Review: Vice Girl Confidential

An over-the-top spoof reminiscent of “Pleasantville” and everyone’s favorite musical parody, “Reefer Madness,” Walter J. Hoffman’s revival of Todd Michael’s “Vice Girl Confidential” dives into the heady depths of ’50s parody as it vies to convert Gotham’s vice girls to Gotham’s nice girls. 

The play follows the city’s biggest bad guy Duke Craigie (Jeff Auer), who is on a murderous quest to expand his prostitution empire. This leads him to the main conflict with Stella Fontaine (Michael, in drag), the only madam in Gotham whose call-girl house isn’t controlled by Craigie.

These shenanigans take place in the tiny black-box Under St. Mark’s, where seating is first come, first served. Within walking distance from campus, it is a cozy space whose bad soundproofing and reek of cheap beer too easily conjure up the atmosphere of an old-time dive.

The space did more for the show’s atmosphere than the casting. Neither Emily King Brown (Flo) nor Courtney Cook (Mamie) was voluptuous or even vampy, and their accents wobbled from southern to British to matinee idol. Jessica Luck, who played Mamie’s younger sister, had no accent at all. What is more, their dresses were poorly made and the wigs looked as cheap as their profession. (Then again, perhaps that was the point.)

Providing a pleasing counterpoint to this disappointment were the male actors — Zach Lombardo and Thom Brown in particular. Dead on from the get-go, Lombardo transformed from narrator to a “Godfather”-voiced hit-man to a high-waist khakis-wearing stenographer. If not for anything else, see this show for Lombardo. Brown, as a bellowing district attorney, had quick comedic timing and a consistent baritone.

“Vice Girl Confidential” has an entertaining premise but needs a more solid ensemble to fully showcase Michael’s quick wit and humorous dialogue.


“Vice Girl Confidential” runs through Nov. 16 at 94 St. Mark’s Pl. Tickets are $18 and can be purchased at www.horseTRADE.info.


Katie Polin is a staff writer. E-mail her at theater@nyunews.com.

Comments

1 comments

Concerned Reader

Wed Nov 12 2008 15:25

Perhaps, WSN, you should more thoughtfully proof your theatre "critic’s” “review” before your run her piece . . . then you might avoid the embarrassment of publishing such trite nonsense about one of the finest shows running in New York right now. The condition of the theatre? Are you kidding me? Has Polin ever been to any NY Theatre? Her limited experience and authorship shine brightly throughout this article (I can’t even call it a “review” anymore,) and I urge its readers to ignore it altogether. Or rather, see it for what it is: A scathing criticism turned rave review when one considers the source.

(See the review on nyTheatre.com if you’d like an honest idea of what to expect from Vice Girl Confidential, oh and CRIME FLORISHES IN THE DARK, BUT . . .)

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