Jungle Theater has a new holiday* tradition. After gifting us the most charming Jane Austen fan fic series
Christmas at Pemberley from 2017 to 2022 (
the finale of which is currently playing at Lyric Arts), they debuted their original piece
Dinner for One last year. This sweet little play with music is based on
a 12-minute comedy sketch written in the '20s, a televised version of which has become annual holiday viewing in many European countries. Artistic Director Christina Baldwin came up with the idea for the show, and co-created it with Sun Mee Chomet and Jim Lichtsheidl, with the former directing and the latter two performing. Featuring an odd ritual of a dinner party for Miss Sophie's 90th birthday and her imaginary guests, personified by her loyal servant, it's the perfect vehicle to show off the strength of the creators. And although I would like to say it's the rare show I wish were longer (it's a scant 60 minutes), it's perfection and I wouldn't change a thing. Somehow those 60 minutes are fuller and more satisfying than many shows two and three times its length.
Dinner for One continues through January 5 at Jungle Theater in Uptown.**
