SPRING THIS YEAR
“This offering, detailing last year’s ups and downs, is skillfully crafted both in performance and structure. Beginning with “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most” (Fran Landesman/Tommy Wolf), Rubino flaunts her ability to find honest humor. Whether in “Upside Down” (AJ Croce), which used a smile to mask disappointment, or the patter-heavy (but amusing) “Somebody’s Watching Me” (Rockwell), she finds just the right combination of irony, screwball and deadpan to keep a show like this from dissolving into a maudlin mess. Very few performers, particularly young ones, seem to be proficient in this area.
In fact, there is a sage-like quality to Rubino that pervades her performance and her interpretation dynamic. “Swim” (Jack Mannequin) and “Carousel” (Jacques Brel/Mort Shuman/Eric Blau) both seemed to bubble with a sharing-the-gospel delivery, much like a lecture-hall professor expounding. Her voice is simple and unadorned; she never oversings. The arrangements, by MD Robert Bergner, never overpower. And when the patter teeters on over-share, Rubino thankfully keeps the audience wrapped around her finger, aptly infusing wit and whimsy.”-Cabaret Scenes, NYC
PLAYING HIS SONGS
“As with any power ballad, especially one that was a number one hit, it’s probably best to perform it close to the version of the original artist, in this case Carly Simon; Rubino followed that wisdom with a knockout rendition of “Nobody Does it Better” (Carole Bayer Sager), from the 1977 James Bond movie The Spy Who Loved Me. And Rubino sang “Disneyland” (Howard Ashman), a cabaret evergreen, as well as I’ve ever heard it sung”-Bistro Awards, NYC
GYPSY
“Mama Rose arguably is one of the most coveted female roles in musical theater history. She is the powerful, complicated, driving force of “Gypsy” and a diva’s dream come true. Ethel Merman originated the part, and theater greats like Bernadette Peters and Patti Lupone have clamored to fill her shoes ever since. It stands that if a theater can’t cast a powerhouse to take on Mama Rose, it shouldn’t even bother putting up “Gypsy”. Luckily, The Playhouse has reason to bother. Liz Rubino returns to the Youngstown Playhouse stage to tackle the legendary role with a tact and grace that can only come with years of experience. She chooses restraint throughout Act One, remaining collected and firm. In Act 2, we see Rose’s cool facade crumble slowly until her emotional and shocking breakdown in “Rose’s Turn”. Here, Rubino releases Rose’s suppressed rage and resentment in an explosion of physical, emotional and vocal energy that takes the audience by surprise. Most impressively, Rubino owns the role. She doesn’t sample from past actresses, and it’s clear that she has let the dreams and fears of Mama dictate her performance.”-The Vindicator
“The national weather service started naming hurricanes after women in 1954, five years before “Gypsy” made its Broadway debut. It’s hard to believe it wasn’t the other way around. Mama Rose clearly is a force of nature, devastating all in her path. It is one of the most complex characters in the musical theater canon, a woman desperately trying to fulfill her dreams through her children, someone so afraid of being abandoned that she alternately smothers and pushes away those who are close to her to create a self-fulfilling prophecy. Youngstown Playhouse brings home a pro-Mahoning Valley native Liz Rubino, who got her start on the Playhouse stage at age 12-to play Mama Rose, and it’s marveling to watch her tackle the vocally challenging and physically exhausting role. Rubino has a voice that can fill the area’s largest theaters; even if she wasn’t amplified, and she gets to show it off on such musical theater classics as “Some People”, “Everything’s Coming Up Roses”, “Together Wherever We Go”, and “Rose’s Turn”. The Jule Styne-Stephen Sondheim compositions drive the story rather than accent it, and Rubino has the ability to sing those songs pitch perfectly while conveying the emotion and narrative drive required. Rubino and James McClellan, who plays Rose’s long-suffering beau Herbie, have performed concert/cabaret show together and the comfort they have singing together and the beautiful blend of their voices was evident on “Small World” and “You’ll Never Get Away From Me”.-The Tribune Chronicle
IF ONLY…
“In her debut show, “If Only…,” Liz Rubino, a theatre actress from Ohio and recent New York University Master’s degree recipient, showed a lot of promise for a future in cabaret. Coming onto the black-box stage of the Duplex with an open face and a warm smile, like the sun ushering in a new day, Rubino put the audience at ease with her welcoming stage presence before she sang a word. She has great likeability, something that can’t be manufactured. Now, this where-do-I-fit-in? theme is a popular one with new performers eager to introduce their uniqueness to cabaret audiences, but Rubino and director Aaron Morishita added freshness to the formula with a splendid variety of songs and Rubino’s ingratiating personality. She opened with a shortened version of “Colored Lights” (Kander & Ebb), then segued into Sterling Price-McKinney’s “The Fat Lady is Sick Today”: “The fat lady is sick today/ The snake woman is on vacation/ The fire eater has inflammation/ All you’re getting is me.” The song displayed her sense of humor about herself and set up the rest of the show quite well. She possesses a glorious mezzo-soprano voice, and she mainly sang the songs as written, only employing belting theatrics for occasional impressive effect…Liz Rubino is a hardworking, likeable performer whose finely-honed talent promises a bright cabaret career.” Bistro Awards, NYC
“Liz Rubino’s “If Only” is an evocative and unforgettable musical roller coaster ride. It leaves the station slowly, methodically, up-up-up. Next, exhilerating twists and turns – ups and downs. 75 amazing minutes later, she lands, with us, right back where it started. Funny thing is, it’s right where we belong. Liz Rubino is us, because we all dream. And “If Only” is a brilliant dream come true”. Steven Begert-Clark
