Review: 54 Below Crowd Has Amazing NEW YEAR'S EVE WITH JENN COLELLA

Remember when Dick Clark used to do a December 31st party on TV called New Year’s Rockin’ Eve?  (Actually, I think they still do it, only with a new host.)  Well, for the transition from 2024 into 2025, there was a New Year’s Rockin’ Eve and it wasn’t on television, it was at 54 Below, and the woman who brought the rock and the roll was the grooviest chick in town, Broadway’s biggest badass, that Bad Mama Jama Jenn Colella.  And when I say Rockin’ Eve, I really do mean it because NEW YEAR’S EVE WITH Jenn Colella was a rock show.  Oh, there was a ballad, a really pretty one, too, dedicated to her Little ‘Un, who is about to turn one, and there was one show tune (only) - the rapidly becoming iconic up-tempo “I Could  Have Danced All Night” that the Tony Award nominee performed on PBS (and, if I’m being honest, it needs a proper recording for everyone to buy on digital download).  But other than these two particular musical offerings, December 31st saw a packed 54 Below house with arms in the air and bodies gyrating as everyone chair danced to everything from disco classics like “It’s Raining Men” to reggae (a stunningly re-arranged “I Can See Clearly Now”) to funk, by way of an appropriate “Play That Funky Music,” and some bona fide rock and roll, the AC/DC must, “You Shook Me All Night Long” - this was a delectably eclectic collection of music that cross-pollinated genres, sounds, and celebration.  And, with Jenn Colella at the helm, this night was a true blue celebration.

When not actively engaged in the art of singing, La Colella chatted with her audience and played with her fellow musicians, all of whom she, clearly, adores.  It is the Colella intention to connect with other humans and to spread joy.  To that end, The Purveyor of Positivity kept a running theme throughout the night: manifestations.  There was little talk of New Year’s Resolutions, but lots to say about manifesting the good things in the new year.  So Jenn invited the members of the audience to participate in some group positive energy by calling out that which they were hoping to manifest in the new year - every few songs, she would urge the audience to call out something they wanted to “speak into existence.”   What we heard was the likes of “Get into college!” and “Getting married!” and “I wanna make great f—king theater!” and “Kindness and human decency!” and “...that my brother-in-law gets to stay in this country!” and “... book a professional theater role!” and “My new vagina!” from fellow SUFF, Ada Westfall, whose life-affirming surgery is imminent.   With all this future manifestation goodness in the air, it was only fair that Jenn Colella talk about some of the things that made the last twelve months so grand and glorious for her, from the much-deserved success of SUFFS ( so good! ) to her work as a teacher at Columbia University, from her new gig on television’s ELSBETH to her new gig as a mother.  She is an artist and she is a teacher, but at the core of all of herself, Jenn Colella is a loving human being who exudes the importance of valuing and nurturing the personal relationships in our lives, be it with students, colleagues, fans, or family, so Morrison (her daughter) was the subject of much heartfelt conversation during the concert, some of which led into a deeply felt performance of “The Mother,” and wife, Mo Mullen, was directly in Colella’s eyesight when it came time to perform the uber-ebullient Stevie Wonder arrangement of  “For Once In My Life“ - truthfully, much of the evening was played directly to Mullen, seated at the back of the room, and the palpable, visible, joyful love between them (but, especially, on Jenn’s face) was enough to warm even the coldest winter night, either in 2024 or 2025. 

For her New Year’s Eve concert, Jenn Colella was greatly supported by an incredible band made up of Carl Carter on Bass, Jessie Linden on Drums, Nate Lueck on Guitar, Kristy Norter on Reeds, and Musical Director/arranger Chris Ranney at the piano.  Colella made a particular point of telling the story of how two Suffs who were meant to be on backup vocals ended up feeling poorly and, so, Rachel Stern and Shaunice Alexander stepped in with mere hours to go to score a major win with their own vocal abilities on the stage.  With an artistic team like this, there is little chance that Jenn Colella could present anything but a stellar evening of entertainment, but the truth is (as anyone who has seen a Jenn Colella show can substantiate), this is the kind of programming that makes all of her concerts so dangnab good.  Between the impeccable artistry and the determination to connect with other people, Jenn Colella is ahead of the curve when it comes to being an entertainer working without the characters provided in the theatrical outings that are her daily bread and butter.  The other component to the success of these concerts (be they 54 Below produced or otherwise) is the honesty and vulnerability.  When a strong empowered woman like Jenn Colella stands on a stage and tells you “that I don’t talk about” her hearing loss, she makes you a part of her life.  She draws you into her energy like a friend confiding in you over tea.  A singer suffering from hearing loss is (as Colella pointed out) something that comes with baggage.   Anyone in the audience wearing hearing aids (raises hand) was completely with Colella when she touched on the downside of wearing hearing aids, which is being able to hear absolutely everything, like cutlery clanging and clothing rustling… but then there is the upside, which is learning new things like reading lips and sign language.  Not only is she not hiding it, she is making it a part of her art, which is why she executed beautiful sign language while performing the Alanis Morissette song “Uninvited.”   Jenn Colella takes all the aspects of her life - work, family, adversity - and applies it to her storytelling, as any prudent artist would, deftly weaving these layers and stories in and around genuinely mind-blowing vocal performances and heartstring-tugging authenticity.  Is it any wonder audiences keep turning out and showing up to see her in concert?   No, it isn’t any wonder, it is a fait accompli.  And it doesn’t have to be a special occasion to go see Jenn Colella in concert because Jenn Colella IS the special occasion, whatever the day, whatever the venue, whatever the year.  All a body has to do is get there and let the specialness wash over you, and then go home, sated and smiling, and happy to have gone to the party.

Find other great shows to see on the 54 Below website HERE.

Visit the Jenn Colella Instagram page HERE.

SUFFS’ Ada Westfall has a gofundme page for her life-affirming surgery HERE.

Photos by Stephen Mosher

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