Aisle View: Laughter From the Panhandle
Photo: Joan Marcus
Those roars of laughter you hear on Christopher Street, just now, emanate from Matthew Lopez's unexpectedly sharp comedy The Legend of Georgia McBride, now at the Lortel. Lopez, whose last local offering was the thought-provoking Civil War drama The Whipping Man (from Manhattan Theatre Club, in 2011), is in a decidedly less noble mood here. Georgia McBride is not high literature, no, nor is it especially well-made; but it offers highly delicious low comedy, as satisfying as an icy-cold brew in a redneck bar on Florida's Panhandle.
Georgia McBride takes place, in fact, in a redneck bar in Panama City, along the Gulf of Mexico and not far from the Alabama and Georgia borders. (The title character's name, it turns out, is poached from the latter state.) Casey (Dave Thomas Brown) is a personable but not-very-good Elvis impersonator, struggling to keep himself and pregnant wife Jo (Afton Williamson) out of bankruptcy. With few customers coming in, weathered proprietor Eddie (Wayne Duvall) invites his cousin Tracy (Matt McGrath) to provide an alternate source of entertainment, thus axing Elvis--and Casey.
Tracy -- who arrives in company with Rexy, more formally named Anorexia (Keith Nobbs) -- switches over to a drag policy. When the latter arrives one night way too drunk to perform, Casey is unwillingly pressed into action as a not-very-impressive Piaf. The money is so impressive, though, that the soon-to-be-dad gets into the act and proves to be an expert impersonator under the moniker "Georgia McBride." Trouble arrives seven months later, when the very pregnant Jo turns up at the bar to surprise her husband.
This is all punctuated by the drag scenes, which get better and better (and funnier and funnier) as Casey/Georgia masters the trade. (The musical selections range from the usual suspects to Sondheim; a Sweeney Todd quote gets a large laugh, although that might just be on Christopher Street.) More importantly, this is a very human comedy; Casey is sweet if not-too-bright, Jo is lovely, and the needless-to-say wisecracking Tracy has one of those hearts of gold. Lopez ends his play on a heartwarming, family-friendly note
The performances are all winning. McGrath and Brown shine in the showiest roles, with the others offering equally fine portrayals. Williamson is thoroughly believable as the wife who is blindsided by her husband's occupation; Duvall adds humor as the redneck barkeeper who proves as much of a ham as the others; and Nobbs effectively doubles as anorexic Rexy -- with an especially effective monologue late in the proceedings -- and as Casey's not-very-bright landlord/friend.
The laughs stream along under the direction of Mike Donahue, in what appears to be his first major New York job. Donahue directed the play's premiere production in January 2014 at the Denver Center Theatre Company, with McGrath in the cast. Set designer Donyale Werle, of Peter and the Starcatcher, is also a holdover from Denver. Costume designer Anita Yavich and choreographer Paul McGill get in on the fun in the drag sequences.
A comedy about drag queens might have a somewhat limited audience. The Legend of Georgia McBride, though, is not so much a comedy about drag queens, but a comedy which incorporates characters who happen to be drag queens. Mark this as another winner from MCC Theater. Like past offerings such as Wit, reasons to be pretty, The Other Place and Hand to God, this one seems a likely prospect for extended life.
The Legend of Georgia McBride opened September 9, 2015 and continues through October 4, at the Lucille Lortel
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