The Golden Girls: The Laughs Continue Brings Iconic Sitcom Back to Life with a Hilarious, Campy Twist Featuring an All-Male Cast.

September 3rd, 2024

This lighthearted romp down memory lane is a high camp tribute to The Golden Girls – the beloved, classic sitcom that aired from 1985 to 1992, known for its hilarious, heartwarming and often sassy humor.

The show followed four older women—Dorothy Zbornak (Bea Arthur), her sharp-tongued Sicilian mother Sophia Petrillo (Estelle Getty), the flirtatious Southern belle Blanche Devereaux (Rue McClanahan) and the delightfully naïve and sweet Rose Nylund (Betty White)—who share a house in Miami.

The award-winning TV show combined sharp, witty dialogue with slapstick comedy and tender moments, often tackling real-life issues like aging, relationships and friendship, but always with a comedic twist. The four women famously gathered around the kitchen table late at night to eat cheesecake and share laughs, inviting the audience along on a feel-good experience that’s frequently as funny today as it was when it first aired.

The Golden Girls: The Laughs Continue provides us with a creatively reimaged version of an episode of The Golden Girls with the four lead characters being played – quite convincingly by men. The rise of the curtain reveals the wonderful rattan living room furniture with its peach floral cushions that fans of the TV show know and love. The cast had to hold for a moment as the sight of it brought a round of applause from an appreciative audience.

We quickly learn that Sophia is under house-arrest (complete with ankle monitor) pending her trial for selling drugs to the residents of Shady Pines Nursing Home. Dorothy and Blanche have created a risqué dating app for seniors. The app becomes successful so quickly that though they are rolling in money, they are struggling to keep up with the demands of the site. Meanwhile, the normally dateless Dorothy finds what could be true love (or at least good sex) with a man who turns out to be the prosecuting attorney on Sophia’s case!  Just to add to the mayhem, an unsuspecting Rose eats a piece of LSD laced cheesecake baked by Sophia and intended for one of her buyers. Rose’s acid induced trip is one of the highlights of the show.

The chemistry between the characters is comedic gold, with each woman (or man) bringing their own quirks and personality to the table. Dorothy is still the smart, sarcastic one and her trademark baritone speaking voice is admirably captured by the actor. Blanche’s walk and facial expressions are spot on, though her southern accent sounds a bit more like Julia Sugarbaker from Designing Women, and some of Blanche’s higher register is missing. Kudos to the costume designer for Blanche’s ensembles which were near perfect replicas of one’s worn in the series. Rose’s innocent and often absurd stories about her hometown of St. Olaf are actually kept to a minimum in the show as she has so much else to do. I cannot imagine a better vocal imitation of Rose than that provided, or anyone better for the role (male or female). Sophia’s blunt, no-nonsense advice and mischievous is there as well. The subject matter is new, and the dialogue is blue, but what more can you say about this live, campy visit with the cast of The Golden Girls but “Thank you for being a friend!”

Golden Girls The Laughs Continue will be appearing through September 29, 2024, in the Amaturo Theatre at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, located at 581 W. Las Olas Blvd, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33312. For tickets and information visit www.BrowardCenter.org.