palminteri starred on broadway in "a bronx tale", the semiautobiographical one-man show he first performed (as "a bronx play") at theatre west in los angeles in 1989. the broadway production, directed by jerry zaks and with music by john gromada, began previews october 4, 2008, at the walter kerr theatre and opened on october 25, running for 18 weeks. palminteri plays 18 roles in "a bronx tale", which depicts a rough childhood on the streets of the bronx. the play ran for two months at playhouse 91 in 1989. robert de niro saw this show there and made his directorial debut with the big-screen version, co-starring with palminteri.