Fruit Fly
Tout le monde knows the extraordinary character actor, Leslie Jordan. A staple in the works of playwright Del Shores, the diminutive Mr. Jordan is one funny man, able (as are the best of comedians) to bring down the house with a look or a gesture.
For the past few years, he has been writing his own material in (mostly) one-person shows, mining his difficult past for nuggets of wisdom that are then put through the comedic grinder. His latest show, “Fruit Fly,” based on a negative phrase similar to Fag Hag (or its opposite, Hag Fag), which is what his mother ended up calling herself after he was fully out to her as a gay man. Not that anyone in his right mind or not lacking “gaydar” wouldn’t have already noticed.
So Mr. Jordan has turned what has, historically, been a harmful appellation on its head and written an extremely funny monologue about his life – growing up in the South, taking his desire to be seen by becoming a drag-queen in Atlanta, graduating to the stage and screen and finding a level of low-level stardom that most actors will envy. You want funny, hire Leslie Jordan. (He plays heterosexual in the new drama, “The Help.”)
Playing to mostly gay audiences at Celebration Theatre, “Fruit Fly” honestly tells a tale most of us either don’t know directly or may have only glanced at: The pain of losing his beloved father when LJ was only 11, having twin sisters who the slightly older toddler wanted to destroy, and a mother who wasn’t always there for him emotionally, realities dissected, examined and put into perspective.
As such things go, it’s a minor show, but an entertaining one. Celebration Theatre is small (about 70 seats or so) but the producers have been rather clever in utilizing it. Most especially in the technical aspects: the homey set-design of Jimmy Cuomo and the lighting design of Matthew Brian Denman. The producers (Michael C. Kricfalusi and John Michael Beck) and director (David Galligan) make the most of the limited space, with Galligan successfully moving the actor in ways that block what can be the tedium of the spoken word. Of course, this is Leslie Jordon up there, so the collaboration is wonderfully apparent.
One will enjoy seeing this fine production of an important talent. So go.
“Fruit Fly” plays through February 18th, 2012, at the Celebration Theatre, 7051B Santa Monica Blvd (just east of La Brea Avenue) in Hollywood. Tickets: 323.957.1884 or online at www.celebrationtheatre.com.