Bette Davis’ biggest role was an overstayed houseguest in MainStage’s ‘Me and Jezebel’
Rich Lopez | Staff Writer
RichLopezWrites@gmail.com
Perhaps the diva of divas, Bette Davis was no doubt a presence on screen in classic films such as All About Eve, Dark Victory and Of Human Bondage. In Elizabeth Fuller’s book Me and Jezebel: When Bette Davis Came for Dinner — And Stayed … And “ Stayed … and the play of the same name, the icon has a whole different presence. And it’s one that just won’t go away.
But in MainStage’s production of Me and Jezebel, you almost don’t want her to ever leave.
Set in 1985, the story centers on the author (played by Bailey Maxwell) who — through a friend’s recommendation, some bad timing and questionable luck — plays host in her Connecticut cottage to Bette Davis (played by Doug Fowler) during a hotel strike in New York City.
What started out as a stay of a couple of days extended into longer than Fuller and her family expected. What sounded like a dream to Fuller, who was also a big Davis fan, turned into something else.
Directed by BJ Cleveland, the show is a delightful slice-of-life look into Fuller’s time with the star. At first, it’s a fantastical notion, with Fuller tiptoeing around Bette to make sure everything is perfect. Davis’ stay grows on Fuller’s four-year-old son, who develops a sweet relationship with the two-time Oscar winner. But it doesn’t yield the same results with Fuller’s husband.
By week three, the situation is far more tenuous — despite the growing friendship.
Both actors stepped up to the burden of having to be onstage almost 100 percent of the time. Maxwell’s performance had many facets, as she had to play every other character mentioned in the show, such as her husband, her son, her friend. But as Fuller, her wide-eyed earnest demeanor was apropos for the character, and that held steadfast throughout even when undergoing some character growth. Maxwell fully realized her character and never let it falter.
In my interview with Fowler prior to the show, he talked about the audience seeing Bette Davis and not a drag performance, and he did that with great precision. In lieu of impersonating Bette Davis, Fowler captured her essence, which let such a grand character have her humanity.
At times though, Fowler stayed at high volume, which threw off more intimate scenes between Davis and Fuller.
While the performances were outstanding, the story itself fell short as a play. The arc of each character is minimal, and there was no feeling that Fuller dove deep into crafting characters with layers. Plus, Fuller, the character, had to play other characters unnecessarily where Fuller, the playwright, could have written in other actors for her family and her friend. Without reading it, it’s hard to tell if she created the play as an extension of the book or as an experiment to turn that time into a script.
Despite that criticism, Me and Jezebel is nonetheless entertaining — especially for fans of Davis or even fans just classic cinema. Cleveland’s direction is efficient and, paired with the actors’ skills, he made sure there was never a dull moment.
Fowler’s centerpiece performance was a wonder, with zingers aimed at Joan Crawford, Paul Newman and Clark Gable that gave his scenes the fabulous cattiness that one would expect in a show about Davis.
Me and Jezebel by MainStage Irving/Las Colinas runs through Aug. 7 at the Dupree Theater in the Irving Arts Center. mainstageirving.com.