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Displaying items by tag: David Cerda

I've been a devoted fan of David Cerda's Hell in a Handbag Productions for so many of the 23 years they have been in Chicago, and I still get the same great feelings whenever I attend one of their award-winning camp comedy/musical shows.

Having grown up in Miami, Florida with my Golden Girl mom, Joanne, during the years in which the TV show was on the air I have a special affinity for all of their Golden Girls adaptations, especially the Christmas Editions. 

The plotline for The Golden Girls Save Christmas - A Lost Parody Episode at Center on Halsted involves a very sexy Blanche who boffs old Saint Nick until his back gives out and the whole gang has to band together to save Christmas. This show is just a nonstop funny reminder that holidays are for loving up your family, friends, and lovers like any other Holiday. 

This year's Christmas production directed by Frankie Leo Bennett features original cast members David Cerda as Dorothy, Grant Drager as Blanche, Ed Jones as Rose, and Ryan Oates as Sophia as the fearsome geriatric foursome - and they are as spot on as ever in their expert renditions of all four great actresses in the TV show. The fantastic performances from these four original cast members are reason enough for me to keep returning year after year for all of the Golden Girls Handbag shows. 

With the leads taking on the famous TV roles - Cerda as Bea Arthur’s Dorothy the dry, cool anchor of comedy, Drager as the flirtatious unabashedly insatiable Blanche, played by so well by Rue Mclanahan and Ed Jones as the naive, scene stealer as Betty White’s Rose, the Handbag company goes way beyond parody and even beyond camp into a realm of musical theatre genius. This talented cast is compelling and endearing to watch as one feels that you are at times witnessing a live theatrical performance from these three grand dames of comedy!

There are fantastic cameos and lots of big laughs and songs coming from the supporting cast this year from Eustace Allen, Kelly Bolton, Terry McCarthy, Michael Rashid, Scott Sawa, Tyler Anthony Smith, Danne W. Taylor, and Robert Williams.

Hell in a Handbag Golden Girls shows always begin with the whole audience singing the theme song, "Thank you for being a friend," which perfectly sets up the audience for an evening of lighthearted, sentimental, yet bawdy, good adult fun. 

If you are one of those people who delight in period costumes from the 80's you will LOVE all of the fantastic hair makeup and costumes and shoes in this show. The production team includes Madeline Felauer (Costume Design), Liz Syd Genco (Make-Up Design) and Keith Ryan (Wig Designer). 

Hell in a Handbag Productions’ The Golden Girls Save Xmas also has a generous intermission for drinking and catching up with your friends that begins and ends with terrific full cast song and dance numbers like the great tune “You Can't Stop Christmas! It's Coming!”, so you feel you've gotten a nice full night out of socializing and entertainment!  

Be sure to pose for a picture with the fully costumed cast of stars after the show and your donation will be given to AIDS-related charities. Also, mark your calendars for Peep Show, the team’s yearly fundraiser on December 10th at Center on Halsted to support Hell in A Handbag Productions, a Chicago classic camp favorite theater company that keeps on creating compassionate, funny, camp extravaganzas with live singers - not impersonators - who maintain the highest level of comedic expertise! For more information on Peep Show, click here.

The world premeire The Golden Girls Save Xmas - A Lost Parody Episode by Artistic Director David Cerda is being performed at Center on Halsted’s The Hoover-Leppen Theatre through December 30th. Tickets are just $42 if purchased in advance and $45 at the door, and $36 for group rates of 10 or more. For tickets and/or more show information, visit www.handbagproductions.org.    

Highly recommended!

Published in Theatre in Review

Nobody does camp like Hell in a Handbag Productions. Ensemble-developed, oddball parodies of queer iconoclasts are what they do best. For their 21st season, longtime collaborators Tyler Anthony Smith and director Stephanie Shaw meld Barbra Streisand’s enduring legacy with Mary Shelly’s classic horror story. A cast of loveable weirdos round out the world premiere of this clever Halloween special.

Hell in a Handbag ensemble member Tyler Anthony Smith has been creating one-man shows throughout Chicago’s fringe scene for years. He’s also been a regular feature at Hell in a Handbag over the years. Tyler reunites with director Stephanie Shaw for a story that only his irreverent mind could come up with.

