Ruby Wax - (not) Losing It

Press photo

Dear fab friends,

I was engulfed in a roller-coaster of emotions watching the comedienne Ruby Wax show 'Losing It'. In case you don't remember who Ruby Wax is, she made a career from interviewing - with such brashness and rudeness - celebrities such as Imelda Marcos and Pamela Anderson for the BBC. She also made guest appearances in Absolutely Fabulous.

In the first part of the show, Ruby's comedic brilliance showed in her hilarious telling of the conditions that led to her depression, the agonies she had to endure, and her hilarious experiences at the Priory (celebrity rehab). Celebrities, specially faded ones, who bravely and candidly come out in public about their mental illness come a dime a dozen, but to make jokes about it while earning money from it takes a certain kind of bravura. Ruby is joined onstage by her friend Judith Owen who plays melancholic piano music to punctuate each section. Judith to Ruby is like Vonda Sheppard to Ally McBeal.

The second part of the show is a Q&A session with the audience. The dynamics changes at this point and we see Ruby and Judith as advocates in trying to strip out, without being preachy, the stigma often attached to mental illness. It's an illness that anybody can get and is very misunderstood.

This intimate latter part of the show somehow moved me incredibly. I suppose the subject is quite personal to me, and made me more enlightened about it. A comic show with a meaningful twist in the end.

I wish that the show gets to DVD, as it would really be amazing to have this show available to a much wider audience.


Yours,
La Dolce Vita