[NoHo Arts District, CA] – A NoHo Arts theatre review of Victoria Kelleher’s Daddy Issues, directed by Dan Sanders-Joyce
produced by Jessica Lynn Johnson of Soaring Solo at Hollywood Fringe Festival 2024.
Victoria Kelleher is a brilliant and absolutely hilarious actor and apparently, this just happens to be her first time writing a solo show…you would never guess. From the very beginning of the show, Victoria has the audience in the palm of her hand. She is a gifted storyteller, the kind that you trust to walk you through their story, never faltering from the task. Unfolding each fact and maybe a little fiction as if it were the most natural thing in the world to be in a theatre with a bunch of strangers telling them all about your life.
It’s this rare talent in solo shows that always gets me. The ability to stand in front of people, hold their gaze, make them listen fascinated for an hour or more. It’s magical when it’s good and this show is very, very good.
Victoria gets a call from her sister one day. Her sister has just had her 23 and Me results back and what has been the family joke for years, since the two of them don’t look much alike, has now been proved to be real. According to science, they don’t have the same father. All it takes is a phone call from Victoria to her mother to get to the truth. It’s not her sister that’s the mistake, it’s Victoria. This is a shocker…
And this is where the ride gets wild. What a story. And what a wonderful storyteller Victoria is as she takes us on all the twists and turns of her life. Deadpan, sarcasm and heartfelt humor all mixed together with some pretty incredible moments of pure joy. Daddy Issues is a gem of a show and Victoria Kelleher is absolutely incredible.
Honestly, the audience was in tears one minute and tears of laughter the next. I think this play needs to be a movie…and Victoria should be the star of course. It’s a beautifully written show, so poignant and funny, like the best solo shows always are. Without the excellent writing, it would nice, but not the amazing play it has become. Victoria has crafted this to perfection with the help of her fantastic director Dan Sanders-Joyce and producer Jessica Lynn Johnson. With the addition of lots of gorgeous family photos and a hilarious cast of her real-life characters, it’s really a highlight of the Hollywood Fringe for me…but then I’m always a sucker for a happy ending. Bravo!!! See this show!!!
Tickets:
https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/10691?tab=tickets
Where:
Zephyr Theatre
7456 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046
When:
Friday, June 28 @ 8:15
Saturday, June 29 @ 9:30