DORSET — Dorset Theatre Festival continues its 2024 summer season with an abbreviated two-week run of one of the most warmly received plays in America today, Kim Powers' “Sidekicked,” directed by Jackson Gay. The story is told in a fast-paced 65 minutes with no intermission, logistics well-suited to an August mix of laughs, tears and heads nodding in agreement. “Sidekicked” is a one-act and one-actor mix of comedy and drama that revolves around iconic TV sidekick, Vivian Vance, who played Ethel Mertz in “I Love Lucy” from 1951 to 1958.
The role gave Vance, already an established actor, meteoric fame, even though she was not Lucille Ball’s first choice for the role. After years of playing Ethel Mertz, the housecoat-wearing sidekick to America’s then-favorite sitcom star, Vivian Vance had a lot she needs to get off her chest. In her dressing room on the night of the show’s final filming, Vance (Kelly McAndrew) issues an SOS to her long-time analyst: help me understand who I really am before I’m stuck being Ethel forever.
And she relives it all: the good, the bad, and, well, the Lucy. A moving passage from Powers’ script sums it all up, and was delivered with expert timing and expression by the deeply talented McAndrew: “I’m not Ethel and I’m sick and tired of playing her. So there.
But who am I without her? I’m not a wife anymore. I’m not a mother. I’m not a .
.. am I even much of an actress anymore? I’m tired of being second banana.
I wanna be first banana. I wanna be more than just Lucy’s sidekick. I’ve been sidekicked to death.
” It was clear from the opening curtain that director Gay had her actor fully charged and hungry for primetime. McAndrew shimmied, sang, wiggled, frowned, danced, pouted, guffawed and so many other qualifiers that should be associated with a one-actor play that is executed to perfection. To do some of those things in any production is admirable, but to do them all while being alone on stage for 65 minutes with no breaks is just amazing to witness.
Lights by Seth Reiser were a stunning array of accents, as was sound by Sinan Refik Zafar, which resounded throughout McAndrew’s blur on stage. Costumes by Fabian Fidel Aguilar were perfect matches to Vance’s mood, and Piw Rakkulchon’s scenic design cleverly echoed Vance’s entire career up until her collaboration with Lucy. The machine-gun pace of this play was excellently stage managed by Kate Croasdale, with Judy Bowman’s casting a steady contribution to this entire Dorset season.
A shout-out must also be rendered to the period fun from wig designer Rachel Padula-Shufelt. This is not only a cleverly conceived storyline from Powers, but coupled with McAndrew’s peerless acting and Dorset’s world-class production team, this show, as evidenced by the standing ovation when I attended, is destined for an entire run of such plaudits. Really, the pace, the story, the poignant human theme, and the highs and lows over such a short period of time make “Sidekicked” the perfect destination for a summer drive — and a lot of world-class entertainment.
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