From Sammy Davis Jr. to Fred Astaire, Rick Faugno has it coverered

By John Katsilometes

Saturday, March 20, 2010 | 3:58 p.m.

Rick Faugno is 30 years old, so naturally he grew up as a big fan of ... Sammy Davis Jr.

Fred Astaire, too. Frank Sinatra, Gene Kelly. The usual suspects. The anti-"boy band" crew.

Having been raised with parents who were "a bit older, shall we say," Faugno is a throwback artist who performs the roles of Frankie Valli (toggling with Travis Cloer) in the outstanding production "Jersey Boys" at Palazzo. But, similar to Cloer and such former "Jersey Boys" cast members such as the since-departed Erik Bergen, Faugno is not satisfied with residing only on the Jersey shore.

"I've really become interested in performing not as a character, as myself," says Faugno, a genuine song-and-dance man who is bringing his one-man show to South Point at 3 p.m. Sunday. "It's a lot more difficult to fill 80 minutes as yourself than you might think."

Titled, "Songs My Idols Sang (And Danced)," which plays off the title of his new CD (same name, in other words), the show should show the multifaceted Faugno at his best. Those who knew him only as one of the Four Seasons in the Strip stage show were impressed with his song-and-dance performance at Bill Fayne's benefit show at Suncoast earlier this month. If nothing else, Faugno might be the best young tap-dancer in town.

"It comes from my dad, who tap danced since he was a kid," he said during a phone interview last week. "He did vaudeville shows, minstrel shows, and a lot of the kids who I grew up with in the sticks of Massachusetts had been exposed to the things I'd been exposed to.

It made for a bad fit scholastically for Faugno, who attended Catholic school for two and a half years, the period covering ages 10-12. He had a problem there, not necessarily with the studies but because he had a heavy measure of extracurricular distractions.

"I wanted to be on Broadway, and that's the reason I left," he said, evidently unaffected by the uncommon career demands on a 12-year-old kid. "They wouldn't allow me to be on Broadway. Catholic school is very structured, and this was not something they allowed of a student."

The role was as Will Rogers (young Will Rogers, actually) in, "Will Rogers Follies." His other listed theater credits include Broadway appearances in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," "Conversations With My Father," "Wonderful Town," "Fosse," and the national tours of "Jersey Boys," "The Boy Friend," and "Fosse."

Keith Thompson, music director of "Jersey Boys," will join Faugno (pronounced "Fawn-yo," Fonzie-like) on Sunday. Thompson also accompanied Faugno at the Fayne benefit, and Faugno says the "Jersey Boys" producers (BASE Entertainment) are fine with the moonlighting projects of its stars. To a degree, anyway.

"As long as I don't go out in character and sing 'Sherry,' or 'Can't Take My Eyes off of You,' something like that, we're OK," he said. "They actually encourage us to do our own things as long as they don't interfere with the show. It's a win-win, it gives the show added exposure, which they like."

Songs Faugno has plucked for Sunday's show (and he's scheduled back at South Point on April 25, also at 3 p.m.), include "Embraceable You," "Fly Me To The Moon," "Steppin' Out With My Baby," "Puttin' On The Ritz," "Cheek To Cheek," "Our Love Is Here To Stay," and "Mr. Bojangles."

For his one-man showcase, Faugno needed to become accustomed to being himself onstage. Banter with the audience is an unappreciated talent, as important as being able to sing and tap with artistic precision. He says he was never driven to be a soloist.

"Standing there and talking as yourself, getting comfortable with an audience, is crucial," he said. "What happens between numbers can make or break a show, no question about it."

The artist Faugno particularly admires and respects is a man whose art transcended genres and continues to influence performers.

"Sammy Davis Jr., to me was so naturally gifted at everything, he has to be considered one of the greatest all-around performers, ever," Faugno said. "He could play and sing the hell out of a song, dance, tell jokes, do impressions. That level of talent is just mind-blowing. Nobody comes close, even today."