Review: LYNDA RODOLITZ MAKES ART Indeed at Don't Tell Mama

They say laughter is the best medicine, and Lynda Rodolitz doses you up good in her latest show “Lynda Rodolitz Makes Art.” The former stand-up comic-cum-cabaret performer’s impeccable comic timing and delivery was on display at Don’t Tell Mama on Tuesday night for what was the third out of four performances of the show, masterfully directed by Lennie Watts.

From the moment Rodolitz entered the room in her fancy garb and was assisted in a costume change on stage by wonderful back-up vocalist Wendy Russell, the room was hers! The stellar band, featuring the excellent Steven Ray Watkins as Musical Director, the multiple-MAC Award winning Matt Scharfglass on bass, and the “heartbeat” Don Kelly on percussion, came in rocking, and the audience cheered enthusiastically, as the disco ball kicked in and Rodolitz pulled out a pink recorder. It was as if, in these first moments (and, indeed, for the duration of the show) that the world’s collective worries vanished!

Rodolitz is a comical and captivating storyteller who shares anecdotes of her life (as she says, “I’m old and proud of it!”) and performs songs like Murray Grand’s “Too Old to Die Young” and Dolly Parton’s “Two Doors Down” with gusto! She embodies her re-enactments of life events with fervor, and she knows how to elicit pathos from the audience while simultaneously making one belly laugh so hard they are brought to tears (this reviewer, for one)!

Other highlights included a contemplative rendition of Alan Menken and Jack Feldman’s “Santa Fe” from the musical Newsies and an entertaining dance flavored mash-up that had a dash of Shakira and a sprinkling of Gershwin! But perhaps some of this reviewer’s most favorite moments are those where the performer pares back the layers of “razzle dazzle” and reveals their vulnerability. With such lyrics as, “layer by layer by layer been melted a-way” Rodolitz’s performance of Dreskin/Crane/Kaufman’s “Imagine My Surprise” did just that: an audible “wow” from the audience could be heard as the lights came down at the end of song.

In addition to the afore-mentioned laughs and songs, there are several other clever mash-ups in this show, including a powerful “I Am Woman” mix which garnered an extra-long applause for Rodolitz, and you have just one more chance to experience them for yourself! This Sunday, November 19th at 3 pm, get thee to Don’t Tell Mama, where one can guarantee you will forget your worries with this entertaining piece of art.

BOOK HERE to see Lynda Rodolitz Makes Art this weekend!

Photo Credit: BWW-Staff

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