I never intended for Frankie McNair's Tabitha Booth to be the last show I reviewed for Adelaide Fringe 2024. But after a Thursday night show cancellation and some spare time on my hands on the final night of the fringe, I thought I’d make the effort to check out this often fantastic performer after seeing hilarious online promos for her newly developed character Tabitha Booth. This 50s starlet used to be the talk of Hollywood but faded from the limelight after her hit movie Long Fork Lady was released. Now she makes her triumphant return to the stage and, with her assistant Riley, aims to leave her mark on audiences yet again.

I marvelled at the character that McNair has developed for this show. There’s so much history to Tabitha Booth, and she seemed to have a clever quip or comment for any occasion. This may be a one-woman show, but McNair has a fantastic straight man in Riley to complement Booth’s crazy, as the two worked off each other seamlessly and brought many laughs throughout the hour-long performance. The best part, however, comes from Booth's interaction with the audience. Whether she was putting cigarette ash on people’s heads or staring at them for an uncomfortably long time, it was great to see the crowd come along for this slapstick ride. And what a rollercoaster ride of emotions this former film star has. I’m sure McNair must be exhausted after each show because the way she jumps about on stage, is able to get really high and really low, all the while moving the performance along, is a sight to behold.

Ridiculously fun and ludicrously over-the-top, McNair has created a character we can all root for. Think Lucille Ball and you’ll know what you’re going to get. And if you don’t know who Lucille Ball is just check out this character anyway. A lot of people in the audience walked into this show not knowing what they were in for and walked out with huge smiles on their faces, which is a testament to the fun environment that McNair creates. Although the ending did come about quite abruptly, it’s safe to say that Tabitha Booth may be hitting it big a second time around.

FOUR AND A HALF STARS ****1/2 

Reviewed by Shane Berketa