Review: Acme Cheese Singles
Acme Comedy Theatre, 5124 Lankershim Blvd., NoHo, 818-753-0650
by Barry Williams
“There’s brilliance in your backyard. Step out and take a look,” wrote Teresa Willis in the pages of the May issue of NoHo Magazine when she reviewed the Acme Comedy Theatre’s production of Muu-Muus & Girl Drinks.
Once again, I must concur and urge the residents of North Hollywood, Hollywood, Burbank, Pasadena, and anyone living within any sort of reasonable proximity to get in the car and drive to this remarkable theatre. I cannot give a high enough recommendation.
The Acme Comedy Theatre, under the very capable and brisk direction of M. D. Sweeney, has launched another winner in its season of short and snappy evenings of sketch comedy. This one is called Acme Cheese Singles and, yes, those pre-processed and wrapped-in-cellophane Velveeta cheese singles do make an appearance from time to time.
The opener, entitled “A Slice of Cheese,” includes the entire ensemble and is a musical riot to behold. I won’t divulge the comedic elements of the piece; you’ll have to see it for yourself and thank me later. Lisa Kushell’s brilliant take on the ’90s coffeehouse/poetry reading experience is so funny that my friend and I thought we were going to have to move a few rows back for fear of causing a disturbance. Kushell nails the angst-driven poetry muses to the wall and then drives home a few more nails for good measure. Some of those more eclectic North Hollywood coffeehouses that reside a few blocks from the Acme Comedy Theatre should be shaking in their respective espresso and café mocha cups. Kushell’s lampoon alone is worth the price of admission.
Other standouts include Antoinette Spolar doing a turn as Marcia Brady and, later, as the sultry vamp in a Chandleresque take-off on B detective movies of the ’40s entitled “Smoking Gun Theatre.” Spolar is present in most sketches and she is always vivacious and charming. Equally engaging is Robyn Donny who, in her various performances, gives new meaning to perky effervescence. She’s a delight to watch on-stage. Kate Donahue’s whacked-out characterizations are also a tour de force. She has an absolutely fantastic bourbon-and-cigarettes vocal rasp that make her characters a scream to hear as well as see.
Two of the most talented gentlemen include Doug Jackson and Byrne Offutt, both of whom are always hysterical and extremely talented. Jackson and Offutt get to play off of each other throughout the evening but never more effectively than when they are spoofing the late-night infomercial health fads in a piece called “TW 2000.” These two guys are some of the most energetic and focused actors I’ve seen on stage in quite some time. They later get to do a “Greater Tuna-esque” spin on a fishing show called “Man Alive” that is also sidesplitting.
If spontaneous and sharply driven wit and parody are your theatrical cup of tea, you need go no further than the Acme Comedy Theatre. The entire cast is very talented and they work consistently well together as an ensemble, a rarity in Los Angeles theatre these days. While not all the sketches work brilliantly, even the somewhat “off” ones are always fun to watch. The writers and actors from Saturday Night Live should tear a few pages out of Sweeney’s book and see if maybe they can capture the same sort of magic that’s going on, as we said before, right here “in your backyard.”
Rounding out the superb ensemble are Ralph Garman, Marc Drotman, Kate Donahue, and Susie Geiser. Make your next theatre obligation the Acme Comedy Theatre. Run. Don’t walk. There is talent abounding here and it is a shame to not have it appreciated to its fullest. ♦