By Ernest Kearney – There was a mob on stage for this one, performing fourteen skits that mostly missed the mark with me. One of the earlier skits involved a little girl, with wings for some reason, who is approached by a pedophile. She gladly goes off stage with him from where you hear a chainsaw, a man’s scream and a body hitting the floor. Now it was hardly silly, not sad (unless you have a soft spot for “pedos.”) and no swords.
Another skit entitled “Pandemic Hobby Support Group” was a support group – wait for it – for hobbies people had during the pandemic; “Sourdough Starter,” “Conspiracy Theories,” and “Tiger King.” (Silly, sad, swords? No, nada, nope.) Halfway through there was a skit entitled “Cereal Killer” involving the classic breakfast cereal characters: Buzz the Bee, General Mills’ Trix Rabbit and Lucky the Leprechaun, and Kellogg’s Tony the Tiger. They all… well, killed one another.
Some skits attempted to be non sequiturs but none were.
“The Pain That Stays” was not a skit, but a dance piece featuring Jessica Berón. This was the most ambitious and for me, perhaps, the most satisfying. Ms. Berón didn’t strike me as a trained dancer, but she had heart.
If asked why this production failed, I would give you a simple answer: “No one was willing to get serious about being funny.”
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Playing During Hollywood Fringe Festival 2024
at
Hudson Theatres (Hudson Backstage)
6539 Santa Monica Boulevard
DATES
Sunday June 23 2024, 2:00 PM | 1hr
Saturday June 29 2024, 8:30 PM | 1hr
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Rachel | June 30, 2024
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Did we see the same show? It wasn’t perfect but it had much more laughs and heart than i think you give credit for.