‘Frankenstreisand’ is the story of Dr. Barbra Frankenstreisand’s return to the stage after a 27-year performance hiatus. Only this time, she has her eyes set on a prize higher than an Oscar, a Grammy or even a Tony. Loosely based on the very real 1990s rumor that Barbra tried to have her dog cloned, Frankenstreisand intends to clone her beloved, but dead dog, Samantha. With the help of her assistants Hunchback (Dakota Hughes) and Frau (Brian Shaw), Frankenstreisand returns to the stage for the ultimate performance. Both Hughes and Shaw bring a great deal of physical humor to their quirky roles in Smith’s bizarre little script.

This festive Halloween show is a love letter to ‘The Rocky Horror Show’. The 85-minute musical features your favorite Babs songs, each with reconfigured lyrics for context (and likely to avoid copyright infringement). Streisand fans will cackle hearing these hilariously twisted versions of their favorite showtunes. With every number, deranged Frankenstreisand inches closer to giving her cloned pup the spark of life.

Smith knows his Barbra trivia right down to the costumes and together with designer Beth Laske-Miller they’ve recreated some of her signature looks. Wigs by Keith Ryan lend an extra layer of humor to Smith’s cartoon villain version of Barbra.


This play heavily relies on the audience’s knowledge of Streisand lore. Even the biggest fan might find themselves Googling certain facts as they’re leaving the theater, such as does she really have a shopping mall under her house? It’s no secret Barbra Streisand is kooky and perceived as demanding, and this makes her all the riper for satire.

Smith takes his historian-level interest in Barbra and does his own thing. Mixing in some of her signature qualities: the Brooklyn accent, the long fingernails and of course, the schnoz, he also blends in his own Tim Curry-flavored affects that lean into the more overtly sexual. This is a Barbra who doesn’t take herself as seriously.

A musical about Frankenstein and Barbra Streisand may seem like two ideas thrown into a blender with some bong water, but Tyler Anthony Smith has created a hilarious monster with ‘Frankenstreisand.’ It’s both a tribute to the great diva, and an homage to B horror movies of the 1950s.

Through October 31 at Hell in a Handbag Productions. 4702 N Ravenswood. For tickets and or more inforation, click here

Published in Theatre in Review

‘Christmas Dearest’ is wicked good fun, a hilarious if unholy marriage between Charles Dickens ‘A Christmas Carol’ and Mommie Dearest, the scathing tell-all book by moviestar Joan Crawford’s abused daughter, Christina. 

The show's creator, Hell in a Handbag Productions, is sui generis, a company whose staged shows tap the rarified sanctums of performance art, driven by our local treasure in drag, David Cerda, who penned book and lyrics and shares music credits with Scott Lamberty for 'Christmas Dearest.' This also marks the troupe's return to live shows, with a remount of a deliciously popular show. (Proof of vaccination is required to attend.)

The premise—a tyrannical Joan Crawford (David Cerda) turns Scrooge as she struggles to reignite her career with a big, splashy 1953 musical about the life of the Blessed Virgin—’Oh Mary!’ —casts Crawford in the lead role, natch. She takes liberties with the script, editing to make sure this Mother of God is not outshown by her miraculous offspring. And of course, she makes sure her millon dollar legs get plenty of exposure, even if that lout Joseph keeps tripping on them in the dance scenes.

There are morals here (it’s Christmas after all) though largely loose ones as practiced by Joan Crawford and her friends over the years. And we do get the requisite conversion to goodness after a series of Dickensian ghosts advises Crawford during a dream triggered by Chinese takeout with Johnny Walker pn the rocks. The sweep of Joan's life includes key players along the way—including a child Crawford (Maiko Terazawa) and 1920s show girl Crawford (Marissa Williams). Mark Barty ably carries the role of her daughter Christina from youngster to embittered adult.  

It's hard to say exactly what separates drag performances, parody, and gender-blind casting. But it is certain that in this show the best scenes involve women characters: Olive LaLake (Tyler Anthony Smith) who plays an actress friend from Crawford's early days; and Bette Davis (Caitlin Jackson) who delivers a pancake make-up, platinum blonde-curled version, vintage “Whatever Happened to Baby Jane,' that is a tour de force in rendering Davis's drawling mid-Atlantic stutter, complete with eyerolls and waving cigarette. The scene with the two movie star rivals includes a duet, “Two Old Broads," both catchy and engaging. Davis tells Crawford that while she is a movie star, "I am an actress." We also get this priceless interlude in which Joan appeals to Davis's better nature on the set of "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane:"

Crawford: We should work together, Betty; not tear each other apart.”

