Two’s A Crowd
I’ve always admired comedian and writer Rita Rudner’s style. She is elegant, and charming in demeanor, embracing of her feminine side, while being understated and yet devastatingly funny. She has maintained a sense of sophistication and her own brand of comedy over the years.
Rudner, a prolific writer, having penned five books, holds the record for the longest-running solo comedy show in the history of Las Vegas and, along with her husband, writer and producer Martin Bergman, has written numerous films.
Her latest comedy special Rita Rudner: A Tale of Two Dresses can be streamed on Amazon Prime.
The former Broadway dancer (that’s how she began her performance career) is one busy and talented lady. And she is now back on stage at 59 E 59 in “Two’s A Crowd,” a new comedy with music, written by the husband and wife team, with music and lyrics by Jason Feddy, and directed by Martin Bergman.
The premise is this: Wendy, played by Rita Rudner, checks into a Las Vegas hotel with the express purpose of pampering herself after a separation from her husband. Tom (Robert Yacko) is in Vegas for a poker tournament. They are both booked in the same room, due to a computer error. The hotel is packed and they must share the room.
They certainly don’t get along, and have a contentious relationship at first. But, as they get to know each other and their personal stories are revealed, things do change.
With lots of clever lines and many references made to the challenges aging women face, the story line can definitely resonate with a particular demographic.
It’s wonderful to see Ms. Rudner on a New York stage, and I give her lots of credit for the many years of hard work she has put into her career.
Two’s a Crowd runs through August 25.
I had a conversation with the hilarious Rita Rudner on a recent “Bagels and Broadway with Valerie Smaldone” radio show.
Take a listen to the podcast of the show here:
You can hear “Bagels and Broadway” every Saturday morning from 9:05-10 AM on WNYM radio, online, Alexa and podcast.
Valerie Smaldone is a 5-time Billboard Magazine Award winner and is well known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 on-air position in the New York radio market on 106.7 Life-FM, an iHeart station. She has hosted, produced, and created several award-winning nationally syndicated programs featuring in-depth interviews with stars like Paul McCartney, Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Mariah Carey among others. Her radio talk show "Bagels and Broadway" highlighted theatre and food personalities. She is an accomplished interviewer and voice artist heard on commercials, narrations, promos and audiobooks, as well as a sought after live announcer.
Most recently, Valerie produced and directed a film, The Thursday Night Club, featuring pop diva Gloria Gaynor in her movie acting debut. She is one of the creators and producers of a docu-series, Divine Renovation, starring Erik Estrada, on streaming networks soon.
