The world needs a few more people like Deloris Scrud.

And, by that I don’t mean more chain-smoking, Jack-and-Coke swilling crafters decorating holiday wreaths with cigarette boxes. Not that I have anything against people living their lives how they want. You do you.

The character, created and portrayed by Michael Wanzie, is back in “A Deloris Scrud Christmas,” onstage for just a handful of performances at Savoy’s Starlite Room. It’s also a return to the stage for Wanzie, the prolific Orlando playwright-producer-performer, who’s making his first theatrical appearance in more than three years. (The show has in-the-know references to the car accident that sidelined Wanzie and his subsequent weight loss.)

Like many of Wanzie’s writings, it’s very funny, at times completely irreverent and doesn’t shy away from politics.

And that’s what I mean when I say the world needs more people like Deloris, a plain-talking waitress happy in her trailer park and living her best life, as she sees it.

A theme of the show is the ability for people to change their beliefs, especially bigoted ideas about other people— if we just take the time to get to know one another, especially those who on the surface seem different from ourselves.

Deloris has done just that and she has even written a book about it: “How Serving Up Biscuits & Gravy Helped Me To Overcome a Lifetime of Racism & Bigotry,” with the idea of raising funds to help the transgender community. That has caught the attention of Orlando Sentinel columnist Scott Maxwell, who wants to interview Deloris — a frequent letter writer to him in her less enlightened years.

Yes, Maxwell plays himself through recorded voiceovers — it’s a telephone interview that the audience is privy to. They say never review your friends, but as someone who sat in a newsroom with Maxwell for than a decade and heard him conduct plenty of interviews, I have to say that Maxwell the actor is as genuine as Maxwell the columnist is insightful.

Turns out my Orlando Sentinel colleague Scott Maxwell is pretty darn good at playing himself. He lends his voice to “A Deloris Scrud Christmas.” (Orlando Sentinel file photo)

In other words, the “fancy newspaper-writing man,” as Deloris calls him, is just dandy. Oh, and that’s another good thing about Deloris: She reads the newspaper and stays engaged in politics. Maybe that’s why her views have evolved some since she was first introduced by Wanzie more than 20 years ago with appearances in “Carolina Moon” and “A Trailer Trash Christmas,” popular productions staged at the old Parliament House resort on Orange Blossom Trail.

Current politicians, such as President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis, take their licks from Wanzie but Deloris also has harsh words for gay and lesbian “liberals” who shun transgender individuals — a rather brave move, considering the likely audience for this show.

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I stopped by a rehearsal for the show, and Wanzie was still polishing his lines, so I can’t accurately judge the overall rhythm of the comedy.

But Wanzie’s delivery was just right for this intriguing character who is both world-weary and still full of vinegar when needed. He really fades into the character so when Deloris gets on a rant or a roll, it’s her you see, even though the words are Wanzie’s. Even with stops and starts, there was a lot to laugh about.

Director Kenny Howard lets the focus stay on those words — although Wanzie’s physical movements, from the way he sets down to a drink to how he refreshes the ice, nicely complements the comedy.

Deloris Scrud (Michael Wanzie) has thoughts about current politics in “A Deloris Scrud Christmas,” onstage at Savoy’s Starlite Room. (Courtesy Wanzie Presents)

And a stage manager doesn’t often get mentioned in reviews, but a shout-out here to Blue Estrella, who times Maxwell’s voiceovers perfectly with Wanzie’s live responses — an integral part of the show.

You’ll laugh a lot, cringe a little and maybe on the way home, take some of the homespun wisdom Deloris offers to heart.

Welcome back, Deloris. And Merry Christmas to you.

Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find more entertainment news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/entertainment or sign up to receive our weekly emailed Entertainment newsletter.

‘A Deloris Scrud Christmas’

Length: 65 minutes, no intermission
Where: Starlite Room at Savoy, 1913 N. Orange Ave. in Orlando
When: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13, 3 p.m. Dec. 14
Cost: $20-$25
Info: eventbrite.com/d/fl–orlando/wanzie/

https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/12/07/deloris-scrud-christmas-review-orlando/