Davis: Who says we can’t work together and tear each other apart. 

Kudo’s to Smith, cast in several roles, all of them over-the-top, but not too far over  He is a formidable actor and singer. As to David Cerda, the progenitor and driving force of Hell in a Handbag Productions, he gamely navigates amongst the powerhouse cast members. While they occasionally out-sing and out-act him, they never upstage him. Highly recommended for those who prefer their Dickens loaded with glamour and divas, 'Christmas Dearest' runs through December 31 on the Ebenezer Lutheran Auditorium Stage at 1650 W. Foster in Chicago

Published in Theatre in Review

I was really impressed by the new Shakespearean send-up Out, Darn Spot! starring Tyler Anthony Smith as Lady Marcia Macbeth. Smith is a very talented actor and writer to have pulled off what is essentially a one-man show that never fails to elicit all kinds of emotions, from the deepest, darkest depression to high campy humor throughout. The play is in essence an episode of Macbeth’s late 1960s lifestyle show but done in Handbag style. Also featured within the production are a handful of hilarious throwback commercials that perfectly poke fun of the era.

David Cerda, Hell in a Handbag Artistic Director, makes a delightful appearance as writer Jacquline Susan and is as funny as ever. Caitlin Jackson also puts in some great scenes as kidnapped singer, Leslie Gore. Jackson has such an amazing singing voice, 

I still recall her portrayal of Bette Midler and I was hoping that she would be allowed to sing a portion of one of Leslie Gore's songs like "These Boots Are Made for Walking" or "You Don't Own Me" but perhaps the licensing of those songs was prohibited. 

Stephanie Shaw who directed, shot and edited this video performance did an amazing job capturing Tyler Smith's many moods and looks. Shaw also nails the colorful and psychedelic special effects common to TV and video of that period for all the supporting characters and interior scenes. In one particularly disturbing and haunting section Smith appears to be in a film similar to "The Shining" at the top of a very scary staircase which evolves into a "broken mirror" image of Smith, sans his beautiful period wig, in which he appears to deconstruct his entire character in order to show how deep the layers of depression, pathos and repression of 

sexuality affected housewives back in the 60's.  

This is a particularly timely piece right now as so many of us are trapped at home alone for extended periods of time, like the housewives of the 1960’s. Tyler Anthony Smith conveys with a single piercing  look directly into the camera - just how very lonely and distressing this situation is,  especially when your spouse is not providing you with the sexual or even platonic affection that every human being needs to survive this kind of home lockdown.

Although I sincerely miss the wonderful live shows from Hell in A Handbag, that I've enjoyed for so many years, I am pleased to see this great quality of absurdist, even avant-garde, theater created in a video format for audiences to discover and watch time and time again. The show has so many twists and turns and the monologues are so richly written, I would need to watch it again to absorb it all. 

Although the dark comedy and multilayered Out, Darn Spot! might be a slight break from the pure camp stage comedy that one usually sees from HIAH, it is a successful and important production that could be used as Tyler Anthony Smith's calling card for years to come. 

Out, Darn Spot! will stream through March 21, 2021 (Thursdays, Fridays & Saturday at 8 pm; Sundays at 3 pm) via Vimeo. Tickets ($17) are currently available at handbagproductions.org or directly through Eventbrite.

Published in Theatre in Review

Do you love a good whodunnit? If so, you will love this rich and funny production of ‘The Mousetrap’ directed with great staging and humor by Sean Graney.

Agatha Christie's ‘The Mousetrap’ opened in London in 1952 and never stopped running. It is the longest running play in stage history, and for good reason. Its well-crafted script is entertaining throughout, is filled with colorful characters and keeps one guessing right until the very end. And Graney takes the play in a great direction by casting character actors with serious chops in all roles. 

Mollie and Giles Ralston (wonderfully played by Kate Fry and Allen Gilmore) are a newly married couple who have decided to turn the house she inherited into a bed and breakfast. The couple are a little overwhelmed by the flurry of guests that arrive on their opening when they all become snowbound in the house and get news that a murder has occurred nearby - and the killer is still at large, and most likely heading their way. It doesn’t take long before everyone becomes a suspect. 

While piecing clues together, audience members can enjoy an eyeful of color and textures in the fabulous set design thanks to scenic design by Arnel Sancianco with lighting by Claire Chrzan, sound by Kevin O’Donnell and costumes by Alison Siple, which include a tall window with real rain falling and a smoky fireplace are ominous and luxurious at the same time. The costumes for all cast members are stylish and multi-layered and particularly delightful to the eye are Alex Goodrich’s in head to toe orange patterns and David Cerda’s in a spectacular ensemble of royal purple with fur trim on his floor length winter coat.   

