Jane Wagner classic one woman show is a brilliantly constructed collection of short performance pieces. The play is both funny and touching. The play is a fascinating read and a an even more compelling performance. Unfortunately, the show itself is so closely tied to Lily Tomlin that it is hard to find anyone else willing to perform it. Still, the humor shines through the pages. This edition is also peppered with photographs of Tomlin by famed photographer Annie Leibovitz.

Plot

I can not give a detailed description of the plot. It is too complicated and intricate. The play is 213 pages of short vignettes.

Trudy, a homeless woman, serves as a sort of narrator/philosopher. Trudy is a complex character, an ex ad executive, who believes in aliens. She opens the play and sets up the running theme throughout this complicated script--a critique of modern popular culture. (Still relevant today despite the fact the play was written in in the 80's.

The next portion is a diatribe by Lily as herself. The rambling monologue contains such gems as "One thing I have no worry about is whether God exists. But it has occurred to me that God has Alzheimer's and has forgotten we exist."

The rest of part I switches between Trudy and other monologues. Men, women, multiple characters--Lily plays them all. In this edition, you get to see pictures of Lily as each character. Andy Warhol and his famous cans of Campbell's soup are mentioned by several of the characters. As if this is there one chance to prove that Andy Warhol was right and we each get 15 minutes of fame--this is theirs.

Part II begins with Trudy again. She is still waiting for her alien friends to make an appearance in her tiny corner of the world.

However, after Trudy's monologue, Part II differs from Part I. Instead of short monologues by a variety of unrelated characters, Part II centers around one particular woman, Lyn. The audience gets to see Lyn interacting with friends, at her therapist's office, reading from her journal, internal monologues, and a variety of other locations.

Finally, the play ends where it began--with Trudy. Only this time, Trudy's alien friends have visited and they've been watching the play. They are impressed, not by Trudy's performance, but by the audience--the amazing ability of strangers to gather together in the dark, share an experience, and get goosebumps.

Extra

The photos by Annie Leibovitz are incredible, and some of the photo collages by Wagner are pretty good as well. Lily Tomlin manages to make these characters come alive even through the pages of a book and not on stage.

An afterword is provided by Marylin French is provided along with a lovely photo essay from the film made from the play.

Acting Ability

It takes an actress with incredible strength to pull off this role (or should I say roles?). Because of the sheer number of characters that he person must play, they must be able to play both women and men--to play the old, the young and the in-between, to be sane or to be crazy. They must be able to make the audience cry and laugh (which can be the most challenging task of all). An actress playing this part must switch from character to character within seconds and can not always rely on costumes or sets to develop the story. It is truly a one-woman show.

Final Thoughts

Trudy's last lines of the play sum it up:

"I like to think of them out there, in the dark, watching us. Sometimes, we'll do something and they'll laugh. Sometimes, we'll do something and they'll cry. And maybe one day we'll do something so magnificent, everyone in the universe will get goosebumps."

Read the play and you'll get goosebumps.

Recommended: Yes