Angelique Dunlap and Ted Burke (Photo by Kerr Lordygan)
Reviewed by Lovell Estell III
JFed Players at the Ahiah Center
Through May 10
Angelique Dunlap, Jane Ryan Ho, Michael DiRosa, Kate Landro, Ted Burke, Laura Manasewich (Photo by Kerr Lordygan)
RECOMMENDED
The playwriting duo of Dietz Osborne and Nate Eppler are noted for their raucous tales about folk who live south of the Mason-Dixon line (Other plays are Filthy Rich and Southern Fried Nuptials). Sometimes it is challenging to write with accuracy and clarity about people from the South — their mannerisms, customs, and idiosyncrasies — without leaning on hackneyed stereotypes or crude, pop-culture ideas or images.
This is not the case here. Drawing on their Southern roots, Osborne and Eppler have scripted characters who are colorful, convincing, and easily relatable.
Dewey Frye is a loved and respected figure in his small Mississippi town. But during one of his trademark inspirational speeches in front of a gathering of Rotarians, “he got the call” (he dropped dead). Now his grieving widow Dorothy (Lori McKenna) must prepare for a funeral, and her home (a simple, effective design by Brian Gordon) is humming with the activity and the chatter of family and friends.
Benny Charles (Michael DiRosa) Martha Ann( Kate Landro) and Fairy June (Jane Ryan Ho) are present to offer condolences and support. added to the mix is the obnoxious, gossipy Ozella Meeks (a hilarious Ted Burke in drag), who storms in. None of the ladies can’t stomach her, not even after a bellyful of delicious food.
Samantha Jo (Laura Manasewich) is Frye’s youngest daughter. She is a bossy sort and is never reluctant to voice her opinion. Dewey Jr., aka dewdrop (Kevin DeLoughry), is a lovable goof who dons a chef’s cap to operate a blender, dreams of winning the lottery, and who, as his sister observes, “is an egg short of a full carton.” Arriving from out of town is Samantha Joe’s loose panty sister Harlene (Angelique Dunlap) with her erstwhile fling , lawyer Attie Van Leer (Andy Stetkevich) in tow.
And lastly there’s Dewey’s brother Dub (Mark Hilliard), unloved and mistrusted by everyone, who arrives not just for his brother’s funeral, but to inform Dorothy that he has the legal right to the land her house is built on, a contention which kicks the proverbial hornet’s nest.
This bunch provides enough quips, homey witticisms and Southern humor to make the production enjoyable and fun, especially in Act II where it all wraps up with a finale that likely has the dear, departed Dewey kicking up his heels in heaven.
Performances under the direction of Kerr Lordygan are spirited and consistently good. Rounding out the cast is Robert Polachek as Samantha’s henpecked spouse, Beecham.
Ahiah Center, 150 N. El Molino Ave., Pasadena; Thursday, May 7 at 7:30 pm; Saturday, May 9 at 8 pm; Sunday, May 10, 3:30 and 6:30 pm; through May 10. Running time two hours with intermission. http://www.jewishsgpv.org/calendar/jfed-players-present-southern-fried-funeral
