?There are at least 100 very good reasons to stay in your pajamas until 5 PM. In this debut piece about chronic unemployment, Alyson Lyon is trying to make a career out of it. I respect her for this. However, to graduate from stand-up to storyteller, she needs to put more thought into folding her commentary, punch lines, and caricatures into a single tale. Billy Bob teeth and folk songs about diarrhea are comic icing, not cake--and even that's a stretch.
The show's description--a woman searches for the meaning of life, exploring "what becomes of someone when she doesn't leave the house, figuratively and metaphorically speaking"--belies its random silliness. Lyon should go back to her original concept, flesh out her anecdotes, and tie them all together. Maybe then her story about the aborted fetus finding its way home and lines like "I worry about the size of my beaver" won't come across as desperate pandering for shock laughter. Truth is, Lyon has a natural ease onstage, a great sense of timing, and a wide vocal and physical range. Thanks to director Clay Allen, the show moves at a smooth, energetic clip. If Lyon could bring the writing up a notch or ten, the result might be worth getting out of your jammies to see.? Kim Wilson, Chicago Reader May 18, 2001