ADVICE COLUMNS AND CHINESE MENUS

posted by James Reel

Time for links to my latest contributions to the Tucson Weekly. First, some advice about the latest ATC production:

Be honest: Would you really want to spend an evening with an advice columnist? By definition, she would be a know-it-all and maybe even a scold, dispensing opinions in such a steady stream that somehow, the whole encounter would revolve around her, rather than the people she would advise. Yet Ann Landers, or at least the version of her onstage courtesy of Arizona Theatre Company, turns out to be a more than tolerable companion. She's frank and extroverted and funny, but never so full of herself that she forgets that her job is to provide comfort and guidance to other people--people whose troubles may initially seem peculiar, but who have a great deal in common with each other, and with Landers herself. The famed, deceased advice columnist, whose real name was Eppie Lederer, is the subject of a one-woman show by David Rambo. ATC's production, which opened last week, is deftly directed by Samantha K. Wyer and boasts a splendid scenic design by Tom Burch, but the prime attraction is the woman on stage, Nancy Dussault. The term "veteran actress" is too often merely a euphemism for "old-timer," but Dussault is a veteran in the true sense: a deeply experienced performer who can slip into a role like this and bring it fully to life without displaying a single little actorly trick. Dussault is so engaging and believable that the play, _The Lady With All the Answers_, often seems more substantial than it really is.

The full review is here. Meanwhile, over in the Chow section, I scout out a Chinese restaurant:

I'd heard mixed reports about Ba-Dar Chinese Restaurant on East Broadway Boulevard. Ten years ago, Rebecca Cook, then the Weekly's able restaurant critic, paid one quick visit to the place and remarked, "On first impressions, the restaurant maintains a solid 'as it should be' with something extra in terms of variety." Since then, I've come across comments declaring that Ba-Dar offers the best Chinese food in Tucson, and that it offers the worst. Ethnic restaurants usually go wrong when they pander to bland middle-American tastes, so on a recent visit to Ba-Dar, my dining group (including a China-born friend) pretty much shied away from the standard menu (fairly extensive, but not overwhelming) and instead ordered items mainly from the Chinese menu, which is available only by request.

Find out what happened here.