No spoiler alerts here, if you have never seen the play you will have a great time guessing who the murderer is and if you have seen it, this well done production will still keep you engaged right up until the end.

Erik Hellman gives a great performance as Detective Sgt. Trotter, the lawman who arrives on snow skis in the middle of the storm, earnestly trying to protect all the houseguests from becoming murder victims. 

My favorite performances in this cast came from Alex Goodrich as Christopher Wren and David Cerda as Mr. Paravicini. Both are outstanding. Cerda is well known for his superb camp theater productions as the Artistic Director, actor, resident playwright and co-founder of Hell in a Handbag Productions. In this very funny production, Cerda steals every scene he is in and provides great comic relief as the tension on the set builds and builds all while dressed to the nines in royal purple, silk knee high knickers. 

Goodrich has also made his mark in Chicago area theater and is perhaps best known for his many leading roles at Marriott Theatre and Chicago Shakespeare. The talented actor reminds me so much of another great Chicago comic actor, John C. Reilly, and he fills the room with an energy of youthful disgust mixed with childlike wonder as he flutters about the large stage getting big laughs with his over-the-top manic energy, spot on delivery and physical comedy.

Carolyn Ann Hoerdemann plays a very convincing and killable guest as the picky and annoying Mrs. Boyle, while Tina Munoz Pandya is mysterious as Miss Casewell and Lyonel Reneau gives us a strong Major Metcalf.

I highly recommend this funny, exciting, and well-paced production of the classic Agatha Christie murder mystery for a night of suspense and laughs on a cold wintry eve at the lovely Court Theatre. For more show information visit www.CourtTheatre.org.

Published in Theatre in Review

Caitlin Jackson as Bette Midler recreating one wonderful cabaret night at the Continental Bathhouse in New York city is a heartfelt, moving and entertaining way to remember and celebrate Bette's humble and "hungry" beginnings as a performer with the legendary “Tommy” (Tommy Robb) her pianist.

 
I really can't say enough about how talented Caitlin Jackson is as a comedienne and vocalist to be able to carry off this show with such style. Jackson's own vocal stylings are superb and many of the songs were delivered so strongly and such emotional insight into Midler's early struggles as a sexually liberated woman searching for love through her loneliness brought me to tears.


I actually lived in the historic pre-war luxury building, The Ansonia, on 72nd and Broadway showcased in Woody Allen's film Manhattan, for 4 years right after graduating from college. The bathhouse was long gone when I lived there in 1983-1988, but sometimes when I was doing laundry in the cavernous basement of the Ansonia, I imagined I could still hear the sounds of Bette's exquisite voice and the excitement of her loving fans laughing and clapping for her bawdy, yet tender humor.


I think Caitlin Jackson has a marvelous, powerful voice and does Bette Midler's humor and patter (taken almost verbatim from one show) justice without doing a full on impersonation which allows the audience to feel they are seeing the young Bette for the first time. 


I had forgotten just how many of Midler's amazingly moving songs are about her extreme loneliness and heartbreak in love relationships - "Empty Bed Blues," “Long John Blues,” “Do You Wanna Dance?” and, of course, "I Shall Be Released" and "Waiting for my new Friends to Come," so I was really happy to discover that this Christmas Edition wisely pumps up the Joy factor with several fantastic renditions of toe tapping Christmas songs and the ever popular "Superstar," "Baby Please Come Home" and "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy".


Sydney Genco and Allison Petrillo are a delight as her backup singers and bring their bright sexy dame harmonies and dance moves that really help support Jackson - who otherwise carries every minute of this very demanding vocal and theatrical "one woman show". 'Bette: Xmas' is adapted by both Artistic Director David Cerda and Jackson, and Jackson also directs this production along with Marc LeWallen while music direction is handled by Tommy Robb.


I highly recommend seeing this unique and talent-filled Hell in a Handbag production, which has only been improved from its original Summer form by being lit up with Christmas lights and the Joy of Christmas.


‘Bette: Xmas at the Continental Baths’ is being performed at Mary’s Attic through December 31st.

