The summer months at the movies are filled with car chases, buddy movies, and male superheroes, usually each title followed by a number of some kind that states, “yeah, you’ve seen this before, but we made so much money we had to! do it again!”
You may not be able to make it to New York City, and even if you make it that far, buying a ticket to a show can bring you down the cost of a new pair of sneakers. Shame on you because these three ladies rock their respective “houses” every night with such talent and enthusiasm that everyone should enjoy their performances.
Bette Midler has been at center stage for decades, but unlike her revues where she sings, dances, and tells “Soph” stories, on “I’ll Eat You Last” she’s another outrageous personality. Sue Mengers was a Hollywood agent handling and dealing with the big boys when, frankly, most women in talent agencies were answering phones and taking messages.
As Mengers, Bette lounges on her couch (yes, all the time), smokes, drinks, and smokes other things, while telling audiences stories about her life and her cast of A-list actors.
The hour and a half flew by. Not many actors can mesmerize and amuse alone for that long, and if Bette felt lonely in this one-woman show, you’d never know it. After all, she had the sold house in the palm of her hand.
Uptown at Lincoln Center, Holland Taylor also “works one,” occasionally taking phone calls from the likes of Bill Clinton or a hapless state employee. “Ann” was written by Taylor, who also plays the colorful and witty Governor of Texas, Ann Richards.
Even if you don’t remember seeing Governor Ann’s teasingly stolid white hair when she was interviewed on CNN’s Larry King, Taylor makes sure you don’t miss a beat, incorporating Richard’s sharp tongue and persuasive personality into this Tribute in two acts. .
And then there’s Cicely, Tyson of course. (Is there another?) In the heart of New York City, she invites audiences to travel with her to a small Texas town in Horton Foote’s “A Trip to Bountiful.” Carrie Watts (Cicely) wants to go home once more, living with her adoring but spoiled son (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) and her impatient and controlling wife (Vanessa Williams).
There are a few other people she meets along the way, but there’s no doubt that the stage belongs to Cicely. When she begins to sing a hymn in Act II, she barely warbles the first line to the audience, so caught up in the moment, join in and not in a coy way! The cost of the ticket seems small compared to the dominance she is witnessing.
So here it is for the ladies! Bette, Holland and Cicely. Each one gives their all, each one rises to the occasion and each one creates magic in the theater.