Chris Willman, Sr. Music Writer, Variety
I was pleased to catch the last of nine performances she did of this (mostly) one-woman show at the Broadwater theater complex, and found it rewarding and challenging in its take on race in America and how white people (and white women in particular) do and don’t grapple with ugly legacies. Beyond the content itself, I was impressed by how easily Rain straddled the line between the demands of a serious dramatic performance and just letting us feel like we were at a dinner party or salon with an especially captivating host. (Plus we got a few of her songs, with a couple of backing musicians, as bonuses amid the soliloquy.) I’m hoping she presents this again here so I can urge some of you to see it…
Props also to the team that can set up stage design, sound and instruments in 10 minutes and take it down just as fast as a festival hustles multiple shows in and out every day of a festival… I think our audience of about 50 was out of the sun and seated for about two minutes at most before Rain was world-building for us.
Also, just speaking to the Fringe Festival in general, I’ve got to say what a kick it was to show up in the early afternoon on a hot Saturday and see excited crowds milling around the entrances for four separate stages at the Broadbent. (I think the last time I was in this particular house was when I knew Patty Heaton and saw her doing a play in the early ‘90s, obviously pre-“Raymond.”) This complex is what I picture in my mind when I think about theater living and breathing in Los Angeles.