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The bold and the Boulder
Despite the tremendous benefit a solid belly laugh will provide, it is often impossible to find a good comedy, one that blends incisive, intellectual commentary with good, old-fashioned physical humor. So, if you've been on the lookout for some levity, look no further than Live Soap III-Viva Big Rock!, which is currently playing on the basement stage of Boulder's West End Tavern, through Nov. 19. Viva Big Rock! is a live-action, comic soap opera set in the fictional town of Big Rock, Colo. Big Rock, of course, is the alter-ego of Boulder, a place most of us would recognize as ripe for lampooning. Its creators, Dave Cacela, Eric Reid and Dave Blumenstock, have seized the buffalo by the horns with their campy production. No group, individual or situation is safe from their satire. Viva Big Rock! employs a cast of eight actors (Mavi Graves, Jessica Green, Virginia Ris, Sally Clodfelter, Eric Reid, Dave Blumenstock, Bill Graham and Kreg Viesselman) to portray more than 32 characters ranging from the expatriate French pastry chef, Henri LePhoque (his last name rhymes with "duck"), to Sister Sarah, the pirate radio DJ who broadcasts from a converted 1963 milk truck she affectionately refers to as Moo Cow. Joining the pastry chef and the DJ are Tiggar, the aimless stoner, Geppy, a former mobster turned meditation guru, and Lloyd, the 2-year-old Internet tycoon-just to name a few. With one character or another, Viva Big Rock! serves up every Boulder stereotype you know, love or hate. True to its soap-opera format, each episode opens with the theme song sung by Kreg Viesselman-who also provides crowd-warming chuckles by delivering a short, observational monologue incorporating notable national and world happenings of the week. Then, the actors give a quick recap of prior events by reenacting key segments from previous episodes. These summaries ensure that-even if you have not attended one show-you can jump in any time and not only enjoy the basic humor but also follow the various story arcs and plot lines. However, if you are a person who needs more background to be convinced to drop in on the residents of Big Rock, here is a summary of the action in the first two performances: After waking from a ganja-induced, Wizard of Oz-themed dream, Tiggar has a falling out with his wife, Michelle, over Tiggar's utter failure as a father to their precocious-and oversized-son, Lloyd. Lloyd runs away to conquer the business world, and Michelle leaves a bereft Tiggar to fend for himself. After consulting Geppy and Willow Willowchild, Tiggar jets off to Aguilar, Peru, to find his wayward love. Meanwhile, at LePhoque's Bagels, Henri rails against the American inability to appreciate fine pastry. When not trying desperately and hilariously to keep his mustache from falling off, Henri hosts poetry readings attended by Sister Sarah, Stun Gun (a white boy rapper wannabe) and others. One poetry reading is broken up by FBI Special Agent Dexter and her Big Rock PD partner, Officer Tidy, who are on the trail of the elusive master criminal, the Coyote. Oh yeah, and Lloyd tries to buy out the Hapless Waif Orphanage on the outskirts of town near Geppy's Eden Farms Organic Commune and Meditation Ashram. Though the stage may not really be a stage-the props are all homemade, the lighting engineer has but one dimmer switch to work with, and the actors are amateurs who are not afraid to ad-lib forgotten lines-Viva Big Rock! succeeds as one of the funniest plays I've attended in quite a while. The fact that it plays in the basement of a bar only adds to its sincerity. The creators and cast are obviously not in it for the money but, instead, for the love of theatre. As the advertisements for the show claim, Viva Big Rock! is "the best live theatre... in a bar... in Boulder." I'll go them one better and add that Viva Big Rock! is some of the best live theatre currently playing within 100 miles of Big Rock, er, I mean Boulder. Respond: letters@boulderweekly.com Centerstage events for the week of 10/24/02
Boulder County Fame - The Broadway musical. Jesters Dinner Theatre, 224 Main St., Longmont, 303-682-9980, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Nov. 9. Live Soap III: Viva Big Rock! - A weekly soap opera. West End Tavern, 926 Pearl St., Boulder, 303-271-3536, Tuesdays through Nov. 19. The Phantom Tollbooth - An adaptation of a novel by Norton Juster. Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder, 303-444-1885, through Oct. 26.
Denver Metro But Seriously - A comedy improv troupe. LIDA Project Theater, 2180 Stout St., Denver, 303-456-1180, Saturdays. Dracula - The ballet. Denver Auditorium, Denver Performing Arts Complex, 14th Curtis, Denver, 303-893-4100, through Nov. 2. Dracula -A humorous adaptation of Bram Stoker's classic horror novel. Heritage Square Music Hall, 18301 W. Colfax Ave., Golden, 303-279-7800, through Nov. 3. Hedwig and the Angry Inch - The off-Broadway rock musical. The Wave, 2101 Champa St., Denver, 303-282-0466, Thursdays-Saturdays through Nov. 2. Little Women and the City - A comedy sketch. Bovine Metropolis Theater, 1527 Champa St., Denver, 303-758-4722, Fridays and Saturdays through Dec. 28. The Lonesome West - A play set in the west of Ireland. Space Theatre, Helen Bonfils Theatre Complex, 14th and Curtis St., Denver, 303-893-4100. The Odyssey: A Walking Tour - An explanation of Greek mythology. Buntport Theater, 717 Lipan St., Denver, 720-946-1388, through Oct. 20. Thank You for Changing My Pathetic Life -A parody of business seminars. Bovine Metropolis Theater, 1527 Champa St., Denver, 303-758-4722, Wednesdays through Nov. 2. Twelfth Night - An all-women production of the Shakespeare classic. Phoenix Theatre, 1124 Santa Fe Dr., Denver, 303-777-3292, through Oct. 26. Two Rooms - A Beirut hostage drama. Annex Theatre, 1900 W. Littleton Blvd., Littleton, 303-347-1900, Thursdays-Saturdays through Oct. 19. Varney the Vampire - Tim Kelly's Halloween spoof. Festival Playhouse, 5665 Old Wadsworth, Old Town Arvada, 303-422-4090, through Oct. 27. To have an event considered for the theater calendar, send information including address, dates, times, price and phone number to: Theater Calendar, 690 S. Lashley Lane, Boulder, 80305; fax to 303-494-2585; e-mail to editorial@boulderweekly.com.
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Whoever said, "Laughter is the best medicine" did not own stock in a large pharmaceutical company. They were, however, correct. Because it may be time that heals all wounds, but laughter is the morphine that keeps the pain at bay until the healing is done.
