz.” This week the Georgetown University alumnus returns home to present a special concert open to the public, his gift to the community where he grew up.
After absorbing classical languages, attending the seminary and completing a stint in the Army, he turned his back on the scholarly life. Throughout college, he played at piano bars near Thomas Circle, convinced that his future was in tickling the ivories, not filling his head with esoteric facts. Then Dan Raskin, brother of Mark Russell, stepped in.
| ONSTAGE |
| Steve Ross |
| » Where: McNeir Hall, Georgetown University |
| » When: 1:15 p.m. Friday |
| » Info: Free and open to the public |
“Until then, I just played the piano and never tried to sing,” Ross said. “Dan put on an LP of Bobby Short playing the piano and singing and told me that’s what I should do. I took his advice, added singing to my act and soon moved to New York to try my luck there. I had absolutely no plan, but I was quickly hired to play at Backstage, a piano bar and restaurant in the theater district.”
His flair for conveying lighthearted lyrics by Cole Porter, Noel Coward, George Gershwin and their contemporaries drew crowds. One friendship led to another and it was not long before he was invited to perform at the 1981 reopening of the Oak Room in the world-famous Algonquin Hotel, which was the epitome of glamour during the 1920s and 1930s.
Giving a hearty laugh, he said, “I was hired for a week; this marks my 31st year there. The Oak Room is unique in this country. Its beautiful wood resonates with the ghosts in one’s mind of all the people who have passed through. Today, guests come to be reacquainted with the past. It’s all about exposure on YouTube. Who could have thought it possible three years ago that so many young people would be moved to experience this elegant music live?”
A master showman, he made his Broadway debut in the revival of Noel Coward’s “Present Laughter,” created his own tribute to Fred Astaire, “I Won’t Dance,” as well as other fully staged theatrical productions. When he is not playing in an intimate room, he tours in solo concerts and symphonic Pops appearances.
“I want the Georgetown audience to connect with this music,” he said. “I put my own spin on it. The students may not have seen a person sitting at the piano and singing a funny song, so I want them to experience the touching and humorous aspects of these great songs.”
