All right now, before this begins I want to cut to the chase. Anytime you hear that 'Imitation of Wife' is playing somewhere… Go!
'Imitation of Wife' was created and is performed by Jeffrey A. Kash, who has such charisma and polish, I could watch him perform without the drag, and he would still have my full attention. The show is composed of countless sound bites, and musical numbers that are spliced together seamlessly. Once Kash hits the stage, he lip-syncs to every syllable. Every vocal gesture presented with confident precision.
The moment I walked into the theatre, I had a sense of Eda Bagel’s world. Peppy, toe-tapping music interspersed with vintage jingles advertising household cleaners and Chevrolet automobiles.
Then the first act began with Ms. Bagel dancing and lip-syncing to Doris Day’s 'Que Sera, Sera', then she cuts to Carol Burnet, and then Lily Tomlin selling laundry detergent. And so it begins. Ms. Eda struggles being a domestic housewife, and finds herself caught up in wanting to be a star.
Needless to say, Eda has a flare for the dramatic, and finds herself ostracized from her friends because of it. She can’t even prepare a chicken with the help of Julia Child, The Frugal Gourmet and Martin Yan. (But watching her try is a delight.) When she figures out that she doesn’t have any skill sets to hold down a job, she decides to break free.
The act closes with Eda declaring good-bye to marriage and being a housewife. She wants to be liberated. She wants to become a star.
The second act begins. Again, 'Que Sera, Sera' begins to play, but this time the melody becomes atonal. The rhythm isn’t quite right. Eda’s vision of being the perfect domesticated wife fades away like a dream.
The next time Ms. Eda Bagel, and she is a new woman. She becomes more confident. She sees liberation. She knows what she wants and she will have it. She is the greatest star, and everyone will know it.
The last four minutes of this show had the audience bursting with laughter. People were laughing as they left the theatre, and they continued to laugh in the parking lot.
Jeffery A. Kash commitment to performing Ms. Eda Bagel is something to behold.
'Imitation of Wife: An Unauthorized Autobiography' was created by Jeffery A. Kash and the November 4 and 5 performance were a benefit for the Boulder County AIDS Project.