Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
The musical-comedy duo Vickie and Nickie are back with a fresh hour of brash singing, multi-instrumental musical hijinks, and faux-Midwestern shtick. This time out, it’s Inside Vickie and Nickie, an "autobiographical" tour through the origins of the fast-talking Minnesota moms who are, as always, played to the hilt by sumptuously bedecked and bewigged real-life sisters Lisa and Lori Brigantino.
While half the fun of a Vickie and Nickie show is the banter, really the funniest thing is not their stories and mugging and lutefisk jokes but the way they attack each song as if it were a tough piece of meat that needed merciless tenderizing. Whether screeching through Donny Osmond's "Go Away Little Girl," bluegrassing Lady Gaga, blasting out Beyonce, or squeezing out a polka, it's always a full-tilt boogie with these vigorous veterans of the prison circuit.
Their original "We Might Be Misfits—But We Don't Care" nods to the playful punk of Green Day, while a medley of songs by famous Minnesotans has some nice surprises. A Q&A segment provides some good comedy as the sisters field questions that deal with pop culture they're clueless about or that challenge the reality of their personas.
The only problem with this show is that there isn't quite enough of it. Seems that just when the girls really get going, it's time for "The Vickie and Nickie Goodbye Song." The strict time slots at Don't Tell Mama cannot be violated, I suppose, and it's better to leave us wanting more than to overstay a welcome, but still. Alternatively, it's possible that the impression of incompleteness came from opening night jitters—I saw the first-ever performance of the new show, and a few minor technical issues did gum up the sisters' timing a bit.
Nevertheless, it remains safe to say that there is nothing quite like a Vickie and Nickie show. Check 'em out one mo' time at Don't Tell Mama, on Wednesday July 21 at 7 PM.
