Review: THE GOLDEN GIRLS LIVE: THE CHRISTMAS EPISODES at Curran Theatre

Unless you lived under a rock and are totally ignorant of pop culture, you’ve heard of The Golden Girls. The stats are impressive: running from 1985 – 92 and 180 episodes, the show received critical acclaim including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series twice. and three Golden Globe Awards for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy. The series also ranked among the Nielsen ratings' top ten for six of its seven seasons. It has remained a TV re-run monster, and I think its popularity rises from two factors; the Emmy award-winning performances of its stars and the material that dealt with many controversial issues like coming out and same-sex marriage, HIV/AIDS, and discrimination against people with HIV/AIDS. For all this, it is ripe for drag parody, and by the reception this 19-year-old Holiday show receives, it’s a resounding hit and labor of love by it’s cast and crew.

No slight intended to great hetero actors who’ve tackled drag roles (Robin William’s Mrs. Doubtfire, Dustin Hoffman’s Tootsie, etc.), but to me it always seemed like they added an intended ridiculousness to reassert their maleness. With The Golden Girls franchise, you get exceptional LGBTQ+ actors channeling iconic female characters with an authenticity and assurance that shines throughout their performances and endears both male and female audiences to these shows.

The show’s characters and their actresses (Bea Arthur (Dorothy), Estelle Getty (Sophia), Betty White (Rose), and Rue McClanahan (Blanche) are iconic and beloved. They represent strong female perspectives; the practical and sarcastic divorcee, the ditzy sweet innocent, the promiscuous siren and the wise-cracking elder. The opportunity for portraying these qualities lies in the capable hands of veteran actors Matthew Martin as Blanche, D’Arcy Drollinger as Rose, Coco Peru as Dorothy, and Tymes as Sophia are treasure trove of comic possibilities. The audience went wild when each character made their first appearances, and the associations were accepted easily. We want to believe and be transported to their world of quick repartee, broken fourth walls, salacious double entendres and a lot of mugging and breaking character.

Smartly, they’ve chosen a lesbian-themed episode as the first offering. Originally aired on November 8, 1986, "Isn't It Romantic" (Season 2 Episode 05) has a lesbian friend (Manuel Caneri as Jean) of Dorothy’s falling for Rose. Sexual confusion jokes reign as Blanche tries to set her up with men while Rose has no clue what’s going on. The second episode presented dealt with a pretentious, bigoted snob (Barbara Thorndyke played hilariously by Michael Phillis) who befriends Dorothy but can’t stand Rose or Blanche. It deals with the bonds of friendship while repudiating antisemitism and illustrates the cutting-edge thematic content mentioned previously and gave the audience a chance to boo a villain.

The cast stays true to their characters and are obviously having a ball onstage. With a bigger budget, the production values have blossomed. From Sarah Phykitt, Matt Owens, and Ron Brock’s kitschy, chotkeed mid 80’s Florida set design, to Katie Dowse’s incredible retro costume design, and Becky Motorlodge’s wigs, the look is spot on to the original. Upscaling to the posh environs of the Curran Theatre was a gamble that has paid off handsomely and is a just reward for 19 years of commitment to this endeavor.

The Golden Girls Live: The Christmas Episodes continues at the Curran Theatre, (445 Geary St., San Francisco) through December 22nd. Tickets available at www.broadwaysf.com.

Photo credits: Gareth Gooch

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