Redneck jokes and tacky, yet well-written songs were aplenty in “My Big Fat Oildale Wedding,” a comedic play put on by Gaslight Melodrama Theatre and Music Hall.
Director and playwright Michael Prince has truly captured the essence of Oildale in this ridiculously entertaining and sometimes scary accurate portrayal of the area.
“My Big Fat Oildale Wedding” is about a mechanic, Billy Ray, and a florist, Sue Ann, who fall in love with each other despite their families’ differences.
A basic narrative, so what’s the twist? They’re all from Oildale!
The first scene is set in Sue Ann’s family’s floral shop, and it right away gets you engaged in the story with great lines and characters that everyone from the greater Bakersfield area should know all too well. Her father, Butch Otis, is my favorite character of the show. He is a life-long resident of Oildale, as is the rest of the cast. His outfit is truly what makes his character, the fishing vest with a strip of beef jerky tucked away in the front pocket.
Her mother, the antagonist of the show, was the proto-typical loud mouthed, over-protective mother that reminded me of Roz, the slug receptionist from “Monsters Inc.” Her lines were at times exaggerated a little too much but in all she gave a great performance.
The second scene is set in the shop that mechanic Billy Ray works at.
Billy Ray and Sue Ann meet while taking out the trash for their families’ businesses, and instantly know that they had found their one true love, and break out into song right away. The singing in the show was way above par, and much better than I was anticipating.
The story carried along very well from there, and the characters never lost their appeal. Every line and joke was set up well and executed almost flawlessly.
At times the choreography was cheesy, but you got the sense that it was intended to be that way.
The climax of the show was a little lackluster compared to the rest of the show.
The theater was brilliantly set up, with an old 1800s feel to it. I was put back in time, before there was any idea of special effects and CGI. The whole atmosphere really helped engage you into the story and characters.
The whole atmosphere also made the event, and the great performance was what really put this play over the top.