Whitefire Theatre Solofest Presents “One Life Stand” – Written and Performed by Alicia Dattner.
Solo shows are usually self-fulfilling odysseys of the life-altering kind.
Historical navigations through the performers life and angsts, which is fine and can be excellent, but this show is definitely not that.
Alicia Dattner’s “One Life Stand” is a wonderfully satirical and often hilarious romp through the life and laments of Ms Dattner. She does a truly masterful job of pointing out the obvious ridiculousness of our life obsessions and playfully offering up solutions…”Should I get a nose job? I want to look more jewish.” “I’m the oldest of three kids, it’s just me and mom and dad.”
Her comedy is observational but not judgey, serious but light, political, environmental, irreverent and powerfully current. Her subjects range from climate change to yoga etiquette, from dating to self obsession, all brilliantly delivered jokes with the confidence of a comedic veteran. She has that kind of relaxed physical calm that very few comedians have. It immediately relaxes the audience, makes them feel safe and secure and ready to laugh. That is a rare skill to be sure.
The lines she delivers are super quick and seriously smart, in a blink and sometimes you’ll miss them kind of way.
She commands the room, she loves the audience and her humor is above all likable…no meanness, no ridicule, no pain. It’s easy to be cruel and funny, or loud and funny or rude and funny. It’s a much harder skill to be intelligent and warm and engaging and funny. Alicia Dattner is the kind of funny you wish your best friend was. The kind of funny you wish you were actually…hers are the lines you wish you had spoken all those times you came up cold. How else can I put this…she’s just really, and I mean really, funny.
I predict Alicia Dattner will be a huge star, a household name any minute now. Like she says, “catch her now before she ascends.”