What I liked
Colorful setting and costumes, establishing the Camp Classic milieu with minimal effort. No Holds Barred performance by fearless Elise Dewsberry, who has the voice for Offenbach and the unshakable self-confidence of Ethel Merman—-and uses both to spectacular effect!
What I didn't like
An overbearing, uningratiating opening, which cries out for a down-the-aisle back-of-the-house entrance (ala GYPSY), SOME cutting of the unnecessary “song” score, and SOME Restraint (not a word that seems to have crossed anyone’s mind).
My overall impression
Let’s be honest: Very rarely can you truly say of a Fringe show “I’ve never seen ANYTHING like it!”—-but THIS show is IT (which means, of course, that it’s Not for Everybody)! You might say it’s “Baby Jane Hudson Tackles Cinderella”; if you didn’t, I would. Conceived as a Camp Classic, it gets off to an uningratiating start, with Too Much Classical Music (Offenbach, yet) and Utterly Unrestrained Acting, artificially padding the Real Story—-which clocks in at least 10 minutes too long! But it’s a true tour de force (emphasis: force) for fearless ELISE DEWSBERRY, barefoot, classically-trained and delightfully garbed in A+ low couture!