“Liz Rubino had everyone on the edge of their seats wondering what was going to happen next. One of the highlights of the concert for me was when she was singing “If You Could Read My Mind” and the audience was so enthralled that you could have heard a pin drop on the carpeted concert hall’s floor! Superb concert! Thank you! A million times, thank you!!!”-South Florida Choral Arts, INC
“Liz Rubino’s, “If Only”, is everything you could hope for in a CLASSIC one woman show. Great singing, great humor, and great original music all package her personal experiences into a delightfully heartwarming and empowering message to the entire audience….I LOVED IT!” Kurt W. Litzenberger Media Services Sunshine Cathedral Metropolitan Community Church Fort Lauderdale, Florida
REFLECTIONS
“Liz Rubino is a glorious performer with a remarkably flexible voice and a robust presence that recalls the Hollywood tough girls who could do a man in with a look or a punch. She also brings a delicious double entendre to “You’ve Changed,” which suggests that a solo cabaret act wouldn’t be out of line.” -Cleveland Free Times
“Smoky-voiced Liz Rubino aces Stormy Weather!”-Cleveland Jewish News
DEAR WORLD
“As the Countess, Liz Rubino is a gift from the theatrical gods. Tall and unwieldly, she emits a brassy insanity worthy of Merman” -Cleveland Free Times
“Liz Rubino’s Countess Aurelia is crazy-like-a-fox in Kalliope Stage’s Dear World. The young Rubino handles her role with such vigor and ease, its hard to believe she took over the part just days before opening. Rubino is excellent in the song “And I Was Beautiful”, which reveals that the Countess has created her own dream world by design.” -Akron Beacon Journal
“The heroine of this tale is Liz Rubino, who learned the role in 2 days, went on in previews and by sunday had it down to a beautiful, dizzy science.” -The Plain Dealer
“Liz Rubino is an enchanting Countess. She has a commanding stage presence and a lofty Mary Poppins-esque manner that allows the fantasy world she inhabits to appear normal and inviting.” -The Solon Times
“Liz Rubino took over the role of the Countess just 73 hours before opening. Witout missing a line of dialogue or a note of music in the demanding role, her performance is nothing less than heroic.” –Cleveland Jewish News
“Director Paul Gurgol capably found a leading lady with a great set of pipes who successfully embodies this character.” -The Sun Press
“Liz Rubino sings her role with professional grace” -Scene Magazine
BAT BOY
“Liz Rubino is exceptional as Meredith Parker. Her singing voice and delivery is magnificent, and her actions keep us guessing from beginning to end.” The Tribune Chronicle
HAMLET
“Elizabeth Rubino is superlative as Queen Gertrude, soft and regal, but clear of voice.”-The Vindicator
WILD PARTY
“Rubino pleases the crowd with her funny, Julie Andrews-to-grizzly-bear-and-back tune, “An Old Fashioned Love Story”. -The Sun Press
“There are a couple of show-stopping numbers, such as when the wonderful Elizabeth Rubino, as the sweet talking lesbian Madelaine True, sing “An Old Fashioned Love Story” (“See that girl on the bed? How she wants me.”) Miss Rubino is a marvel.” -Chagrin Valley Times
“One standout song is “An Old Fashioned Love Story”, sung by Elizabeth Rubino.” SCENE Magazine
“Elizabeth Rubino provides one of the evening’s funniest moments as “Madelaine True””. Cleveland Jewish News
“Kalliope has here acquired some of the best bargains seen in this city for years. These particularly include Melody Moore, as a Jean Harlowe-wigged defiant kewpie doll; the paradoxically pudgy yet sexually neurotic host of Tommy Foster; Elizabeth Rubino’s predatory lesbian; and, as a rival femme fatale, Jodi Brinkman’s coked-up prostitute. It’d be hard to imagine a better company to bring this work to decadent life, better choreography than Medcalf’s, or any better setting, lighting, and costuming to ornament the occasion.”
SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM
…Elizabeth Rubino adds grace and power to any production…she really got a chance to show versatility and her comedic prowess with “I Never Do Anything Twice”. The audience was hers from beginning to end. -The Vindicator
Rubino has a powerhouse of a voice and an equally commanding stage presence. On “Send in the Clowns” her voice was all she needed to hold the audience’s rapt attention. As Rubino sang “You Gotta Get a Gimmick,” I was thinking Rubino would make a great Mama Rose, even if she is too young for the part. – Tribune Chronicle
ANYTHING GOES
The main character is Reno Sweeney, played by Liz Rubino. From the moment she opened her mouth to sing the first song “I Get a Kick Out of You”, she had the audience in the palm of her hand. -The Vindicator
“I Get a Kick Out of You” and “You’re the Top” are just two of many occasions which Liz Rubino, in the lead female role of Reno Sweeney, shines brightly. The girl’s got a great set of chops. – The Tribune Chronicle
THE LARAMIE PROJECT
“Several actors did their jobs exceptionally well. Liz Rubino moved effortlessly from portraying a lesbian to a friend of Matthew’s, a Muslim woman who grew up in Laramie and a local reporter, among others.” –The Vindicator
FIORELLO
“Elizabeth Rubino is Thea, the Italian beauty and strike leader at a shirtwaist factory who catches Firoello’s eye. Rubino makes the audience’s hearts ache when singing “When Did I Fall In Love”…-The Vindicator
MAN OF LA MANCHA
“Supporting him in a virtuoso performance and equally brilliant was Liz Rubino as Aldonza, whom Don Quixote saw as the lovely Dulcinea.” -The Vindicator
GREASE
“Grease sizzles with high energy performances. Elizabeth M. Rubino gives a touching performance as Rizzo, the aggressive gang follower who realizes she may be pregnant.” -Columbus Alive