‘i’m not actually a high school teacher in real life,” Matthew Morrison announced early in his cabaret show Sunday night. “I just play one on TV.”
It seemed a fairly obvious point, since most high school teachers don’t swing like Frank Sinatra, dance like Gene Kelly or have women shouting “Take it off!” when they hint at removing their shirts before launching into a song from “South Pacific.”
And no, Morrison didn’t actually doff his shirt — “At Lincoln Center it’s art, at Studio 54 it’s disco,” he joked — but the “Glee” star pretty much did everything else he could to thrill the crowd. Wearing a sharp suit and rakish fedora, he exuded a winning joyfulness during his set of Broadway and pop standards, many taken from his new CD “Where It All Began.”
Accompanied by a first-rate band that included Brad Ellis, the piano player on “Glee,” the 34-year-old gave old songs like “Singin’ in the Rain” and “It’s Alright With Me” new and sinuous dance moves that were only constrained by the tiny stage.
His material was familiar — maybe too much so for cabaret regulars — but he enlivened much of it with fresh tempos and a supple tenor. “Luck Be a Lady” featured a fresh new funkiness, “On the Street Where You Live” was transformed into a swinging jazz number and “As Long as She Needs Me” (a gender-revised take on the “Oliver!” staple) was delivered with an aching tenderness. Even a medley from the overused “West Side Story” sparkled, thanks to his playful riffs accompanied solely by Valerie Franco pounding away on bongos.
Morrison is so effortlessly charming that his mistakes became show highlights. He repeatedly flubbed the lyrics to “Hey There,” joking that “We’ll fix that one in post,” before some in the audience helpfully shouted out the correct words. Even then he fumbled, finally resorting to scatting. Later, hitting a painfully wrong note in “Send in the Clowns,” he just laughed and started over as the audience cheered.
“Glee” fans were also delighted Sunday to find Sue Sylvester in the audience — that is, Jane Lynch, who’s playing Miss Hannigan in Broadway’s “Annie.”
Beckoning her to the foot of the stage, Morrison handed her a small card.
“I know you’re working with those damn kids eight times a week,” he said. “I bought you a massage.”