Who else but Valerie Harper could burst on the stage, seemingly drunk and get a raucous round of applause? Although I did feel like I was at a taping of a new movie of the Carol Burnett show (i really did expect Tim Conway or Harvey Korman to bust on stage any minute), I felt like I learned a little bit about the much talked about Talulah Bankhead.
The plot of the show seemed unnecessarily detoured a few times with side stories. Perhaps we would have been better served without the gay sub-plot and a trimming of the show down 90 minutes with no intermission. Or maybe they tried that and it just seemed too thin? In any case, I suspect this one will be a gem for the Broadway crowd, but not much of a draw (unless they are giving the tickets away) for the tourist crowds. And we all know the big white buses are the only things that can keep a show alive.
I love the Lyceum theatre and i had an fun evening watching Harper hurl her humor tipped barbs all over the stage.