Perhaps you have heard of certified Roastmaster, Jeff Ross. Perhaps you have even seen some of the raunchy jokes he made during his tenure on Comedy Central’s roasts. Maybe some bits of his story are common knowledge. Whatever one’s meter of familiarity may be where Ross is concerned, nothing can prepare viewers for the depths of emotional vulnerability he nakedly displays in riveting one-man show, Take a Banana for the Ride. Though the tone leans a bit too serious and not all of the storytelling is seamless, Ross still manages to impress by sharing incredibly raw stories with his captive audience. His self-deprecating humor manages to soften some of the harsher turns of the show. Despite an uneven balance of tragic sadness and laugh-out-loud comedy, Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride exposes bare an unsung performer’s life story without falling prey to vanity or nonsensical embellishments.
Going into this 8-week-only Broadway engagement, my expectations were admittedly rather low. Would it simply be a series of roast-like audience interactions, lightly peppered with personal touches? Would we go on a journey through Jeff’s illustrious career, or perhaps he would lean into silliness instead? Some of my reservations were immediately quieted upon entering the refreshed, century-old Nederlander Theatre, one which previously housed Idina Menzel’s short-lived meditation on grief through an ancient tree, titled Redwood. Had I been informed that more tears would be shed during Take a Banana for the Ride than with Redwood, I would not have believed it. The set laid out before theatergoers includes several large screens taking the form of portraits, with a couch, a piano, and a table with a bundle of bananas sitting on them in wait. A giant banana flashes across the screens leading up to curtain call, even telling us when to silence our phones.
At first, clips of the roasts Jeff is so acclaimed for pop out, dissolved into quick images transposed onto the portrait frames. From here, assuming we will simply check off down the stories of his veritable greatest hits seemed like a safe bet. Instead, Jeff pivots into his humble upbringing. Tying everything together are the bonds of his Jewish family. Sure, he does mentions his mom’s huge tits and his dad’s cocaine addiction not too deep in the run. Both of these factors are key in the family’s focus on humor in the face of… well, just about anything. Both parental figures were clearly so loving, and hugely influential to the type of person Jeff would eventually become. Another big influence was his pop, who eventually needed nearly round the clock care as Jeff followed his stand up comedy passions during his free time.
Rather than doing a deep dive into his professional career, Jeff Ross makes the bold choice to dissect his personal life instead. This leads into personal stories, love letters, emotional breakdowns, and more, all punctuated by vintage home videos and photographs. The choice feels destined to be a divisive one. Those who wants to hear insider tales about celebrities or backstage antics will have to settle for poignant tales of connection to his close friends Bob Saget, Gilbert Gottfried, and Norm MacDonald. The show most definitely could have used just a dash more of professional trajectory. There are a couple long-winded sections that feel they are missing a payoff, but perhaps just sharing the story was catharsis enough. Being on a Broadway stage with this type of material in general feels like a major win.
Take a Banana for the Ride certainly has no shortage of deeply moving moments. More than once, audience members around me could be heard loudly sniffling and, in some cases, even loudly sobbing. There’s a poignancy in Jeff’s simple storytelling. It feels like he is inviting us into a secret room, sharing tidbits we haven’t earned access to hearing. Where his dogs are concerned, they receive a lengthy, tearjerking segment that left not a dry eye in the auditorium for any animal lovers. The depths of sadness mined here might not be what Broadway crowds will want. Calling any of it feel-good entertainment doesn’t seem right—life-affirming and emotionally captivating seem more apt. The piano accompaniment adds yet another layer of poignant beauty.
Low expectations or not, Jeff Ross evolved far beyond his title of Roastmaster during the hour-and-thirty-minute run of his Broadway show. The visual angle of its staging keeps the show feeling fresh, adding an additional element to Ross’s layered recounting. Lest anyone think they will get away without being roasted—or sans a defining explanation of the unusual title—think again. Both elements play into the finale in a major way. Walking away with a newfound respect for Ross, Take a Banana for the Ride takes audiences on a wildly unpredictable ride of their own through a reflective lens of Ross’s harrowing journey.
Jeff Ross: Take a Banana for the Ride hops onto stages of Broadway’s Nederlander Theatre for a strictly limited eight-week engagement, starting August 18th.