May 2, 2024 By Stephanie Kalina-Metzger 4 min read

“Life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer you get to the end, the faster it goes,” says comedian Steve Solomon, quoting his Jewish grandmother in his one-man play titled, “My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m in Therapy.”

The author, comedian and Broadway star will treat audiences to additional bon mots uttered by his family when he takes the stage at The Palace Theatre in Greensburg on Sunday, May 19 at 3 p.m.

The Road Less Traveled

The Brooklyn-born comedian learned early that he had a talent for mimicry, picking up accents and dialects that he heard on the streets of his Sheepshead Bay neighborhood. When he learned that he had an easy audience among his peers, he went on to attain the title of “class clown.” As he grew older, he continued to amuse. In his role as a physics teacher and assistant superintendent, he had the opportunity to entertain a new generation of students.

Eventually Solomon struck out on his own as a comedian.

“My brain started turning to Jell-o and I couldn’t take the politics,” he said, explaining why he left the education field. Of course this did not sit well with his Italian mother, who viewed the road less traveled as a one fraught with peril.

“Don’t do it, they’ll just laugh at you,” she said.

It turned out that she was prescient without realizing it and Solomon’s play went on to become one of the longest-running one-man Broadway shows in history. The show played for two sold-out years in New York City and led Solomon to tour both nationally (in more than 100 cities) and internationally.

In his routine, he portrays his father as the put-upon spouse of an Italian matriarch.

“It eventually got to the point that my father started looking at his burial plot as a vacation getaway,” he quips, adding that his father dispensed such worldly advice as to “never take a sleeping pill and a laxative at the same time.”

Solomon said that he likes giving people the opportunity to escape for 90 minutes and it’s not just his family that gets skewered.

“People relate to my shows because I talk about all kinds of people,” said Solomon, adding that his Brooklyn upbringing informs his no-holds-barred attitude. “If I want to call somebody a jerk, I call them a jerk,” he said.

The popularity of “My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m in Therapy,” has led to three spinoffs: “My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m Still in Therapy,” and “My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m Home for the

Holidays” and his latest, “Cannoli, Latkes & Guilt…the Therapy Continues.”

Paul Hodgins of Variety magazine said that Solomon is at his best when he mines the most mundane aspects of his life. “His failed attempts to add a little levity to a tedious educators’ retreat provides some of the evening’s freshest humor,” said Hodgins.

Solomon said that he writes his comedy to appeal to a wide audience.

“People can relate to many of my characters, like my sister, the smoker and others,” he said.

Promoter Gary Latshaw said that Solomon is a repeat at the theatre because the audience always seems to have a good time.

“He’s a man of 1,000 voices who brings these characters to life,” he said, adding that they brought Solomon back due to the need for escapism through humor. “Everybody’s on edge and one thing we all need to do right now is laugh,” he said.

Solomon said that he has the most fun when he can make people happy.

“I played the Grant Opera House in Galveston last month and when I came out to take a bow, I got choked up. It meant that the audience appreciated all my work, which is a nice thing. I do it for joy at my age,” he said.

To purchase tickets, call the Theatre Box Office at 724-836-8000, or visit the Palace Theatre website at www.thepalacetheatre.org.