Susan Granger’s review of “Approval Junkie” (Audible’s Minetta Lane Theatre – Off-Broadway)
By her own admission – from winning her Atlanta high school Miss Aphrodite beauty pageant, to graduating with a Master’s degree from Harvard – Faith Salie is the ultimate approval seeker. So, having enjoyed her comedic commentaries on “CBS Sunday Morning,” I was in her corner before this introspective, one-woman show even began.
Based on her 2016 book of essays, “Approval Junkie” chronicles her persistent striving for success -whatever that word means.
Is success measured by being svelte? Faith Salie describes herself as a person who once “considered rice cakes a sensible dinner,” as part of her “tortured crusade to be thin,” restricting herself to 800 calories and two workouts per day. That led to anorexia.
Is validation achieved by pleasing her first husband – a.k.a. “wasband”? When he asked her to get an exorcism, she actually did – at an Ayurvedic Healing Center in a strip mall in Sarasota, Florida.
Not surprisingly, when Salie finally opted to end the marriage, she still yearned to look “sexy” during divorce hearing.
Does one find affirmation in re-marriage, even if you met your future spouse, as she did, through “Gay Date”?
Then is perfection measured by procreation? Salie endured egg-freezing, artificial insemination and IVF.
If you live in New York, do you measure success by getting your four year-old into the right kindergarten? That, apparently, involves a nerve-wracking “observed play date,” among other indignities.
“Seeking approval has not undone me,” Salie admits. “It’s built me.”
Admittedly, I found all of this far more amusing than my husband did, even though he, too, is an admirer, often listening to lighthearted Salie on NPR’s quiz show “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me.”
Wearing a belted, navy silk jumpsuit and beige heels (courtesy of costume designer Ivan Ingermann), Salie’s adroitly directed by Amanda Watkins and polished by Jack Magaw’s minimalistic set design, Amanda Zieve’s lighting, and Brandon Bush’s sound design.
“Approval Junkie” plays at the Minetta Lane Theatre until December 12. For tickets and information: www.audible.com. And, if you cannot get there, rest assured that Audible is recording this 90-minute show for future release.