The Ronna and Beverly Podcast is the podcast version of the supremely popular live show, which was also converted into a TV show for the British audiences. Played by Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo respectively, the characters are only mildly ridiculous parodies of inappropriately interrogative Jewish mothers, who offer relationship advice, abuse and analysis. A fortnightly treat of a show, gloriously combining the crude, the annoying and the delightful, this show is undeniably notable in the podcast landscape. A true joy.
Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo!
Ronna and Beverly are essentially an old school comedy joint, rendered all the more acute by the passing of the days. Often, you can almost feel the spirit of old vaudeville throughout the show. From the barracking of the guests, their essentially parodic characters and the spun out farces that form the intro and outro of the show, all the pieces fit into a gorgeous jigsaw from the hallows of comedy past. This stageiness is a nice counterpoint to the ‘let’s get together and jam’ nature of many an extant podcast, lending it a lovely theatrical and professional feel. But one that is undeniably built in the modern age, hence their happiness to let a guest squirm, rather than offer the escape route it would be all to easy to resort to. This allows the really good guests to attempt to bring their personalities to the table undiluted, deflecting the shots on their lifestyle choices in a comedic, if not easy, way. Being made to desperately defend themselves from accusation and inquisition with good humour greater highlighting their skills as a performer than being asked the plain and expectable questions they might have to suffer on other shows. But Ronna and Beverly’s live show beginnings aren’t the definition of the show, limiting it to just a paler version of their live efforts, but rather strengthens the foundations giving the programme the freedom to be what it is, whether the guests can cope with it or not.
Ronna Glickman and Beverly Ginsberg!
Much as most of the meat of the show is made up in interview, the opening and closing segments are easily at least as fine, if not more so. Ronna and Beverly excel within these intro and outros semi-skits, in which they showcase their comic relationship in both its broadest and most obvious senses. Pared down to just the two of them, these segments often revolve around a usually Beverly-induced crisis that is assessed, massively exaggerated and oftentimes averted, utilising a delightfully farcical portion of daftness to proceedings, that highlights the combined silliness and excellent comedic abilities of the two. It also backgrounds Ronna and Beverly as a couple, emphasising their old school, almost sitcom-style nature of their pairing, reinforcing the comedy base for the show as a whole. From Beverly’s reaction to Ronna’s ‘definitely not an’ engagement ring to the frequent discussions of their children’s relative fortunes, each skit is met with a shared heart and desire that really sets all the episodes off on a great footing.
Jon Hamm protects his luxuries on their TV show!
At their best, Ronna and Beverly fill their show to the brim with ribald, absurdist and rambunctiously forthright interrogative humour, but it doesnt always pan out this way. When the guest isn’t part of the coastal comedy sets, unfamiliar with Ronna and Beverly’s shtick or just an unwilling participant in the whole affair, the quarrelsome duo hold back on their best stuff. The forthright ‘Jewish mother’ dynamic reserved for their own interplay, with the guests remaining only as an occasional fillet of information. This seeming fear of offending the guests rund counter to the pairs dynamic, since this is usually their modus operandi. As in their live show, where they employ dual-pronged attacks on their guests home lives, so not only they can be more abrasive undercutting and hilarious, but to also give their victims the freedom to be a little more loose, be able to fightback and to just show more of their comedy. This furthers the problem, as much of their humour comes from this sparky guest interaction. Without this willingness to purposefully make situations uncomfortable and press wounds at will, the show becomes much tamer, only brightened by their increased sparring with one another as co-hosts, in lieu of a guest who can quite match their eccentricity.
On top form, Ronna and Beverly wondrously combine a winning pair of characters whose abrasive questioning and force of personality is more than most guests can reckon with. Enthusiastic, demanding and frequently hilarious, the show is a wonderful display of talent and comedy and pizazz, creatively reformed for a podcast ethos. Fantastic stuff.
The Ronna and Beverly Podcast is a fortnightly affair on iTunes, and you can compliment it’s performers @jessicachaffin and @jamiedenbo. Holla at your girls!