Fringe: That Dorothy Parker: A Medley of Extemporanea

Dorothy Parker's life and work were so fascinating that many attempts have been made to dramatize it, on stage and screen.  Carol Lempert's one-woman show That Dorothy Parker wisely avoids hitting Parker dead-on, presenting her at the Algonquin as she reminisces about her good friend (and fellow Round Table wit) Alexander Woollcott after his death in 1943.  Through some very funny anecdotes and impersonations of all her friends, we get glimpses of Mrs. Parker which eventually add up to a satisfying whole.  Some of the elements are cleverly drawn from Parker's short stories, for example an in-her-cups Dotty wanting to go get some dogs, kittens and horsies, reflecting the protagonist of her "Just a Little One"; an episode drawn from her "Soldiers of the Republic" is also very effective.  From time to time she comes downstage to deliver a stanza or two of her poetry.

Lempert is a fine and versatile actress.  Her Dotty sparkles, full of life and desperate for a good time that never seems to come.  Naturally, the witty epigrams arrive in abundance, but she never seems self-congratulatory- in fact, she's sometimes ashamed to be known so well for "News Item" instead of her more sober works.  Even an Academy Award nomination doesn't make her happy.  Lempert-as-Dorothy also impersonates many of her Round Table raconteurs with practiced aplomb.

Janice Goldberg directs wonderfully- every moment is clear and effective.

The show is not perfect; it has a few false endings, which makes it seem longer than it is (beginning the show as a reminiscence of Woollcott makes any material not having to do with him somewhat suspect- though all of it does connect to him obliquely, it's sometimes hard to follow the connections).  Lempert's script could also trust the audience a bit more, rather than employing the old one-person-show exposition standby of answering the questions of imaginary audience members ("As Edna said… Edna who?  Edna Ferber- the author of Showboat…"); fortunately the script does not resort to this too often.

All in all, it's a very entertaining show, with something for both Dotty tyros and diehard Parker fans to enjoy.

That Dorothy Parker
Artistic New Directions

Part of the 2008 New York International Fringe Festival
VENUE #7: The SoHo Playhouse

Remaining performances:
Sat 16 @ 3:15
Wed 20 @ 3
Sun 24 @ NOON

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