May 20--Like a hyperactive kid just back from theater camp, Shirley Lame (pronounced le-MAY) takes the stage to sing classic Broadway duets all by her lonesome.
Embodied, to the hilt, by Rebecca Sohn, the old gal is an indefatigable whirl of ego and dubious talent, all of it channeled through her love of musical theater.
This isn't a person inclined to share the spotlight, so if she has to sing these duets on her own, well that's the price a diva must pay, yes?
Costumed in a sequined beret, black leotard and fringed scarf tied at the waist, Sohn has created a woman convinced of her greatness despite her mediocrity. That's the joke, but the show (directed by her husband, Rich Sohn, and accompanied by TJ Shanoff on piano) isn't quite crazy enough to really pull it off. It's almost there. Almost. With this kind of stuff, the loonier, the better.
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Sohn sings all the parts in just about every number she performs (including "Summer Nights" from "Grease" and "Fugue for Tinhorns" from "Guys and Dolls") and her out-of-breathness is good comic stuff. But I thought her take on "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off" was much funnier and a better way into the single-person-duet riddle. She basically just sang one part, so it goes something like this: Silence, then "... and I say 'either'!" Silence, then "... and I say 'neither'!"
In character, she has a dreadful voice, but Sohn herself can sing, as she showed when performing both parts in "Barcelona" from Sondheim's "Company," a duet between the swinging single Bobby and his flight attendant one-night stand.
Sohn is also a seasoned improviser, and I'm surprised that she was a little thrown when she selected an audience volunteer for a dance number and it turned out said audience member was an actual dancer. Best to not underestimate one's audience. But I liked Sohn's patter during the number: "Take it!" she shouts to her partner, and just as quickly, "Now give it back!"
"Some facts about me," she announces at one point: "I like my coffee with Champagne!" She sings one actual, legit duet with her accompanist, turning the theme from the sitcom "All in the Family" into a Broadway number. And then she tosses out long-stemmed roses to the audience, which is then expected to toss them right back when she takes her bow. In character, she is nothing if not prepared when it comes to theatrics.
"My Solo Show of All Duets" -- 2.5 STARS
When: Through May 28
Where: The Annoyance, 851 W. Belmont Ave.
Tickets: Tickets are $15 at 773-697-9693 or www.theannoyance.com
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