BWW Reviews: DIXIE'S TUPPERWARE PARTY Serves Hilarity with Her Fantastic Plastic

Most people who work in marketing and sales know that a great, effective sales pitch requires a bit of pizzazz and theatricality to further entice the consumer. And who better to demonstrate the selling power of showmanship---er, showWOMANship, rather---than an outrageously bawdy drag queen armed with the thickest of accents and an endless arsenal of witty barbs?

That's exactly what you'll encounter in the insanely hilarious DIXIE'S TUPPERWARE PARTY, a one-woman comedy laugh-fest cleverly disguised as the most outlandish Tupperware party you'll ever experience. The Drama Desk-nominated Off-Broadway show---yes, it's a show---continues its just-extended run at Segerstrom Center for the Arts' Samueli Theater in Costa Mesa through January 4, 2015.

Filled to the (vacuum-sealed) brim with naughty one-liners and blush-worthy double entendrés, this isn't the typical, run-of-the-mill Tupperware party most people probably know of or have imagined them to be. Nope, this entertaining Tupperware party is hosted by the flamboyant, ultra-caffeinated Dixie Longate, the big-haired, sweet-and-spicy Southern hick female alter-ego of writer/actor Kris Andersson, who has arrived in the peculiar land of Orange County Housewives to hock her amazing, innovative and virtually indestructible "plastic crap" to an audience of screechy, mostly female patrons.

A lover of stiff drinks and stiff you-know-whats (how cheeky!), Dixie is on hand to extoll the virtues of these wonderful molded forms of shatter-resistant plastic live and in living color. Why look at a catalog or a computer screen when you can see the wonders of these products first hand? And who better to show-and-tell you how awesome they are than someone who's super pumped and super passionate about them?

For Dixie, though, these colorful, helpful pieces of "plastic crap" aren't just a means for her to earn an income to feed her kids something other than ketchup packets, it's an opportunity to realize her full potential as an independent woman in the business world.

But whether or not she actually manages to sell any of this stuff right here and now is beside the point, even though she does spend a great chunk of time giving live demos of her nifty products (audience members can put in their orders by filling out their catalog order forms if they must). Nope, it's actually "all about the party," as she so succinctly bellows from her perch. It's about making the people who've taken the time to sit through her spiel feel great about themselves---something she herself had to learn to do in the midst of a hard-knock life.

But in terms of narrative structure, the "party" is merely an ingenious framing device to rein in what seems like a totally off-the-cuff, wholly improvised stand-up act (though, of course, much of it is obviously pre-planned and scripted; Dixie---an energetic comedy pro---leaves lots of room for spontaneous moments). In between funny demos and sassy back-talk with audience members, Dixie provides amusing monologues, endearing anecdotes, and even (towards the end) moments of heartbreaking catharsis that keep you fully invested. The jokes come so rapidly (and, at times spoken so fast it's deliberately indecipherable) you'll feel like you're laughing just about every single second.

Within 100-plus exhilarating minutes that you'll actually wish didn't end so soon, Dixie takes party-goers through her nutty life story, from her awkward beginnings in her Alabama trailer trying desperately to make ends meet, to her eventual rise as Tupperware's No. 2 Best Salesperson in the U.S.---a distinction that was celebrated one particular year at the company's big Awards Jubilee (the audience, thankfully, is shown video evidence of the big real-life moment during the show).

Though Dixie is still a bit bitter that she didn't get the No.1 spot that year (that title went to a rival who augmented her total sales numbers with internet purchases, something Dixie refuses to take on), she is still ever so grateful that she was able to fulfill her dream of being featured at the Jubilee at all. The achievement of glory and peer praise at a Tupperware Jubilee, we learn early on (and repeated throughout the evening), is directly inspired by Dixie's ultimate heroine, Brownie Wise, the early genius pioneer behind Tupperware parties---who herself rose from obscurity to land a high-ranking V.P. position before being ousted years later by Tupperware creator Earl Tupper himself, despite the millions in sales she helped instigate for the company.

In Brownie Wise, Dixie sees a mentor, a kindred spirit, and a complete hero to emulate: a whip-smart single mom who is also a creative thinker and corporate ball-buster. Wise saw the importance of creating safe and welcoming gatherings to sell seemingly boring products, and it worked to the tune of millions in sales! Dixie, in her own unique way, gives Wise's innovations a funnier, more bawdy twist---and her audience can't seem to get enough.

And, frankly, neither could I. As one of a handful of males in the audience (and reviewing the show to boot), I didn't want to call unnecessary attention to myself or---gulp---be asked to volunteer or talk back with Ms. Longate. But, alas, five minutes in, I was laughing about as boisterously as everyone else around me. Ah... there's nothing like the shared pleasure of laughing out loud. And speaking of shared laughter---the show truly earns comedy gold whenever Dixie interacts with her guests, a unique experience only such a show can bring. Between the amusing ladies seated on stage and the man in the front row (a good sport all night) Dixie picked on humorously throughout, this party---and its eager guests---had a lot of comic material to draw from all evening.

But above everything else, Dixie is, well, a damn good salesperson---and her unique, comically passionate approach to selling her wares is quite an irresistible pitch. In the spirit of full disclosure... for me, personally, this isn't my first time at a Dixie-helmed Tupperware shindig. Several years ago, I actually attended a fundraiser in which Dixie sold Tupperware (for real, not as a theatrical piece). Even back then, I thought, wow what a fun way to do this! Fast forward to 2014 and I see a press release for DIXIE'S TUPPERWARE PARTY at the Geffen Playhouse. Wait a sec, I thought. It's a show? Like, an actual show now?

I'm happy to report that, yes, it is both a theatrically-presented show (an incredibly hilarious one) and still a non-internet venue to buy the latest and greatest Tupperware products (and just in time for the holidays!). Whether you're here for one or the other or both, DIXIE'S TUPPERWARE PARTY will have you smiling and howling in your seat all night. Leave your kids at home, though, because, yes, even though Miss Dixie may seem like a wholesome, old-fashioned country gal on the outside, the colorful, innuendo-laced bon mots spilling out of her mouth are definitely grown folks' business.

Follow this reviewer on Twitter: @cre8iveMLQ

Photos by Bradford Rogne, courtesy of SCFTA.

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Performances of DIXIE'S TUPPERWARE® PARTY continues at Segerstrom Center for the Arts through January 4, 2015. Tickets can be purchased online at www.SCFTA.org, by phone at 714-556-2787 or in person at the SCFTA box office (open daily at 10 am). Segerstrom Center for the Arts is located at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa.

For tickets or more information, visit SCFTA.org.

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