Review Roundup: ONCE UPON A MATTRESS, Starring Jackie Hoffman, Opens Off-Broadway

Transport Group presents ONCE UPON A MATTRESS, starring Jackie Hoffman (On the Town, Difficult People, Hairspray) as Princess Winnifred and John "Lypsinka"Epperson (Lypsinka's The Boxed Set, The Passion of the Crawford) as Queen Aggravain. The production opened last night, December 13.

The production, which is directed by five-time Drama Desk Award nominee Jack Cummings III, also features Jessica Fontana (Cinderella) as Lady Larken, David Greenspan (The Patsy) as The King,Hunter Ryan Herdlicka (A Little Night Music) as The Minstrel, Cory Lingner (On the Town) as The Jester, Zak Resnick (Piece of My Heart) as Sir Harry, Jay Rogers (Howard Crabtree's When Pigs Fly) as The Wizard, and Jason SweetTooth Williams (Things to Ruin) as Prince Dauntless, with Vivienne Cleary, Richard Costa, Michael De Souza, Tim Dolan, Jack Donahue, Amy Griffin, Sarah Killough, Kristen Michelle, Ali Reed, and Doug Shapiro.

During a kingdom-wide search to find a princess fit for the hapless Prince Dauntless, in swims the less-than-regal Princess Winnifred the Woebegone (Hoffman). Unrefined and undeniably charming, Winnifred is like no princess Dauntless has ever seen and his heart is captured. The truly terrible Queen Aggravain (Epperson) goes on a mission to come between her son and his soulmate in this retelling of the classic story of "The Princess and the Pea." This is a Happily-Ever-After like no other!

Let's see what the critics had to say...

Michael Dale, BroadwayWorld: There's an unfamiliar sound coming out of Jackie Hoffman's voice as she launches into her first number in Transport Group's comic dynamo of a revival of ONCE UPON A MATTRESS. Believe it or not, it sounds like sincerity. Oh, there's no shortage of big laughs when one of Broadway's funniest supporting clowns gets the full leading lady treatment in director Jack Cummings III's deliciously raucous production...Hoffman does her usual job of nailing scripted gags (and adding a few of her own) with a blunt delivery that can exhume dark humor from rainbow unicorns, but there's also just enough warmth and pathos to have you cheering for Winnifred the character, not just Hoffman the laugh machine.

Ben Brantley, The New York Times: ...while she is several decades older than the young Carol Burnett was when she originated Winnifred on Broadway 50-some years ago, the diminutive Ms. Hoffman proves to be every inch - and decibel - the ingénue she needs to be...Winnifred offers Ms. Hoffman her first chance to carry a show that isn't a solo comedy act, and you might have been forgiven for worrying that as a leading lady she might be too much of a muchness...This brassily self-effacing performance is one of two good reasons to catch Jack Cummings III's respectful reincarnation of "Mattress"...The other reason: Winnifred's would-be nemesis, the scheming Queen Aggravain, is embodied as an haute-couture villainess by the incomparable Lypsinka, the red-bewigged alter-ego of John Epperson.

Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter: Starring 55-year-old Jackie Hoffman as a not-so-young Princess Winnifred...and a cross-dressing John "Lypsinka" Epperson as Queen Aggravain, this is a decidedly edgier and campier Once Upon a Mattress than usual...There's a definite "Let's put on a show" quality to this modest production...there's a full, albeit overamplified, orchestra of 13 musicians, and the performers display an undeniably infectious enthusiasm...Hoffman...is a deliciously daffy Winnifred. She uses her expert comic timing and nasal vocal delivery to make her character's desperation hilariously palpable, while throwing in a few choice jokes obviously of her own creation. Epperson...is a hoot, capable of bringing down the house with a single malevolent, Joan Crawford-style glare.

David Cote, Time Out NY: Now Transport Group presents a sweet and cheeky revival starring a diva equal parts frill and brass: the indefatigable Jackie Hoffman. True, Hoffman might have more brass than a military marching band, but she's got a cute-and-cuddly side, too. The chief pleasure of this small-budget but zestfully acted production is to see a ham like Hoffman wax girlish, as well as deliver the slapstick-vocal and physical-the role requires...She takes her place in a distinguished line of comedians-Carol Burnett, Imogen Coco and Tracy Ullman-who have put their fiercely adorable stamp on the role...If you're priced out of Broadway's biggest attractions and welcome a night of old-fashioned fun served up with style, Mattress has plenty of bounce.

Joe Dziemianowicz, New York Daily News: The freewheeling new "Once Upon a Mattress" comes with a concept: Belt loudly and carry a big shtick. The plan works for this musical riff on "The Princess and the Pea"...Jackie Hoffman...a seasoned comic second banana, leaps into the top spot. She brings hilarity, mucho mugging and some pretty good vocal chops to the role of Winnifred...Hoffman peppers the part with signature ad-libbed one-liners...the great gender-bending John "Lypsinka" Epperson, who infuses the matriarch with jolts of Joan Crawford and Gloria Swanson and a self-conscious British accent...At nearly 2 1/2 hours, it takes too long to get to the happily ever after. But when it comes, Hoffman is there for another zinger.

Matt Windman, AM New York: But now comes an offbeat, joyful, absolutely triumphant Off-Broadway production...led by comic Jackie Hoffman as Winnifred and drag performer John "Lypsinka" Epperson as Aggravain. Directed by Jack Cummings III on behalf of the Transport Group, it combines an affection for old-fashioned musical comedy with a downtown vibe and pumped-up hormonal spirit. Feeling scrappy but actually quite elaborate, it features a full-size orchestra, big vocals and jaunty dance choreography...Hoffman...is looney, sincere and truly hilarious, while Epperson relies on diva-like grandeur in his expert use of camp.

David Finkle, The Huffington Post: Bah humbug! to anyone who goes to the Transport Group Theatre Company's Once Upon a Mattress, at the Abrons Arts Center, and doesn't have a thoroughly entertaining time...Right now, we have Jackie Hoffman, who with a belt as strong as the north wind, is making the princess of the swamps her own...Furthermore, the cast is chockablock with first-rate singer-dancers. Perhaps the best-known song from the every-song-a-charmer score is Winifred's "Shy." Hoffman wrings and zings all the hilarity contained in it -- and Rink's accompanying choreography is nothing less than inspired. It's no surprise that Hoffman...is victorious as the central character.

Elizabeth Zimmer, The Village Voice: Lypsinka received the blessing of composer Mary Rodgers to play the glamorous monarch who tortures Hoffman, and the Transport Group's production is delightful, timely, and utterly winning. (Also very loud.)...Mattress itself is lumpy and overlong...But under Jack Cummings's sly direction, it's smartly designed and gorgeously dressed (by Sandra Goldmark and Kathryn Rohe, respectively); the entire cast excels, as does Matt Castle's twelve-piece pit orchestra...Hoffman, the dripping swamp thing from over the mountains, nonchalantly informs the bewildered, desperate courtiers. She swam the moat! She wins the prince! It's her world.

Check back for updates!

Photo Credit: Carol Rosegg

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