BWW Reviews: Lorinda Lisitza & Ted Stafford's Reprise of Award-Winning 'Ted & Lo Show' is Darker, Just As Delicious, and Doesn't Hurt a Bit

A successful duo act is like a good marriage. When it really works there's a certain stage chemistry between two performers that's so obvious yet so hard to define. Magically, voices musically blend as one. Stage personas complement each other yet remain individual. There's a charming give and take, a generous sharing the spotlight, and an obvious mutual respect, sometimes bordering on love. Lorinda Lisitza and Ted Stafford have a very good on-stage marriage.

Offering up the second delicious serving of their 2013 MAC Award-winning Ted & Lo Show, Lisitza and Stafford took the stage at Don't Tell Mama on Sunday, January 11 to give us their uniquely guided tour on the subject of evil and the human psyche, aptly named This May Hurt A Bit. Beginning with the Carole King song "Pierre" (adapted from the Maurice Sendak's classic children's story of Pierre: A Cautionary Tale), Ted and Lo catch us a bit off-guard with this quirky story of a nasty little boy who's "I Don't Care" mantra gets him into a whole lot of trouble--mainly, he gets eaten by a lion only to be resurrected by loving parents. The moral to this story song? Perhaps love does conquer evil, or at the very least--indifference.

The musicianship of these two performers is remarkable. As always, Lisitza displays her powerful voice, featuring great clarity, emotional heft, and vocal dexterity during "I'm Your Baby Tonight" (L.A. Reid/Babyface). Using every note in her impressive range (at times even wailing), we feel her pain and, believe me, it more than hurts a bit. The duo's harmonies naturally blend together and at times are so tight they sound like one voice. Their on-stage chemistry stems from truly listening to each other; their banter is smart and pithy one moment, silly and random the next, like a contemporary Smothers Brothers. Stafford's guitar playing speaks to your soul. His virtuosity shines on the instrumental solos, especially in the duo's solid original material such as "Cold-Blooded," and the comical "Reassure Me." An added bonus is Lisitza's down and dirty harmonica playing as she selects her one of four instruments with the precision of a heart surgeon.

Theatrical moments that seem like improv stay with you long after the performance. An outstanding example is Lisitza conjuring the tortured soul of Whitney Houston in "Bathtub at the Beverly Hills Hotel" (Michael R. Jackson). Her interpretation is so striking, so rivetingly painful that she creates a surreal moment, making her audience feel darkly intrusive yet utterly helpless. Easing the anguish a bit, the duo follows up with "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (B. Taupin/Elton John), leaving their audience (on this day dominated by fellow performers) to contemplate the true price of celebrity and fame. Another standout is the show's title song "This May Hurt A Bit," an original tune in which Lisitza relates the cautionary tale of a beautiful woman who gleefully lures men to their demise. "Kinda like a siren," quips Stafford. "Exactly," answers Lisitza, displaying the grin of a hungry tigress.

Let's just say this duo is not afraid to tackle material that's way beyond dark. Particularly fascinating is the horrific tale of "John Wayne Gacy, Jr." (by Sufjan Stevens), a disturbing little ditty about the Illinois "killer clown" serial slaughterer of the 1970s who chloroformed his pretty young men, then molested them, then murdered them, then buried them in his basement floor boards. ("And in my best behavior, I am really just like him . . . Look beneath the floor boards for the secrets I have hid.") On lights and sound, Jason Ellis adds to this stark theatrical moment with outstanding choices. As the tale darkens to its disturbing conclusion so do the lights.

Now in total darkness, Ted and Lo proclaim in a hushed whisper, "This is a very creepy song, man." Grateful for comic relief, the audience agrees with spontaneous laughter. Staying true to their comic form, Ted and Lo vibrantly burst into the cheerful Beatles classic, "When I'm Sixty-Four" (John Lennon/Paul McCartney), leaving us to ponder our own base impulses, and to conclude that we all just might be more alike than we care to admit.

This May Hurt a Bit (The Ted & Lo Show), starring Lorina Lisitza and Ted Stafford, returns to Don't Tell Mama, 343 West 46th Street, Friday, February the 13th at 7:00 pm, and Thursday, March 12th at 7:00 pm. For reservations call the club after 4 pm at (212) 757-0788 or go to www.donttellmamanyc.com for more details.

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