Review: I LOVE TO EAT IS A FEAST OF GRANDEUR at FreeFall Theatre

"Always have a listed phone number...that's my philosophy...someone might call."

"I fear the day the phone stops ringing...it rings all hours of the day, and that's how I like it... connection..."

In 1946 before Julia Child rose to fame James Andrew Beard became the first "celebrity"cook with the premiere of his NBC cooking show, "I Love to Eat." Television sets were still black and white back then and there may have been 1000 sets total in all of Metropolitan New York but between Howdy Doody and the 9 o'clock hour you could experience the culinary delights and comedic timing of James Beard.

Boasting a program with everyday recipes not to be noted as "Cuisine," for James hated the word, but rather American Cookery. He created simple recipes with local ingredients that made cooking in the kitchen fun and made you the cook, the star of the show, or whatever party/engagement in which you are hosting.

Several years after his tv show went off the air and the footage had been destroyed we meet James at a later point in his life inside his Greenwich Village apartment. He regales over periods of his life, from his friendships with Julia Child and Clark Gable to his time in Paris studying to become a great Opera star and answering the phone as it never stops ringing. Slice up a few times where food or onion rings are made and an interaction with Elsie the Cow and you have a 75-minute feast of delight.

Matt McGee whose name is synonymous with Comedy and stellar showmanship is at the top of his game here. The last time Matt graced the stage of freeFall was for his turn as Charlemagne and Bertha in Pippin a couple of seasons ago, and it's wonderful to have him back on stage and in a one-man show.

"Two of the most fabulous inventions of the 20th Century...the Cuisinart and Call Waiting."

The endearing thing about this show, and ultimately sad is that you see James Beard and hear about his life, but ultimately you get a sense of how truly lonely this man had become at the later stages of his life. I mean sure he had his phone calls, but what's a phone call between friends if you have no one to share it with? What's a perfectly prepared meal and a glass of scotch if you don't have someone to indulge in it with? James Beard always knowing that he was gay didn't publicly come out until 1981. Sure he had many loves in his life, but none seemed to love him in the same way. Instead, in the latter part of his life, we see a great man, a revered man, someone in which 26 cookbooks, a tv show, and a mass amount of fame dwindled down; to a man so crippled in fear that if he leaves his home he would miss the one thing he only may have briefly had...connection. That if he went on a trip, or hosted a dinner party he would miss the opportunity to answer the phone for that one ounce of connection with the person on the other line.

Matt McGee gives a stellar performance here from start to finish. He fully embodies James Beard from mannerisms to vocal inflection its a true step back in time for those who remember the cook who loves to eat. James himself must have loved to indulge in the scotch because his turn at the decanter is something that needs to be seen. One-man shows have the tendency to lean a little on the dry side, but this is not the case here. Matt is quick on his feet, always keeping the show moving and never dragging pace. He keeps time with a kitchen timer that dings and acts as a Segway between moments. Moments leading up to the last few of his life.

Director Lee Anne Matthews assembled a top-notch team here. Tom Hansen's set design is superb and makes the inside of the Greenwich Village Apartment come alive in full detail. Eric Davis freeFall's Artistic Director wears many hats here as the Sound Designer, Costume Designer, and Puppet Designer. Dalton Hamilton's lighting design evokes the different moments on James' trajectory and does so with such finesse. Stage Manager Sara DelBeato keeps the one-man tour-de-force moving at a swift pace.

For a slice of a good time and a quick 75 minutes that still gives you plenty of time to check out one of the Burg's fine dining establishments, I Love to Eat is the ticket. If you like to cook, and enjoy a simple life lesson or two, then come on down to freeFall Theatre where you can "Simply Escape Awhile." Eric Davis and his team welcome everyone with open arms, and with Temperature Checks at the door and Mask Wearing during the performance you are safe and sound. I Love to Eat is like being wrapped in a warm Crepe Suzette, and you can't have just one bite! Visit freefalltheatre.com for tickets, but hurry 'cause I Love to Eat is only on-stage through February 27, 2022, and this is one show you don't want to miss.

Photo Credit: Joseph Michael-Kenneth

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