Dorothy Dandridge's life as a theatrical triple threat was one of great volatility and struggle, from her upbringing to her public perception as a black woman who preferred liaisons with powerful white men. In Sloan Robinson's portrayal in this one-person show, written by Jamal Williams, we get the message, often cathartically, sometimes too loudly, and a few more times than we really need.
Portraying the first black woman to be nominated for an Oscar for Best Actress, in the musical Carmen Jones, Robinson has lovely timing and can quickly turn on the pathos. Considering, however, that the structure of the show is Dandridge's telling all to a naïve young journalist at the end of her career, sections that include emotional meltdowns and wild, jazzy free-form dancing don't exactly make the most dramaturgical sense. Not that choreographer Joyce Guy hasn't found impressive movement for the lithe Robinson, but, more to the point, it does not bring more focus to this rather long play, one that skips over the difficult issues for easier, on-the-nose agonizing.
"Dottie" charms us when she recalls overcoming her sexual timidity. "Lovemaking could be quite exhilaratingly therapeutic," she coyly admits, but her recounting of a long conga line of affairs, including Harold Nicholas, Peter Lawford, and Otto Preminger, does not make up for our wishing to know her feelings about her mother, who let a lesbian lover terrorize Dorothy. Dandridge's guilt at having to institutionalize her mentally handicapped daughter comes across a number of times, but, despite Robinson's inherent abilities, Williams' script allows her little subtlety.
Erma Elzy-Jones directs the piece well throughout the dressing-room set but lets pianist Aeros DeAnda Pierce sometimes overwhelm, rather than underscore, the confessions. Robinson's singing voice is not the strongest, although this is covered in the text. And the repetition of the theme of not finding love, in the play and in the music, does not let the audience discover Dandridge's psychology. Rather it is spoon-fed, like the chitlins she prepares backstage. Overlooking the mystery of her drug overdose, the end of the work wraps up too quickly and tidily, which is especially frustrating for a woman as complex, talented, and tortured as she was.
"Yesterday Came Too Soon… The Dorothy Dandridge Story," presented by 4305 Village Theatre and Ron Richards Productions at the Village Theatre, 4305 Degnan Blvd., Los Angeles. Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 4 p.m. Sept. 22-Oct. 14. $10. (323) 293-1230.