THE PETERSON SHOW

This is one of the most excellent shows I’ve seen in a while. It’s mostly hilarious, with the few very serious parts landing just as hard. My friend Marc told me he never heard me laugh that much! (I guess he never watched my former TV show with me—Mr. X always said, “Getting quite a kick out of yourself, aren’t you?”)

I actually almost passed on seeing The Peterson Show because of time-constraints. But once I noticed that Tamberla Perry is in the play, I was in. Not only had I given her a great review in 2022’s Clyde’s at the Taper, (writing that she’s “the perfect-looking woman, and so funny, to boot,”) but the TV series she had been on for the past two seasons, Brilliant Minds, is one of the few that Mr. X and I watched. And I was rewarded with yet another excellent performance from her.

And from all seven cast members, actually. This is stage acting of the highest quality! The actors have tons of credits among them, but the only other grown-up I had ever seen before is handsome John Clarence Stewart, whom I had also reviewed favorably in Jelly’s Last Jam at the Pasadena Playhouse. He was on Brilliant Minds for the past two seasons, as well. (His and Tamberla’s characters were dating, and now this play made me wish they were a real-life couple, but they are not—they’re both very happy with significant others.) That series should not have been *cancelled, but had it not been, we wouldn’t get to see the duo in this play now! *(Except that Brilliant Minds was sort-of dark, with a lot of confusing characters, but it’s the acting that attracted us.)

Getting back to The Peterson Show, which is presented by the Echo Theatre Company, this is one of the very few times that I’m glad I knew a couple of things going in, so I’m sharing them with you. First is that the play, brilliantly written by Janine Nabers, is a mostly hilarious indictment of Bill Cosby, though his name is never used, and the story is fictional. The other is that it’s not based solely on The Cosby Show, but also on several of the all-black comedies of that time period—Family Matters, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Martin, and Sister, Sister. (You absolutely must click on the QR code on the ticket counter on the way in to read all that went on with those shows! I was especially astonished by the fact that on Family Matters, which I have never seen, a series regular just disappeared from the show, with her character never even being mentioned again!)

The narrative is of a quintet of former child actors who were on an old sitcom, the star of which has now been accused of sexually assaulting dozens of women over the years. So it’s loosely based on Bill Cosby and his show, but it’s not the story of the real actors. Yes, in real life there was a show with five children children and a wife and husband, and yes, Cosby has been accused of sexually assaulting over sixty women and girls, (but was, sadly, convicted of only one rape, which was shamefully overturned in 2021. And, by the way, I have always thought he’s disgusting.) But The Peterson Show is fictitious. [Note: Sadly, as a former young actress, I know things like that really do happen because been there, done that. One producer who tried to trick me was even my friend’s father! But no worries—I outwitted them all. However, you’ll have to wait for my book to read those creepy tales.]

I would classify The Peterson Show as a comedy, because even though there is a lot of drama, there are tons of hearty laughs. So just be prepared for both. If it weren’t for the serious overall topic, I would even call it a laugh riot. It’s all expertly balanced by director Michelle Bossy.

Every member of the cast is perfect. There’s Kristen Ariza as Zoe, the sort-of mature one; Kelly McCreary as Blair, the successful one; John Clarence Stewart as the one who rose above it all; and Deanna Reed-Foster, who, as the actress who had played the mother on the sitcom, has the most dramatic role, and delivers it flawlessly. Young Journee Rose, (from Abbott Elementary, which Mr. X and I love,) has a very small role near the end, as the kid version of Tamberla’s character, Ronika, and actually looks just like her.

Speaking of looks, I didn’t even recognize Tamberla! She’s so skinny and young-looking, as opposed to being so grown-up and authoritative as the shrink on that TV series. The Peterson Show showed us just how versatile she is. And all three women—Tamberla, Kelly, and Kristen, (who looks just like not one but two friends of mine, so I already had warm feelings toward her character)—have the bodies of life!!! I’m sick with jealousy, and started working-out the second I got home!

But the actor who made me downright guffaw, (along with the rest of the audience,) is Devere Rogers, as Dwight, Ronika’s flamboyant bestie. OMG—he wrings every laugh possible out of his role! From the second he appears! I honestly was afraid I was going to choke from laughing so hard.

My favorite bit of the whole show is a tiny one. Adult Ronika gets spotted by the paparazzi, and Tamberla’s facial transition in that moment is perfection.

Seriously, there is not even one weak moment from any of the actors in this one, something I can rarely say about any production.

In case you’re curious, we never see “Hayward Peterson,” the father on the sitcom, but we hear him on occasion. The voice actor, Gilbert Glenn Brown, sounds just like Blair Underwood, (which is a total compliment.)

Janine Nabers has written so many clever lines that will resonate with audiences, no matter one’s age, ethnicity, or familiarity with these shows. If you’re white, you don’t have to be Rachel Dolezal to get all the references; most of them are pretty universal. (Except the one about Lisa Bonet biting the head off a chicken—which she is erroneously said to have done in the 1987 movie Angel Heart—is a tad obscure. It took me a second, but I loved it.) Yet I did not know that eating Honey Nut Cheerios is a white person thing. (Guilty! I do it every day, so perhaps it is!)

As to the technical aspects of The Peterson Show, Michael Paul Kramer designed a great set, especially to show so many locations in such a small space. Another little bit of creativity is that there are a couple of big-yet-unobtrusive screens hanging down a bit from above the set on the front sides. Snippets of those old sitcoms play on them as the audience gets seated, and then they feature a few other situations as the play goes along. Very helpful.

And costume designer Wendell C. Carmichael came up with fabulous outfits, each one spot-on for the characters. I’m desperate to know where he found red sparkly high-tops for Dwight! When Devere took them off at one point, I had to stop myself from running down to the stage and grabbing them for myself! (I’d have to fit both my tiny feet into just one of the sneaks, but just like Cinderella’s wicked stepsisters, I would give it my best shot.)

However, as a total hair girl, I was most impressed with the ever-changing hairdos on the ladies. I’m pretty sure there had to be some wigs involved because of the many different hairstyles that changed in a matter of minutes, but I swear, I could not tell even one of them! That’s a rarity for me. (But I did spot a couple in the audience, especially on one man. Just sayin’.)

The only thing wrong with the entire presentation is that John Clarence Stewart went shirtless too far out of my sight!!! They need to make that scene front and center! Or maybe even right in the aisle next to my seat!

And I do have to admit that the length of the first act is a tiny bit of an issue. As it went on well past an hour, I started to think there was no intermission because the tale seemed like it was about to be concluded. But there is a break at about an hour and a half, and it’s actually necessary to completely overhaul all the wardrobe. And then the second act is only about a half hour, so don’t get frustrated and leave at halftime—Act II is really good. This is actually how good the entire production is, despite the length—I was totally exhausted that day, so I brought a Vitamin B with me to keep me awake, and I never even thought of popping it!

And here’s something interesting—The Peterson Show even runs on a few Monday nights! You might even see an actor or two from other stage shows around town on those evenings; they usually can’t see their pal’s presentations because they all play at the same time, so a Monday show is not only a breath of fresh air, it’s also a happening event. The audience I saw it with actually looked like a very hip professional acting class! I was glad to be among them.

The Atwater Village Theatre has lovely personnel, especially Jason. And there’s free parking! It’s in a huge lot down the block a bit, so ask if you’re not sure which it is.

Now go see this show already!

The Peterson Show running through October 26, 2026
Atwater Village Theatre

3269 Casitas Ave., Atwater Village
www.echotheatercompany.com