“Well, in this show, I’m the host and I’m all the acts. I sing, I dance, I play ukulele, we get laughs,” says actor-entertainer Tony Danza of his matinee performance on Thursday at Tropicana Atlantic City.
In some ways, actor-entertainer Tony Danza was born too late.
While the 74-year-old native of Brooklyn earned fame and fortune in two classic TV sitcoms – “Taxi” and “Who’s The Boss?” – between the late 1970s and early ’90s, there’s a large part of him that belongs to earlier generations of show business.
As those who attend his Thursday matinee performance at Tropicana Atlantic City will witness, Danza’s live act is a throwback to the days when headliners weren’t pigeonholed into specific roles like singer or comic, but instead showcased multiple talents.
Among them were legends like Danny Kaye, Donald O’Connor and Sammy Davis Jr., whose act generally included songs, tap dancing, celebrity impersonations and even an occasional demonstration of his talent as a quick-draw artist.
There may be no firearms in Danza’s act, but there will be plenty to capture his audience’s attention.
“It’s like the old TV variety shows,” explained the affable one-time boxer during a recent phone call. “You have a host, and then you have a lot of acts. Well, in this show, I’m the host and I’m all the acts. I sing, I dance, I play ukulele, we get laughs. It’s a full show.”
A prominent element, Danza added of his act, is the inclusion of anecdotes from his life and career. Hence the program’s title, “Standards and Stories.”
If that rings a bell, it’s likely because this is hardly Danza’s first rodeo. He’s been doing his show on and off for some 30 years. His first local appearance was at Resorts Atlantic City in the mid-’90s.
The ensuing decades have allowed the program to evolve and provided Danza a chance to hone his non-acting performance skills. The first Resorts presentation, while engaging and entertaining, definitely had a few rough spots, among them the star’s obvious inexperience in live performance.
Today, Danza’s credits include performances throughout the U.S. and multiple residencies at New York City’s Café Carlyle, where his Frank Sinatra-focused program has drawn thousands to the legendary Manhattan cabaret.
An “accidental’ career turn”
Pivotal moments in people’s lives often happen by accident. That was literally the case in Danza’s non-acting career.
“I had an accident in 1993,” he recalled. “I hit a tree while skiing, and I almost killed myself. I broke my back. I was in intensive care for three weeks and they started (giving) me all these dire predictions for what was gonna happen to me, including that I might not walk and all that bull.
“Of course, it didn’t work out that way, thankfully, but it took me two years to come back,” Danza added. “I had this conversation with myself about, what did I wanna do since I was getting a second chance? And I decided I wanted to be a song-and-dance-man.
“So, I tried it,” he continued. “I wrote an act and we rented (the theater at) Pepperdine University in Malibu.”
By Danza’s own admission, it was not a stellar effort.
“When I got through,” he recalled, “I asked my assistant, ‘What’d you think?’ And she said it was ‘almost not-embarrassing.’ So, yeah, it’s come a long way,” he added with a chuckle.
For all of his success, Danza may be most proud of the Stars of Tomorrow Project, the Manhattan-based nonprofit he created to foster the participation in performing arts of young people from 14 to 22 years old.
“I was at rehearsal,” Danza remembered, referring to the project’s recent show. “And I was watching them. They’re doing ‘Grease.’ And I had the biggest smile on my face as I was watching them. It was like, it’s so charming. And they’re so wonderful.”
It isn’t just hyperbole; at least one Stars of Tomorrow alumnus has already hit the big time.
“I had a kid who came to the program,” Danza recounted. “He didn’t wanna go to college, wasn’t interested in acting. I said, ‘What’d you come here for?’ He said, ‘Well, it was free.’ He was a kid after my own heart.”
The young actor ultimately left the program, but he was convinced to return. With the project’s help, he enrolled at the State University of New York’s Purchase College. Earlier this year, Daniel Bravo Hernandez made his Broadway debut in the cast of “Romeo and Juliet.”
But for Danza, that isn’t the best part of the story.
“So, the other night, I go to the (organization’s) headquarters on 39th Street,” he said, “and he’s there teaching a class for younger kids. It’s like a community. It’s really terrific.”
For tickets to Danza’s show, go to ticketmaster.com.
Meek Mill’s hometown show
North Philadelphia-born rapper Meek Mill has booked a Sunday, Dec. 5, concert at the city’s Xfinity Mobile Arena. The hip-hop star, whose real name is Robert Williams, is also a leading social-justice advocate. As co-chair of the REFORM Alliance, he works to make the nation’s legal system more equitable for those facing charges.
The December show will be Mill’s first hometown gig since he celebrated the 10th anniversary of his signature album, “Nightmares & Dreams,” in November of 2022.
Supporting acts will be announced. For tickets, go to livenation.com.
