StripSearch Reviews

Pole dancing gracefully unleashes path to self-discovery

BY AMY LYONS

At the outset of Strip Search—the current show at the Whitefire Theatre—it is hard to believe the prissy, conservative Adria Tennor is going to end her one-woman show wrapped around a stripper pole, shedding most of her clothing. 

This story of a Midwestern girl’s search for her inner sexy beast in Los Angeles finds Tennor taking odd jobs on both coasts, dating a slew of losers and ultimately getting down and dirty in a joyful ending to her rocky quest for self. 

Tennor’s early incarnation in the show is as a tall, lanky school-girl, whose budding sexuality is a source of discomfort. Her early experiences with sex are painful and she temporarily gets turned off from the deed. Later, love blooms again when she heads for New York to study acting and becomes a coat-check girl in a Manhattan restaurant. Enter Bruce, who introduces her to painless sex, but whose presence in her life is fairly short-lived. The combination of less-than-glamorous film work and bad experiences with dating motivate Tennor to write her own material and leave for Los Angeles. 

The City of Angels finds Tennor assisting a Beverly Hills diva with shopping and other random acts of frivolity. Her dating life goes from bad to worse until she reaches a breaking point that leads to a year off from men. She fi lls her free time by taking a strip dancing class – a pastime that freaks her out at first, but also brings her great personal joy. 

The show heats up once Tennor begins her pole-dancing studies. The comedy shines brightest when she steps into the shows of her stripping classmates, a slew of women from different age groups and professional backgrounds all intent on being their sexiest selves.

Tennor shows a fondness and affection for each woman as she struts, crawls and rolls about the stage, deftly creating a specific physicality for each woman in class.  The writing is also strongest in this portion of the show, as each character is assigned a defined personality by the text. As Tennor steps into the stilettos of each budding sex goddess in class, she shows us that all women are attractive – no matter their age, size or physical appearance. 

Director Melora Hardin of NBC’s The Office guides with skill Tennor’s journey from an inhibited girl in need of male approval to a sensual woman looking for a worthy partner.  Hardin’s understanding of the female coming-of-age story comes through in Tennor’s layered performance.  It is a credit to Hardin that Tennor’s transformation is so complete and surprising. 

The finale serves as the unequivocal show-stopping sequence. Tennor scissors, straddles and mounts an on-stage stripper pole with doses of power and grace that command respect. She leaps at the pole, clinging with taught limbs and cat-like gestures. She makes her way from floor to ceiling, contorting her body in a snaking, sensual show of self-love and erotic discovery. 

In the end, Tennor’s acceptance of her sensual self yields much more than a sexy dance, but the real happy ending is best left for audiences to discover themselves.

By Phil Gallow

Nearly every one-person show on a Hollywood stage has a significant "blah-blah-blah" portion that gets the actor from "I left my home" (usually in the Midwest) to "then I found happiness" or became an actor or fell in love. The "blah-blah-blah" is generally the cliched audition woes, waitressing tasks, unwanted advances, poverty and so on; the less time spent on the "blah-blah-blah," the better. Adria Tennor's life story is not that different from others, but when the "blah-blah-blah" stops and we're in a stripping class, her show "Strip Search" begins to have something to say.

In the "blah-blah-blah" section, Adria starts as a schoolgirl at Grandma's house in Michigan; we hear the standard stories about her
fear of intimacy as a high school and college kid in Baltimore. She does the standard actress bit: moves to New York and works as a
coat-check girl, then tries L.A. and becomes, what else, a waitress....When she connects the monologue's opening with the finale,
she hits a sweet note that would pierce the audience's collective heart....

...Best moments come in her explaining the cathartic experience of strip class and working the pole. And she nicely dovetails the class
experience with a budding romance...."Strip Search" is structured to get the aud to cheer her on and root for her to find love....Director Melora Hardin, a regular on NBC's "The Office," has given Tennor a special structure to work within that greatly aids the piece...

Strip Search

Art/Works Theatre Space

What would a beautiful, healthy, sexy young woman do if she had trouble with her male relationships? Many women often decide to take a "time out" from dating – maybe try celibacy – maybe take a trip. Adria Tennor goes one step better - she learns to dance like a strip teaser, complete with six inch spike heels, g-string and the proverbial 12 foot pool that becomes the centerpiece of her transformation.

The journey to "the pole" begins with Adria as a pre-teen talking about her insecurities because she’s the tallest one in her class. She brings us along on her high-school years, depicting her parents’ restrictive attitudes and her problems with various boys, including the "prom from hell".

You discover early on in the show that Adria is very funny and has a penchant for creating vivid characters. As she tells of her life, acting out her travails and frustrations you can’t help noticing the sweetness in her face and the sincerity in her voice.

