Review: Excellent Cast, Directing, Give "Guacamole Queens" Life
Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer
The “Last Round-Up of the Guacamole Queens” is a no-holds-barred over-the-top Southern romp with a menagerie of jokes, sarcasm and snark mostly finding their target.
The show found just the right tone for the opening night crowd for the show at the Mill Town Players in Pelzer, which rewarded the cast on stage with enthusiastic laughter.
The story follows residents of Sweetgum, Texas, and the Verdeen cousins in particular, as they plan the final reunion of the old high school which is being demolished. Meanwhile, the cousins attempt to save their business, “Wide Bride,” a bridal shop for, well you figure it out.
The play has the feel of a sitcom, which is not surprising, since the writers - Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten – were on the writing staff for NBC’s “Golden Girls.” There is much in this production that echoes that show, if Blanche, Dorothy, Rose and Sophia had been raised in rural Texas and never ventured beyond their hometown.
The cast finds their comedic groove in this approach, which can be challenging because the production reaches beyond two hours (perhaps a little too long?).
The Verdeen cousins drive the show, and the actors who transform each of these characters are almost unrecognizable in costume. Shannon Faulkner sheds any whisper of vanity with her mulleted, unibrow Jimmie Wyvette Verden’s leader of the clan. Faulkner manages to bring full life to the strange character, who is so laden with a Falstaffian lack of attractiveness that can be almost hard to watch. Meanwhile Carrie Ponder seizes the lost and desperate Peaches Verdeen Bolrose with sympathy and hope as she ages into a stage of life which she finds confusing and surprising. In Gaynelle Verdeen Bodeen, the former Guacamole Queen, Trish Crittendon garners perhaps the most sympathy among the cousins as she celebrates the death of philandering ex-husband with an apparent tap dance on his coffin during the funeral. Each of the cousins finds the rubric that “things can’t get any worse” to ring hollow as the comedic situations intensify.
Dona Shiflette’s LaMerle Verdeen Minshew – think Dana Carvey’s “Church Lady” with a Texas mean streak – takes over the stage in every scene with her holy roller-with political ambitions, easily overshadowing others in almost every scene in which she appears.
The part of cable access queen Cee Cee Windham, hostess of “Hospitality House,” fine-tuned, funny and always smiling, could have been written with Gail Trotter in mind. Big hair, big smiles and endless enthusiasm find bonus fun with her delightful tap dance at the end of one scene.
Rod McClendon, who’s Uncle Aubrey is the oldest living member of Sweetgum High (eventually), may grab the most laughs per minute with his oversexed nonagenarian who is always looking for another rendezvous, especially with one of the sisters who are both eager for his affection. McClendon, never without his oxygen tank, whiskey flask, leering smile and gas problems earns some of the evening’s biggest laughs.
As for the sisters he pursues, Debbie Chambers, as the coyer cane-wielding sister Ennis Crowder Puckett, and Donna Duffie, the rambunctious sister Della Crowder – both playing roles far beyond their actual years – shuffle and bicker their way through some hilarious scenes, especially their fight sequence.
Dewey Davenport and his best friend, wing man and literal right-hand man (who happens to be a puppet), delivers some of the best, strangest and funniest moments as the outsider-returning-for-reunion Dewey Davenport.
With a look straight out of the old West, Ed Chambers imbues Sheriff Grover Lout with a Barney Fife/Chester combination of humor and lack of awareness. In a dual role as Dixie Davenport and Tanzie Lockhart, Beth Price makes the most of her part, especially with her joy in the party scenes near the end of the play.
Finally, Jesse Winner, as the custodian who sometimes seems to only have one oar in the water, brings unbridled energy and joy throughout the production, even dancing in the dark moving sets between scenes. As Raynard Chism, this character is the relative that connects Forrest Gump and Cletus Spunkler (“The Simpsons” hillbilly patriarch). He moves funny, and mugs the audience so often Will Ferrell would say “Tone it down,” but in Winner’s hands it all seems to work. He is on stage often, in small doses, but they make up some of the play’s best moments.
Will Ragland’s trademark staging is on display again, with eye-catching sets that move seamlessly between more than a few quick scene changes. Ragland’s direction keeps things moving and the action, which can be busy at times, easy to follow. The costumes, sound, lights and other production elements are also up to Mill Town Players standards. Credit to Jessica Coffey, stage manager, Ryan Patterson, lighting designer, Tony Penna, master electrician, Sissy Beck, costume designer, Abby Brown, scenic artist, Josef Wehunt, audio engineer, Austin Dowling, scene shop foreman, and Cameron Woodson, artist associate.
“Last Round Up of the Guacamole Queens” runs through June 18. Ticket and other information here.