AT 81 BARRY HUMPHRIE STILL ROCKS AS DAME EDNA
Barry is back as Edna, and at 81 he still commands his stage and loves those women in the front rows. But possums Dame Edna calls this tour her final “last” tour as she has mentioned back in 2012. But as Cher and Streisand, she is back at SHN just a few days for this visit.
Dame Edna started her US career here in San Francisco after her friend Joan Rivers suggested to Humphries to take the show abroad. After a small tour first opening in SF - her first tour ended on Broadway and won her a Tony.
Barry Humphries created his alter ego in the 60’s and kept Edna on the go all these years, basically doing the same bit from TV talk show host
to Broadway fame.
This final bow is not much different from her past visits. She still loves to compare notes with the older little women in the front rows of her audience. Same topics “what kind of home do you own dear”, somehow that same question has lasted close to 40 years. It always makes for some good flow to keep her first act funny and mean. Edna still loves to bully her balcony audience for not spending more to see her show, it is always funny and yes mean.
If the Dame insults your attire to her show, that's worth gold for some who do their best to sit up front for the 15 seconds of Edna fame. But her format remains the same - she picks 4 women and 1 senior who she suggests “thinks he is on a senior cruise right now”. She keeps up the conversation with all of them.
In act II she brings on stage an odd couple she creates and marries them, hoping their calls to home live on stage make for good shtick and it does. I have yet to see a night when someone doesn’t answer the phone. But if no answer Edna launches an amazing voice mail that includes the audience approval.
Dame Edna is worth a visit if you haven’t seen her show, and for those who have since the new bits only created by her enthusiastic audience is
worth the price.
Dame Edna’s Glorious Goodbye: The Farewell Tour
continues through Sunday, March 22 at the Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market St., San Francisco. Tickets are $40-$210.
Call 888-746-1799 or
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