Brainripples

H and I went to see The Pirates of Penzance last night. This is a one-weekend limited-run at the ART's Club Oberon in Harvard Square; the production is by a Chicago group called The Hypocrites. We had a blast, and highly recommend it, although only if you already know Pirates.

( Lengthy review behind cut )

This never quite slid into parody, although it was firmly in the camp camp. I laughed very hard, and was thoroughly entertained. I don't know if tickets are still available for the rest of this run, but if you get a chance to see this, and if you're already a G and S fan, I recommend it.

No, it isn't. Hitchcock's, I mean.

What it is is a silly romp through the Hitchcock oeuvre by four talented actors with a clever choreographer. It plays a lot like The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged). One scene in particular is intensely evocative of Adam's "dry, vomitless" moment.

On the other hand, 39 Steps depends in places on the 1970's stereotypical portrayal of gays. (You know what I mean, right? I guess I'd describe it as "simpering effetes" but there must be a better term. Help?) There was so much else going on that was genuinely clever, witty, silly, or funny, and these points ruined the moment for me.

Anyway, it won two Tonys and is closing next weekend, so it's water under the Forth Bridge.

Yesterday, H and I saw the matinee of Fela! on Broadway. ( My review )