Taffy & Tonya Live! at the Ramada Inn Key West
Gold Venue, find showtimes
Classy. Sophisticated. Elegant.
These are not words one would use to describe Taffy and Tonya, the two semi-retired “working girls” singing for their supper at the Ramada Inn in Key West in the new Fringe show Taffy & Tonya Live! at the Ramada Inn Key West.
A word you definitely would use, though, is “hilarious.”
Doug Ba’aser (Taffy) and Rich Kuntz (Tonya) burst onto the stage made up to look like a cheap lounge in the Key West Ramada Inn (this evening the part of the Ramada Inn will be played by the Gold Venue).
The girls look tired – hair teased to the heavens and make-up painted on thick – and better days have been before them but they are going to power through and entertain the audience, and that they do.
It is almost too difficult to put this show into words as it is so heavily tied to its visuals. I could describe to you what Tonya looks like as she leans back, legs spread wide, talking about the man who “raped” her.
“I wanna dedicate this next song to my rapist,” Tonya says before she and Taffy serenade us with their rendition of Captain & Tennille’s “Do That To Me One More Time.”
I could also attempt to recount to you how Taffy looked in a skintight one piece with fringe as she perched herself on a stool, singing to the audience as a slideshow of childhood photos played on the screen.
Taffy and Tonya are two entertainers that needed to be experienced to be appreciated completely.
Directed by Michael Wanzie (where does he find the time?), the show is filled with the raunchy, tasteless and heartwarming humor that we have all come to expect and love from the likes of Ba’aser, Kuntz and Wanzie.
Do not miss this show and make sure you bring those dollar bills. Peaches needs to eat!
Read all of Watermark’s coverage of the 2016 Orlando Fringe Theatre festival here.
