SWINGS BIG, SHINES BRIGHT
All Roads Theatre Company just set the bar sky-high with One for My Baby, a slick, jazz-soaked tribute to the music of Harold Arlen. This is old-school showbiz at its best—big voices, big orchestrations, and enough high-voltage talent to power a city block. With a Broadway-caliber cast and an 11-piece band that swings like it’s 1947, this world-premiere jukebox musical is a knockout.
C.J. Eldred, Luba Mason, and Lianne Marie Dobbs
Harold Arlen might not be a household name like Gershwin or Porter, but his songs? They’re legendary. The setlist here reads like a masterclass in American songwriting—”Get Happy,” “Stormy Weather,” “Come Rain or Come Shine,” “Blues in the Night.” The list goes on. And thanks to Fred Barton’s fresh, razor-sharp orchestrations, these classics don’t just land—they hit like a freight train.
Lana Gordon, Luke Steinborn, Phil Pritchard, Natalie Holt MacDonald
C.J. Eldred with Ensemble
The story, set in a swanky nightclub in postwar America, is packed with glamour, scandal, and romance. Think Grand Hotel meets Cabaret, but with more swing and less existential dread. At the heart of it all is Panama Jones, the club’s queen bee, played by the phenomenal Lana Gordon. She’s got pipes that could shake the chandeliers and a stage presence so commanding she barely has to move to own the room. Whether she’s belting out a torch song or delivering a sly one-liner, you can’t take your eyes off her.
Lana Gordon
Then there’s Luba Mason as Tess Fleming, a high-society dame with a voice like butter and the kind of effortless elegance that makes you wonder why she’s not sipping champagne on a 1940s movie set. She’s got the smoky jazz phrasing of Norah Jones with the crystal-clear tone of Karen Carpenter, and when she sings, time slows down.
Luba Mason
The rest of the cast is stacked. Sean Gibbons taps like he was born with a pair of wingtip shoes. Jess Val Ortiz is a firecracker as showgirl Kitty McVey. Jackie James brings the kind of velvety vocals that make you sit up and listen. And Harris Matthew? The man moves like a young Ben Vereen and croons like he’s been doing this since birth. The hard-working song-and-dance ensemble ignites the stage with volcanic precision, attacking director Scott Thompson‘s intricate footwork and sailing through Barton’s close harmonies with a devil-may-care nonchalance that belies the technical wizardry happening before your eyes.
Jess Val Ortiz, Amber Wright, Luba Mason, Lana Gordon
Alec Talbot, Phil Pritchard, Jess Val Ortiz, Keaton Brandt 
Visually, the show is a stunner. Lighting and scenic designer Paul Black’s nightclub set is dripping with old-school glamour. Shon LeBlanc’s costumes are tailored to perfection—especially for Gordon and Mason, who look straight out of a noir film. Even the wigs, usually an Achilles’ heel in period pieces, are mostly spot-on thanks to Carter Thomas.
Harris Matthew, Amber Wright, Lana Gordon
And then there’s the music. Barton doesn’t just re-create these songs—he reinvents them. One for My Baby swaps its usual late-night lament for a bluesy, whiskey-soaked groove. “That Old Black Magic” turns into a simmering, jazz-fueled seduction, its brass section punctuating the tension like a heartbeat. This is Arlen like you’ve never heard him before, and it works.
Lana Gordon, Phil Pritchard
C.J. Eldred, Luba Mason
Is the show perfect? Not quite. Barton and Thompson’s book tries to juggle four plotlines, twenty-four songs, and at least a dozen dance numbers, and at three hours, it’s a lot. Every moment is entertaining but trimming one storyline and a few lesser-known numbers would tighten the whole thing. And the choice to have Panama narrate from purgatory? Interesting, but not essential. The story has enough going on without that extra layer. But let’s be honest. Nobody comes to a show like this for the plot. They come for the thrill of a big band, the magic of powerhouse voices, and the kind of choreography that makes you want to dance in your seat. And on that front, One for My Baby delivers in spades.
Lianne Marie Dobbs, Luba Mason
Luba Mason, Lianne Marie Dobbs, C.J. Eldred
The boys clearly have sites set on Broadway, but while I relished every sequined moment of this dazzling throwback, Broadway investors might break out in a cold sweat at the commercial arithmetic: a marathon running time, a budget-busting cast of 31 (with 10 principals!), and a nostalgic sensibility aimed squarely at theatergoers who remember the Truman administration—a magnificent dinosaur beautifully staged and brilliantly performed that I’d happily watch again tomorrow. But as for the next commercial juggernaut? Only time and trimming will tell. As it stands, it may be hopelessly impractical for the Great White Way.
Act I Finale
Yet, at Sunday’s performance, the audience sprang to their feet before the final note had even faded. And they were right to. This is a show that knows exactly what it is: a love letter to classic Broadway. If that’s your kind of night out, it ends next weekend, so don’t walk, run–or better yet, jitterbug to get seats while you can.
Natalie Holt MacDonald, Sean McGibbon
photos by Billy Bennight
poster art by Larry Saperstein
Eric Toms
One For My Baby
All Roads Theater Company
Debbie Reynolds Main Stage at the El Portal Theatre, 5269 Lankershim in North Hollywood
music by Harold Arlen
lyrics by Ted Koehler, Johnny Mercer, E.Y. Harburg and Ira Gershwin
Thursday, March 20 at 8
Friday, March 21 at 8
Saturday, March 22 at 3
Saturday, March 22 at 8
Sunday March 23 at 3
for tickets ($42-$135), call 818.508.4200 or visit El Portal
for more shows, visit Theatre in LA
