Frontmezzjunkies reports: Finding Dorothy Parker Returns

By Ross

Some theatrical evenings feel less like “a show” and more like a perfectly timed invitation to come sit, order something strong, and let some theatrical brilliance do its work. Finding Dorothy Parker is exactly that kind of night, and after a second sold-out engagement, this dream show is returning to The Laurie Beechman Theatre for two final performances on February 5 and 6.

Compiled and directed by five-time Tony Award nominee Douglas Carter Beane (The Little Dog Laughed), Finding Dorothy Parker is a sparkling revue devoted to the wit, wisdom, and razor-sharp tongue of one of America’s great literary firecrackers. Parker’s words, acerbic, melancholic, hilarious, and devastatingly precise, are given new life by an original all-star ensemble of Broadway favorites: Julie Halston, Ann Harada, Jackie Hoffman, and Anika Larsen. If that lineup alone doesn’t send you reaching for your calendar, check your pulse.

This is not a dusty literary tribute. It’s a whirlwind tour through Parker’s world, where scathing reviews rub shoulders with unforgettable one-liners and poems that cut straight through the room. Performed by four of Broadway’s funniest and smartest women, the evening crackles with personality and theatrical savvy, balancing campy fabulousness with the emotional undercurrent that made Parker more than just a quotable wit.

Beane himself frames the concept with typical mischief, describing the piece as “an evening of Dorothy Parker with four of Broadway’s funniest ladies in the style of Don Juan in Hell,” before adding, “Well, we’re not in Hell now. We’re in Hell’s Kitchen.” Consider that your mission statement, and your warning.

The setting couldn’t be more perfect. The Beechman’s intimate, table-service atmosphere invites Parker’s words to land like they were always meant to: over cocktails, in close quarters, with laughter arriving just a beat before the sting. With music by Alistair Wroe and musical direction by Brad Simmons, the evening moves with the rhythm of a revue while never losing sight of the woman at its center, a writer whose voice still feels bracingly modern.

With only two performances left and the original ensemble intact, Finding Dorothy Parker is very much a now-or-never proposition. It’s a chance to spend an evening in the company of a legend, interpreted by artists who understand exactly how funny, fearless, and necessary she still is.

Sadly, I can’t be there, but consider this your last call. 🍸