Richard Westbrook directs Mirth ‘O’ Matics improv comedy troupe. Yes, even improv comedy troupes need direction.
“A lot of people think it’s about trying to be funny,” he says. “It’s not. We have to establish in a short time who we are, where we are – we have to rehearse the creating of reality.”
And that’s the skill he’ll apply to a new show he’s directing at the Carl Cherry Center this Saturday called Monologue Mayhem: establishing that connection and delivering a piece of a character’s life and world, one person at a time.
He’s got 13 monologues lined up that range comedy and drama, intense and whimsical, originals or gleaned from movies, TV shows and classic literature. There’s no organizing principle or unifying theme, hence the “mayhem” moniker, and little to no props, costumes, sets or sound design – just a bunch of stellar monologue writing delivered by nine Peninsula theater talents.
Two of the monologues come from the series The Game of Thrones. One is a bitter invective delivered by dwarf Tyrion, on trial for the death of the king.
“Father, I wish to confess! I saved you. I saved this city and all your worthless lives. I should have let Stannis kill you all. I’m guilty. Guilty… I am guilty of a far more monstrous crime. I am guilty for being a dwarf. I’ve been on trial for that my entire life.”
Actor Charles O’Bannion does a classic comedy bit called “The Cheese Robber.”
“And oh did we have new cheeses. Smokey vintage Goudas in amber tones firm and flaky, silky drunken goat in striking violet tones decadent and creamy.”
Women don’t get a lot of play, and minorities don’t get any, but the uncensored nature of the scripts allows diversity in the language and plots. David Norum is one of the performers; he also wrote the pieces he’ll perform.
His “The Ballad of Derris DeWayne Lovell” is a wrenching account of a terrible family crime and its tragic echoes. His “The Cats” is a funny phone call by a 42-year-old struggling musician to his doting mother. The subtext: He has more hope than prospects.
“I want it to be moments of funny and moments of ‘oh my goodness, what just happened?’” Westbrook says.
The format mimics an actor’s audition.
“You don’t see them,” he says, “but those monologues are entertaining.”
Another thing about an audition: you don’t get a second chance. Monologue Mayhem will play for one night only.
MONOLOGUE MAYHEM 7:30pm Saturday at Carl Cherry Center, 4th and Guadalupe, Carmel. $15. 624-7491, www.CarlCherryCenter.org
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