Broadway, Aussie Style

It was a veritable variety show at the Rose Theater at Jazz at Lincoln Center last night, as some of the biggest acts from Australia's music scene took to the stage to strut their stuff. (Never mind the fact that most of their names mean absolutely nothing here.) The performers were vastly talented and put on a two-plus hour show that had the many Aussies in the audience going wild and the rest of us feeling very entertained, if befuddled during the periodic inside jokes. Americans lending a hand included tap dancer Savion Glover as well as John Travolta, who is the global goodwill ambassador for Quantas Airways. (see "Travolta Remembers Heath Ledger," ). Particularly impressive were: the cello performance of brothers Pei-Jee and Pei-San Ng; the hand-shadow creations of Raymond Crowe, a man who claims to be his country's only "unusualist"; the booming tribute to Paul Robeson by bass baritone Daniel Sumegi; and the Judy Garland homage by actress and singer Caroline O'Connor. If you thought that Australia's musical talent started and ended with Olivia Newton-John, last night certainly proved otherwise. %%showphotos [setid=72157603784004381]%%