Comedian John Mulaney, whose hosting duties send “Saturday Night Live” into the stratosphere, loves theater, Broadway especially (He should host the Tony Awards!)
Now Mulaney and writer Simon Rich have assembled a collection of short, funny, and poignant pieces that run a total of 90 minutes called “All In: A Comedy About Love” with a cast that includes the comedian himself, Richard Kind, Renee Elise Goldsberry, and Fred Armisen.
Last night “All In” had a soft opening and gala celebration at the Hudson Theater. Lorne Michaels — who brought his family — is listed as a producer along with director JJ Abrams‘ Bad Robot Live and The New Yorker among others. So you knew it was going to be an A List night!
Through the doors came a who’s who of comedy and “SNL” royalty: Tom Hanks, Steve Martin, Martin Short, David Letterman, Jon Hamm, Jon Stewart, Cecily Strong, Pete Davidson, James Austin Johnson, Alec and Hilaria Baldwin with Alec’s lovely daughter, Ireland — a new mom — were just some of the names. When I looked around the audience, it was stuffed with something beyond A-listers including Simon Rich’s proud parents, Frank Rich and Alex Witchel.
Seated just in front of me: none other than Fran Lebowitz, who joined the crowd for a head spinning party at Carmine’s featuring amounts of food not seen since the great feasts of Rome. She didn’t talk to anyone, and came alone, but she seemed to have a good time!
And why wouldn’t she? Director Alex Timbers has the four actors seated in great chairs on the stage where they read — a la “Love Letters” — about ten different pieces written by Rich and punctuated by Mulaney’s sly humor and onstage music provided by the Magnetic Fields.
This cast goes until January 12th when they wil be succeeded by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Annaleigh Ashford, Hank Azaria, Aidy Bryant, Tim Meadows, Jimmy Fallon, and a host of others in rotation.
This combo was comedy gold, but you can only imagine what the other teams will bring to the material. Did anyone steal last night’s show? Yes. Everyone. And why not? The pieces run from sweet to tangy, with some emphasis on babies and family life thanks to Mulaney’s new status as a dad courtesy of wife Olivia Munn (who was also front and center).
By the way, all the guests got on famously. Jon Hamm and Pete Davidson joked with each other about joining the company. Davidson, who looked and sounded cold sober great, caught up with Lorne Michaels, who told me he expected every single alumna of “SNL” back for their 50th anniversary special in February. Martin Short didn’t discuss his personal status with Meryl Streep but told me she was “doing great.”
I got to be the the one to tell JJ Abrams that no less than Barbra Streisand has been heaping praise on his pop star daughter Gracie Abrams on social media. Gracie was the musical guest on “SNL” just last week.
The biggest stars in the audience, by far: Michael J. Fox with wife Tracy Pollan. Michael is a hero, refusing to back down from his war with Parkinson’s Disease. Pollan is his Gladiatress!
PS Cecily Strong is pregnant! One of the greatest “SNL” grads, Strong told me she’s due in April and is having a girl. She’s pretty much off duty until then. But when she’s back to work, Strong should be the star of her own show. She’s very gifted!
