What makes you laugh? For me, it’s often recognizing a familiar situation that ends with a surprise twist.
I wasn’t familiar with the work of comedian Jeff Ross, except that he’s called "The Roastmaster” and he has roasted celebrities, politicians, prisoners and sports icons. In other words, he insults famous people for a living, often in front of a room full of other famous people.

Often his insults are nasty, personal and sexual. So I approached reviewing his one-man show “Jeff Ross: Take A Banana For the Ride” with mixed feelings. At least, at 90 minutes with no intermission, it would be short.

Happily, I found the limited-run show to be a pleasant surprise and I left the Nederlander Theatre with tears in my eyes, both from laughter and from pathos. Ross begins his autobiographical show by talking about his family and his grandparents’ NJ catering hall.

Bald and dressed in a yellow suit, he immediately picks on himself, explaining that he had prostate cancer and had chemotherapy. He notes that baldness, a side effect from the chemo, is okay since he had already lost his hair from alopecia. He’s made it okay to laugh,even at himself. No one is safe from Ross’s wit, especially Ross himself. Many of the sharp comments and even depressing situations are softened by humor and the audience welcomes the chance to laugh.

The backdrop of family photos (scenic design by Beowulf Boritt ) keeps changing as he talks about his childhood, his relatives and Judaism. One of the funniest bits was his song, “DFWTJ” (“Don’t Fuck With the Jews”.) In a song reminiscent of Adam Sandler’s Hanukkah Song,” he sings about all the contributions Jews have made over the years including the discovery of penicillin. He describes his loneliness as a single man through the isolation of COVID and about several of his friends who recently died, including Bob Sagat and Gilbert Godfrey.

For me, one of the most poignant bits was his description of his rescue dog Nana and her death. Somehow he managed to find humor. I’m still not sure how , but again, that’s Ross’ skill. He adopted Nana and Nipsy, another German Shepherd, and ‘imitated’ the German goose step of the dogs living with a Jewish comic.

The title of the show seemed a bit strange, but, in a way, it encapsulates one of the themes of the show. Ross was living with his grandfather who would urge him to take a banana when he left to go to NY to perform in the clubs in case he needed it. Later Ross explains how bananas come in bunches and have firm shells but are soft inside. They support one another, like people in his life have done.

Each show becomes unique when Ross goes into the audience to give the fruit out to those who are having a rough time. During our performance, a lot of hands went up. One woman recently lost her mom. Another had breast cancer. He gave them both a banana and encouraged them to hug one another. Ross is funny yet kind as he interacts with audience members. He makes each encounter funny, sometimes poking fun at them, yet getting them and us to smile. He evinces warmth and empathy.

Maybe that’s the key to the charm of the show. Ross may appear tough and caustic, but it was his warmth and humor that wins the audience over and made me a fan.