Doomsday Kiss
Not too long ago, Bootleg Theatre moved into the old Evidence Room space and now it has partnered with Repo division to create a full-serve, one-stop, art experience in the heart of an old industrial district on upper Beverly Boulevard.
We missed a lot on the day I attended their inaugural co-production, having gotten the time wrong, and possibly not staying long enough to hear the attendant musical concert, but on it’s maiden voyage, Doomsday Kiss, the partnership promises to shake out into a soupcon of art, theatrical performance and music. This time, the centerpiece is a collection of four plays by four different writers, directed by an equal handful of directors centering on human reactions to immanent human annihilation. Fun topic, huh?
In the hands of this collection of artists, believe it or not, the result is strange, sometimes eccentric, but ultimately, amusing. We missed the opening sketch which may of answered a lot of questions, but having done so emphasized an enigmatic quality that was compelling. If we had seen “Who is Randall Maxit?” we should have known that we were involved in some sort of doomsday party that connects each of the remaining sketch into a whole, but we didn’t miss it. “You might be Waking Up” by Sharon Yablon had a group of marooned office workers wondering what to do with their jobs now that the “big one” has arrived outside. Director Gordon Vandenberg quirkily emphasizes the compulsive parts of workers’ lives, as he guides his actors through their attempts at normality. Hank Bunker is especially engaging as Curt, the addled Office Manager. The back wall full of storage boxes stands in unspoken testimony to their industry.
Our first meeting with Randall Maxit comes in subsequent interludes, with Randall (Gray Palmer) rather perversely pursuing two hotties played by Niamh McCormally and Annie Weirich as television sets flicker in the crevices of the cavernous space. To my mind the strongest sketch, “Fun Days at Sea,” concludes part one. “Fun Days” assembles an assortment of cruisers…the crass Nuevo Riche couple (Michael Dunn and Jessica Hanna), the bewildered Newlyweds (Alana Dietze and Ben Messmer) and a bored bartender (Babar Peerzada). The conceit is that the older couple possesses the secret to dying with dignity. As the acid cloud rolls in, they enable the newlyweds to come to terms with their soon-to-be interrupted life.
Last on the docket, “The Class Room” by Wesley Walker feels somewhat out of place with the rest. The play concerns a torturous school marm (Jacqueline Wright) with a foolproof plan to make students behave and the impressionable reporter (Lily Holleman) who interviews her. But Maxit and his alter egos recuperate the atmosphere at conclusion and we can leave the theatre happy that these artists have taken the journey for us.
There is a unity of purpose in all elements of this program. Costumes by Caroline Duncan complement the design elements by David Offner, while Brandon Baruch’s lighting, along with occasional multimedia (by Andrew Hopper, also the artistic director of Repo Division), wards off the demons in the dark.
The artistic director of the Bootleg is Alicia Hoge Adams, and Jessica Hanna (the Swinger in "Fun Days at Sea") is the Bootleg''s producing director.____________________________________
Theater: Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd. LA, CA 90057
Web Site: http://www.bootlegtheater.com/
Tickets: 213-389-3856
Dates: Through May 10,2009 - Thurs, Fri, and Sat at 8pm