Susan Granger’s review of “I’ll Eat You Last” (Booth Theater – 2012-2013 season)
To understand John Logan’s hilarious comedy, you’ve got to know that Sue Mengers was the first female “superagent” at a time when women talent agents were almost unheard of. At the height of her career in the 1970s, she represented Hollywood’s hottest stars, like Barbra Streisand, Ali MacGraw, Faye Dunaway, Gene Hackman, Candice Bergen, Michael Caine, Cher, Joan Collins, Nick Nolte and Burt Reynolds – until the big agencies, like CAA, eventually devoured celebrity representation.
The message on the opening curtain warns: “This play contains profanity, smoking, alcohol consumption, drug use – and gossip.”
Deception and deceit was a way of life in the shamelessly competitive jungle of studio politics, along with the inevitable feuding and fighting. While Bette Midler’s performance is deliriously decadent for a full 90 minutes with no intermission, most of her anecdotes and quips are familiar dish to those who’ve read star-struck ‘Vanity Fair’ over the years, particularly the December, 2011 issue. Indeed, that magazine’s editor Graydon Carter is listed as one of the show’s lead producers.
Nevertheless, Bette Midler is marvelous. She’s lowered her speaking voice to Mengers’ level and replicated her mocking tone, as Joe Mantello’s minimal staging has her writhing around on a 10-foot couch, enlisting an audience member to fetch a drink or a joint, murmuring, “If you can’t say anything nice about someone, come sit by me…”
Scott Pask has adroitly recreated Mengers’ John Woolf-designed Beverly Hills home, circa 1981, with its tall Regency doors and spacious, white orchid-adorned living room, filled with comfortably contemporary furniture and a couple of palm trees, the windows overlooking an unused, egg-shaped swimming pool – bathed in Hugh Vanstone’s soft lighting – as costumer Ann Roth duplicates the kind of comfortable caftan that Mengers favored.
For those who relish Hollywood lore, “I’ll Eat You Last” is delicious. But Bette Midler’s only committed to a limited run, so get your tickets now.