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When dinner lasted a month
By BARBARA L. FREDRICKSEN, Times Staff Writer Last year, Angel Cabaret Theatre owner Jimmy Ferraro happened in on a show at Theatreworks in Sarasota named Me and Jezebel. He liked the comedy so much that he decided to do the show at his own theater. "I hired both the actors and the director," Ferraro said. "They did it (at Theatreworks) and brought it back again it was so successful." The show is based on the true story about the night in 1985 that Bette Davis came to dinner at playwright Elizabeth Fuller's Connecticut cottage and ended up staying for a month. The domineering Miss Davis soon began barking orders and giving directions to everyone in the house and almost wrecked the playwright's marriage. In the play, Fuller desperately wants to form a friendship with her idol, but Miss Davis' imperious ways end up alienating the whole family. The Fullers' son, Christopher, imitates Davis' tones and, worse, her salty language. Davis even stirs up trouble between Mr. and Mrs. Fuller, giving them advice on everything from how to rear their son to how to conduct their spiritual lives. There's a good side, too, mostly Davis' juicy stories about Hollywood stars, including her arch-rival, Joan Crawford. Playing the role of the diva (after her stroke and four years before her death) is Blake Walton, a former New York actor who originated more than a dozen roles Off Broadway and has directed and played in scores of shows in the Tampa Bay area. What do patrons think when they hear a man is playing the Bette Davis role? "When I tell people, they look at me and kind of laugh," Ferraro said. "Then they are intrigued and are eager to see it." Playing playwright/hostess Fuller is actor Sheri Cox, who has performed in almost every theater on Florida's west coast from her home base in Venice and has won many acting awards. Ms. Cox once lived in New Port Richey and frequently visited Weeki Wachee Springs with her father, who was media representative for the mermaid park. Ms. Cox's early dreams were of being a mermaid, but her success in theater has squelched those fantasies. At a glanceWHAT: Me and Jezebel WHERE: Angel Cabaret Theatre, 5201 U.S. 19 (Southgate Shopping Center), New Port Richey WHEN: March 1-31. 8 p.m. Fri.-Sat.; 6 p.m. Sun.; 1:30 Sat. and March 27. Doors open two hours earlier for buffet and cash bar. TICKETS: Dinner and show, $32.50; show only, $19.95, plus $2 handling fee per order, plus tax and tip. Call (727) 847-0019.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • Tampa Bay Times
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