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The Comedians
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t's not the jokes. . .it's what lies behind them. A joke that feeds on ignorance starves its audience. We have the choice. We can say something or we can say nothing. Not everything true is funny, and not everything funny is true. Most comics feed prejudice and fear and blinkered vision, but the best ones illuminate them, make them clearer to see, easier to deal with.
---Eddie Waters |
George Taylor & Shawn Corbett
(Photo: Andrew French )
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The staging is strictly bare bones, but the play resonates strongly thanks to an excellent cast comprised entirely of foreign actors (English, Irish and Indian) and its double-edged theme. The dominant theme is an exposé of the drudgery and yearning hopefulness (and hopelessness) of men at the bottom of the social heap. The secondary theme is on the different approaches to comedy as a means for embracing truths that can either unite or make us laugh at others' pain.
Of the ten members of the all-male cast the Irish actor Shawn Corbett, is particularly powerful as Gethin Price (the part that won Jonathan Pryce a Tony), the angry young comedian who refuses to cave in to the demands of the entertainment market. Christopher Flavell as the agent has a tour-de-force scene when he evaluates the performances he has just seen. The play sags a bit during performance segment -- except for Corett's brilliant but noncommercial final act. All told, however, and despite the modest production values, this revival makes for an absorbing, thought-provoking two hours.
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COMEDIANS by Trevor Griffiths Directed by Ted Lambert Cast: Shawn Corbett, Stephen Donovan, Christoper Flavell, Tim Gilmore, Martin Hiller, John O'Callaghan, Mark Cameron Pow, Debargo Sanyal, George Talor, Felix va nDyk Set Design: William Bialosky Lighting Design: Ken Tabachnick Costume Design: Katie Gilmartin Sound Design: Tim Schellenbaum Running Time: 2 hours plus one 15-minute intermission The Club, La MaMa, 74A E. 4th St.212-475-7710 Thursdays --Saturday 10 pm and 5:30 pm Sundays -- $15 4/26/01-5/13/01 . Reviewed by Elyse Sommer based on 4/29 performance |
