[Review] The Parker Entertainment Company: Rain Pryor – Fried Chicken and Latkes
“Where was I?… No, we’ve done racism – I did that already….”
“Do you have a script? Because this is getting tiring.”
Reminding us that this would not be a show of her father’s comedy, Rain Pryor’s warning was only too apparent as she lost her train of thought and struggled to fill the ensuing silence as her father would easily have done.
Scripting issues aside Pryor’s first Fringe nerves began to fade as she confidently recreated the highs and lows of her life as the black and Jewish daughter of late comedy giant Richard Pryor. Unfortunately, for much of the show there was a sense that ‘you just had to be there’ to find the situations relived amusing. As interesting as an insight into her childhood is, this show was not billed as ‘An Audience with Rain Pryor’ but rather a stand-up show, and the audience were left wondering as to whether there was sufficient fodder to meet this end.
Pryor’s character comedy was perhaps the strongest element of the show as she brought to life some of the most influential people in her life, in particular her black militant mother trapped in a white Jewish woman’s body. Most successful were the words in Pryor’s stories which related childhood experiences common to all – teasing at school, sneaking out of the house on a Friday night. These moments helped Pryor to recover from dismal turns such as an extended cheerleading song, in the face of which a bemused crowd sheepishly participated.
In the opening lines of her show Pryor gave warning to those that had come to see a replication of her father: “Perhaps you should go out and buy one of his DVDs. That way you won’t be disappointed.” Unfortunately on the back of her performance this can only be seen as wise advice.
Who: The Parker Entertainment Company: Rain Pryor – Fried Chicken and Latkes
Where: Smirnoff Baby Belly
When: 20:00-20:55; 4th-28th August (except 15th)
