theasylogo
BLOG

Best Bets

Pretty Sad White Girls:
A Comedy Concert

Written, Performed, and Choreographed by Lisa Bettencourt and Katie Emerson; Directed by Lisa Bettencourt
Part of the 2018 New York International Fringe Festival

Off Off Broadway, Musical
Runs through 10.26.18
FringeHUB, 685 Washington Street

 

by Sarah Moore on 10.17.18

 

FringePretty Sad White Girls: A Comedy Concert

 

BOTTOM LINE: A genuinely funny satirical take on what it means to be a millennial woman in 2018.

Rosé, Instagram, and Soulcycle—the bread and butter of the pretty, sad, white girl. Lisa Bettencourt and Katie Emerson are the musical comedy duo Pretty Sad White Girls. They are what the teens call “basic.” Their lives are about hot yoga, kombucha, Starbucks, intermittent fasting, and not having real jobs.

Lisa tells us she works in social media. Katie’s trademark is inspirational quotes that may or may not be relevant or helpful. Through dialogue and songs (the two co-wrote and choreographed, while Bettencourt is credited as the director), they hilariously examine what it means to be a privileged white millennial female in 2018.

There isn’t much of a plot here, but the writing is genuinely clever and legitimately funny. One of the through lines is a Siri-like virtual assistant called Society, who gives them direction on what to do, like when to go to Soulcycle. The only problem is they can’t turn her off. I’m still thinking about a song written entirely of real lines from men’s Tinder profiles. Many jokes about the millennial generation can be empty or unfunny (at least to this millennial), but Lisa and Katie’s material is so good because it comes from a place of love (or at least I felt that way as I laughed at it). Both performers are equally talented and funny, and they have good chemistry and an easy rapport, which makes the concert fly by.

Self-awareness is key, and what better way to practice self-awareness than through musical comedy? And then drunk brunch after, of course.

(Pretty Sad White Girls: A Comedy Concert plays at FringeHUB, 685 Washington Street at Charles Street, through October 26, 2018. Meet at the LIGHT BLUE FringeNYC flag. The running time is 45 minutes. Performances are Sun 10/14 at 8:45, Mon 10/15 at 7:15, Sat 10/20 at 5:15, Tue 10/23 at 9:30, and Fri 10/26 at 7. There is no late seating at FringeNYC. Tickets are $22 (plus $3.69 ticketing fee), $16 (plus $3.51) for seniors, and are ONLY available online at fringenyc.org. For more information visit lisabettencourt.com.)

 

Pretty Sad White Girls: A Comedy Concert is written and performed by Lisa Bettencourt and Katie Emerson: Book by Lisa Bettencourt and Katie Emerson; Music and Lyrics by Lisa Bettencourt. Additional Lyrics by Jillian Schiralli. Directed by Lisa Bettencourt. Choreographed by Lisa Bettencourt and Katie Emerson.