Published in Theatre in Review

There are certain theatrical events that I look forward to attending each season and Hell in a Handbag's Holiday shows are always at the top of my list. ‘The Golden Girls: The Lost Episodes – The Holiday Edition, Vol 2’ should be on the top of everyone’s list.  

When I'm sitting in the super cozy Mary's Attic filled with Christmas lights watching one of their wonderful camp parodies, I always feel like I am at home and in the company of great friends and family. This time I love everything about this show, including the opening when host Lori Lee (sidekick Flo) leads the audience in singing the theme song from Golden Girls TV show set in sunny Miami where I grew up. 

Thank you for being a friend.

Travel down the road and back again.

Your heart is true, you're a pal and a confidant

.And if you threw a party,

invited everyone you knew.

You would see the biggest gift would be from me

and the card attached would say,

thank you for being a friend.

This year’s 'Lost Episodes,' written with cheeky humor- as well as great compassion by Artistic Director David Cerda has especially sweet plotlines that remind me again how lucky one is to have friends and family around you... particularly during your golden years. 

Ed Jones as Rose Nylund, who still believes in Santa Claus is a scene stealer, as always delivers his spot on and totally endearing portrayal of the character made famous by the still "golden" Betty White. 

Grant Drager as Blanche delivers the sass and unabashedly sexy spice that shows even golden girls still have sexual needs that they should not be ashamed of! David Cerda as Dorothy and Ryan Oates as her mother Sophia bring home the dry humor that makes me laugh out loud every time. But I am also reminded of the true bond between mother and daughter when Sophia breaks her poker face and gently asks her daughter, "What's wrong pussycat?"  

Directed and choreographed by the very talented Stevie Love, each scene has a huge variety of great physical comedy and lighting surprises that make you wish the play was longer. Lori Lee is the host of the evening and gets acquainted with the audience between episodes with fun Golden Girls trivia that includes prizes for the audience members. Having the house lights up and interacting with Lori and others as they try to guess the answers lets you actually get to mingle with the audience you are sitting in and is a lovely part of the show.

If you've already been to a Hell in a Handbag Production and are addicted to their special brand of camp humor and music like I am, you already know how unique and fun their shows are. If you haven't been to one yet, ‘The Holiday Edition, Vol 2’ of Golden Girls is a PERFECT production to attend. 

Tis the season to curl up on one of the comfy couches at Mary's Attic with a hot toddy in hand and have a long, hard... laugh with your favorite family of friends! 

‘The Golden Girls: The Lost Episodes – The Holiday Edition, Vol 2’ is being performed at Mary’s Attic through December 29th. For more information visit www.handbagproductions.org.

Published in Theatre in Review

Here comes Halloween, one of my favorite holidays of all and, of course, the incomparable Artistic Director David Cerda of Hell in a Handbag Productions along with composer Andrew Milliken have created a Halloween camp extravaganza that is sure to satisfy even the blood/laugh thirstiest of Handbag's extensive loyal fan base. 

This time the much beloved TV show The Facts of Life has been crossbred with the TV movie Satan's School for Girls to create a colorful, musical, and hilarious, spot-on spoof!! As always Ed Jones steals most of his scenes this time as school headmaster, Edna Garrett. Jones is a superbly talented character actor and never fails to capture and mimic the juiciest and funniest quirks of the character in such a way that the audience can see and hear the original he is seemingly channeling throughout. Jones never drops the voice or tics for even a second and it sheer pleasure to watch and re-experience the humor of that time period revamped with sexy humor for today.

Madison Smith (whose acting work I also love) does a smash up job as director of this large, multi-talented cast. Stevie Love (who looked especially beautiful opening night BTW) did an amazing job on the super fun choreography. 

David Cerda also slays the room with his dry delivery and long legs in a lush auburn trussed wig with every entrance as Claudia, "a young boarding school student" going undercover to discover the mysteries of Satan worship that is lurking behind closed doors at Eastland. 

The lovely and gifted Graham Heacock makes a beautiful, and scary Blair come to life while Alexa Castelvecchi totally rocks the part of deadpan, butch "Jo" and gets to display her amazing singing voice.  

The whole cast is a delight as Handbag regular, Robert Williams, plays an adorable, goofy Tootie, while newcomer to Handbag - Brenna L. Watkins boldly brings back the character of Natalie.

