Bea Arthur at the Savoy

In the mid to late eighties, I remember spending time watching a brilliant new US comedy programme, 'The Golden Girls', on the UK's newest TV channel, Channel Four.

Each week, we invited the four women into our home, not only to find out more about the humour in the everyday lives of Blanche, Dorothy, Rose and Sophia, but also because they brought with them, an awareness of many of the social issues of the day, such as AIDS, Womens rights, Gay rights etc.

Hearing that one of the actresses from the programme, Bea Arthur, was in London performing her One Woman Show in Sept/Oct 2003, we decided to travel to London to see her at the Savoy Theatre, and find out more about the woman herself rather than the character of Dorothy Zbornak that she played in the series.

London's Savoy Theatre is located next to the Savoy Hotel on the Strand. It opened in 1881 when impresario Richard D'Oyly Carte wanted his own theatre in which to stage the works of Gilbert & Sullivan. It was the first building in the world to be entirely lit by electricity. In 1929 the Victorian auditorium was transformed into a gleaming palace in a magic miracle of modernisation. In 1990, the auditorium was unfortunately ravaged by fire, but it has now been lovingly restored to its 1929 glory.

From 'Mame' to 'Maude' to 'The Golden Girls', Bea Arthur celebrates a career spanning six decades of work on stage, television and film. She is best known for her Emmy Award winning roles on television, as the sharp-tongued Dorothy in The Golden Girls and the ground-breaking liberal Maude in the show of the same name.

Bea is also familiar to Broadway audiences from her star turns as Vera Charles in her Tony Award-winning performance in Mame, and as Yente the Matchmaker in the original Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof. Now, one of America's comedic treasures makes her London West End debut with her one-woman show.

'After being in the business a long time, I've done everything but rodeo and porn'

Head held high, Bea glides onto the stage, barefoot, to give a two hour long warm and funny performance, reflecting on her life by telling stories about, and singing songs from the many shows that she has appeared in since she first set foot on the stage in 1954.

Bea is accompanied on the piano by Billy Goldenberg. Billy has been working as a composer for many years, and indeed you'll probably find that you know some of his work which includes the score to the classic Stephen Spielberg suspense movie 'Duel'; and the themes to the TV programmes 'Rhoda' and 'Kojak'. Click here to learn more about Billy Goldenberg from the Internet Movie Database

It's a very informal affair. On the stage there is just an armchair and a piano. You really feel as though Bea has invited you round to dinner. Indeed she even starts the performance by giving you one of her favourite lamb recipes. The plain background of the set is enhanced during several of the songs by delightful lighting effects designed by Matthew Berman.

Bea may be 80 years old, but you'd never know it. She has a wonderful command of the stage, and a great voice. She even apologises for having a heavy cold, which may make her voice sound deeper than usual! Amongst other things, you'll find out why Bea now appears barefoot, how Tony Curtis was whisked off to Hollywood, and how not to react if you find a nun in the back of your cab! One of my favourite moments from the performance was when Bea recalls a tale about a missing soup ladle.

DIDN'T GET TO SEE THE SHOW ?
Although there is nothing like seeing the lady herself, if you didn't get to see the performance in London, you can always hear it by purchasing the CD of show, recorded in Florida in December 2001.

Buy it now from Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk

The CD was also available in the foyer of the Savoy Theatre for £15 during the run. Did you remember to pick up your copy ?

To promote her UK One Woman Show, 'Bea Arthur at the Savoy', Bea made several appearances on television chat shows in the United Kingdom.

On Friday 26th September 2003, Bea appeared on 'Richard & Judy' on Channel 4