One tends to wonder how can a girl like this have relationship problems  The answer is simple.  Her check list is quite long and demanding, and she keeps finding the wrong kind of person.  At times the show goes beyond a performance, as her feelings of tension show through the comic veneer. 

As it turns out, the pole dance makes a huge change in her life. She discovers her self determination, her confidence and her sensuality. In the final scene, she even discovers the one thing she had sought so eagerly – true love. As it turns out, the man she eventually finds love with had been there all along. She just had to learn how to see if from a different perspective.

Whether it was the pole dancing that did it or not may be up for debate.  Adria is a story teller that knows how to use symbolism to make a point.  As you listen to her words and see her actions it's clear that there is a statement being made here.  Whether the audience reads it as she intends depends on the experiences each person brings, and how each one perceives the show.   The bottom line is that Adria is saying that the most important thing is to take control of your own life and have the courage to pursue your feelings.

Directed by Melora Hardin (click here for the ReviewPlays.com interview), the co-star of the hit TV show "The Office", the presentation is crisp and edgy while managing many serious moments, compelling situations and a message that could be of benefit to many young women.  And for sure, the message has nothing to do with doing a strip tease.

GO STRIPSEARCH Developed with Paula Killen, Adria Tennor's highly engaging autobiographical one-woman show is composed of a series of vignettes that trace her journey from insecure adolescent to sexually emancipated female. While removing layer after layer of clothing, Tennor tells a story of failed romances and dead-end jobs. While attending NYU, she worked as a coat-check girl and was noticed by a man claiming to be an agent for CAA. (He wasn't.) After that, she tried standup comedy but bombed because she delivered the not-so-funny jokes with her eyes closed. After moving to L.A., where she became a personal assistant to a woman who did nothing, she found the dating scene so miserable that she vowed to remain celibate for a year. During this time, she enrolled in a stripping class and, though initially intimidated by the requisite 6-inch heels and itsy-bitsy costume, she found self-confidence through pole dancing. Sharp direction by Melora Hardin helps Tennor create distinct characters, and Brett Sheridan's inventive lighting delineates clear scene changes and mood shifts. Acme Comedy Theater, 135 N. La Brea Ave., L.A.; Tues., 8 p.m. (added perf Fri., June 2 & 23, 8:30 p.m.); thru June 23. (323) 525-0202. (Sandra Ross)

by M. G. Marx

Strip Search, a one-woman play performed and written by Adria Tennor, premiered at Acme Comedy Theater on May 9. Also, Melora Hardin, who stars with Steve Carell in NBC's The Office, made her directional debut that evening.
The one-act show follows the adventures of a young actress (Adria Tennor) who moves from New York to Hollywood to fulfill her dreams. In her quest for success, Adria becomes a bit disillusioned by the jaded lifestyle in Hollywood. After a string of disappointing relationships, Adria turns to Cosmopolitans and stripper dance classes. Yet, there is hope! Not long after her strip dance classes and some soul searching, Adria discovers love and true meaning in her life.
Tennor's acting was multi-dimensional and very captivating. Not one moment went by where I wasn't completely engaged. Tennor's keen ability to impersonate gave the play great depth and dynamic. Although it was just Tennor, it seemed as though every character portrayed was actually present. Moods and expressions swirled through a mixed bag of styles ranging from dramatic to comedic. Along with Hardin's direction, this production came off very smooth and believable.

The creative team that helped put this production together included Brett Sheridan (lighting and technical design), Paula Killen (development), and Danielle Morrow.

Nice Package in Strip Search

by Brandon Burton

Strip Search, now playing at Acme Comedy Theatre in Hollywood, accomplishes a fairly good one-person show with an amazingly polished and tight script with a clever story behind it.

The show follows Adria Tennor in her search for bliss as she encounters domineering Midwest morals, intoxicated men, and a hypochondriac, bored, blond boss. Discovering her inner power and strength by way of strip dancing class, her heart's desire suddenly disrobes...Tennor has all her choreography down perfectly, and puts on quite the striptease with the "bump and grind" music played to the hilt... Melora Hardin's staging keeps the action going, executed with lighting choices to help focus on the obvious script transitions....

"Strip Search" is a one-woman show, written and performed by Adria Tennor. The main character leaves her Midwestern upbringing and moves to Los Angeles where she dates a series of men while looking for Mr. Right. The title refers to the strip dance classes she takes. This plot development seems more sensational than organic, although she is an enthusiastic learner and displays some talent for the ecdysiast's art. Ms. Tennor portrays a series of different people, during this one act and her portrayal of the male characters are the most effective.

There is a happy, if slightly contrived, ending. 3 Stars

By Patricia Foster Rye

MetroLA