I won't go too deep into the plotline because that's half the fun of a NEW Hell in a Handbag spoof! I like to just let the twists and turns unfold and surprise you as they wash over your brain with unexpected humor and joy. Highly recommended for old and NEW fans of Hell in a Handbag's productions at Mary’s Attic where you can relax in an intimate yet lively and rowdy theater environment, have dinner or drinks and just let the comedic memories of the shows they revive and also make fun of - energize your heart with laughter for the future! 

The Facts of Life: Satan’s School for Girls is being performed at Mary’s Attic in Andersonville through November 2nd.

Published in Theatre in Review

In 1956 a psychological horror-thriller film hit the big screens across America that undoubtedly shocked audiences nationwide. The film, The Bad Seed, was based on William March’s 1954 novel of the same name and also hit the stage that same year. In a time when UFOs and alien invasions caused country-wide panic, now comes a film where a sociopathic eight-year-old girl, Rhoda, murders when she doesn’t get what she wants when she wants it. Her mother, growingly suspicious of her daughter’s wicked deeds, is caught at a crossroads not knowing what to do since she also loves her more than anything in the world. The film goes on to debate whether criminal behavior is caused by one’s environment or perhaps is inherited. Sometimes a person is just a bad seed, right?

As serious and as creepy as the film is, it is the perfect material for the Hell in A Handbag theatre company to parody. Adding their own twists and turns and injecting their own unique blend of humor, the masters of camp have now given Chicago its newest comedy hit, The Drag Seed, by David Cerda. You may have guessed by the title that a drag theme is added to the story, this time the villain is not eight-year-old Rhoda but eleven-year-old Carson (Kristopher Bottral), a spoiled drag queen whose temper is turned on with a flick of the switch the moment he (in this case, “they/them,” as demanded by the child) doesn’t get what they want. The plot thickens as a trail of mysterious deaths occur throughout and Carson always seems to be found nearby.

It’s just a not-so-everyday life in the affluent suburbs where Miss Charles (David Cerda) is a live-in landlord. Miss Charles has taken a liking to tenants Miss Lingus (Ed Jones) and her dear Carson. Lee (Kelly Anchors) serves Miss Charles as the estate’s very quirky handyman and loves nothing more than teasing young Carson, who attends The Josephine Baker Rainbow Academy for Gifted Students led by Miss Ficus (also played by Anchors). It’s when fellow student Summer Breeze (Tyler Anthony Smith) wins a competition over Carson and is found dead shortly thereafter that the intrigue begins.

Carson’s mother Miss Lingus (“just call me Connie”) is at first ignorant to the clues being laid out in front of her, but slowly pieces them together and becomes conflicted since she loves her son more than a "fuck ton of kisses". Carson’s as a matter of fact behavior surrounding every death is not just a big clue, it’s downright creepy.

Directed by Cheryl Snodgrass, The Drag Seed, is a hilarious ride that’ll keep audience members on the edge of their seats. Ed Jones is like fine wine and just keeps getting more delicious with each show. I’ve probably said that this the last time around, but it’s true once again - Jones’ performance as Miss Lingus may be one of his best yet. His knack for executing the perfect facial expression at just the right moment coupled with capturing just the right tone in his line delivery makes him a comedic force. Excellent performances flood the stage in this production with Kristopher Bottral’s all-out hilarious and highly energetic “Carson” while David Cerda is comedic perfection as Miss Charles. Kelly Anchors doubling up for the roles of Miss Ficus and Lee is yet another highlight in this show, particularly the brilliance she infuses in her role as Lee, creating yet another sidesplittingly funny character that we won’t forget anytime soon. Handbag fave Elizabeth Lesinski returns, this time as Wendy Breeze, Summer’s drunk and distraught mother, and makes the most of her role with a flawlessly camped performance of Eileen Heckhart’s character in the 1956 film version. I know – high praise all around. Yes, but well-deserved. Sydney Genco and Tyler Anthony Smith also rock their roles, making this a truly well-round effort.

Handbag stalwarts will undoubtedly be very pleased with Cerda’s newest production and newbies that attend will be sure to get hooked on Handbag’s camp theatre.

The Drag Seed is perfect mid-summer fun and is an easy show to recommend. If you get the chance be sure to check out the The Bad Seed prior to seeing this production, if for anything just to appreciate Cerda’s brilliance that much more and the character nuances that these talented actors have so brilliantly executed into their roles. If you’re unable to catch the film first, don’t worry, you’ll still have a blast.

The Drag Seed is being performed at Mary’s Attic in Andersonville through August 24th. For more show information visit www.handbagproductions.org

Published in Theatre in Review
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