No Shame IC 3-28-08
Hey we had a show. It was good. People got engaged. The order is in the replies.
Labels: Iowa City
posted by Anonymous at 8:31 PM
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9 Comments:
The order:
1) Beauregard Hears a Moo! - Luke Christensen
(Two cows talking about meddlesome kids. Cow casturation.)
2) The Greatest Commandment, According to Eric Landuyt - Eric Landuyt
(Eric ate Jon's Ice cream because god hates gay people. According to Fred Phelps)
3) Popcorn - A. Theresa
(Who ever could catch the most popcorn in their mouths won a thing of bubbles)
4) Buster Brown - Jamal River
(A song)
5) The Thing to Do - Evan Schenck
(Two guys keep running into each other accidentally. Love forms)
5.5) A Brief Announcement - Timm Sitzman
(Tim is back from London. He's so excited he forgot to put a shirt on!)
6) The Blob of Love - Eric Landuyt and Kim Townsend
(Blob attacks group of 50's style teens. Song and dance ensue with killings)
7) Why I Appreciate Battle Royal: A Review - Eric Jesteadt
(Eric explains why he loves and loaths the asian masterpiece)
8) CBS Knows Reality - Jake Gontero
(I don't know what to say. Jamal was excited for reality entertainment.)
9) Get Out of My Everything - Janani
(Janani is broken up about the Suepple Murders. Imagines one of the girls survive)
10) Psychiatrist - Clay and Sam
(Shrink is a jerk to a young teen who apparently has a thing for his sister and a supposedly trashy mother)
11) Of Puppies and Rings
(Eli has accidentally killed a puppy he was going to give when he proposes. He asks advice from Jesus and Jon Shelton. Shit hits the fan)
12) Shakespeare Unbound - John Bates
(John has volunteer read lines from Shakespeare. He makes up the replied dialogue)
13) And Now for the Main Attraction - Ulysses S. Grant's Hairy Back (Eli)
(Eli proposed to Alyssa. She accepted. The crowd went wild. Kisses ensued)
) Beauregard Hears a Moo! - Luke Christensen
2) The Greatest Commandment, According to Eric Landuyt - Eric Landuyt
3) Popcorn - A. Theresa
This was a lot of fun--definitely one of the better audience involvement pieces I've seen. More, please!
4) Buster Brown - Jamal River
This was insane in the best sense of the word. I really got into it.
5) The Thing to Do - Evan Schenck
Very enjoyable.
5.5) A Brief Announcement - Timm Sitzman
Welcome back, Timm!
6) The Blob of Love - Eric Landuyt and Kim Townsend
One of my favorite pieces of Eric and Kim's to date. Amazing what a little rehearsal can do. Up for serious Best Of contention.
7) Why I Appreciate Battle Royal: A Review - Eric Jesteadt
The solo movie review thing just doesn't work--I speak from painful personal experience (anyone remember "Thoughts on Star Wars: Episode 1? No? Good.) You need a partner, and it's gotta be tight, quick, and about more than one movie, because otherwise you run into the problem where not enough people know the movie.
8) CBS Knows Reality - Jake Gontero
9) Get Out of My Everything - Janani
Damn, was this powerful and courageous. One of the best "confessional" pieces I've ever seen, and proof that those pieces can work if done properly.
10) Psychiatrist - Clay and Sam
Granted, #9 would have been impossible for anyone to follow, but this didn't seem to have the same sparkle as other Clay & Sam pieces--poopula or the honor system. It needed a twist, or the audience needed catharsis re: the bastard character in some way.
11) Of Puppies and Rings
The inclusion of Jesus was very good. And, look, Shelton's back!
12) Shakespeare Unbound - John Bates
Dazzling and astonishing. Will probably be up for bestof along with several of John's other pieces.
Can John Bates singlehandedly revive NoShame?? The man has yet to write a dud.
13) And Now for the Main Attraction - Ulysses S. Grant's Hairy Back (Eli)
I don't know. I just didn't get this one. I was really interested in what Eric had to say about Vietnam movies, and didn't know why Eli cut him off. Also, it was totally obvious that Eli was using an audience plant. These things are supposed to be *subtle.* I found the script to be trite and cliched. Why did everyone like this piece so much?/MASSIVE STUPIDITY
In all seriousness, this is one of my favorite NoShame moments ever. Yay Eli & Alyssa! Alas, I don't see how it can be recreated at BestOf.
I forgot 2--angry and a well-deserved swipe. The only complaint I have is that the sheer evil of Fred Phelps may have overwhelmed the piece, but it needed to be said nonetheless. Good work, Eric.
And 1. It was funny.
1) Beauregard Hears a Moo! - Luke Christensen
Luke made a very sympathetic cow, and Katy's puns were groan-inducing in a good way. I think the piece could have been streamlined a bit because it went on just a little too long, but it was fun to watch because of the characters.
2) The Greatest Commandment - According to Eric Landuyt
Fred Phelps and his church REALLY PISS ME OFF! I was upset for the better part of two days before I finally decided to use my rage for comedic purposes.
It was also really great to be onstage with Jon Shelton again. I had a hard time keeping a straight face because Jon can make just about anything sound funny.
3) Popcorn - A. Theresa
This was a pleasing changeup in the order. Theresa could have exercised more control (the audience was dictating what happened half the time), but it was a reminder of how anything can happen at No Shame (and really should).
4) Buster Brown - Jamal River
I think I remember this from one of Jamal's previous CDs. Started out goofy but became haunting.
5) The Thing to Do - Evan Schenck
I liked how the banal everyday situation escalated into something absurd. The running into each other needed to look a little more natural, though.
5.5) A Brief Announcement - Timm Sitzman
I'm happy Timm is back with or without his shirt.
6) The Blob of Love - Kimberly Townsend & Eric Landuyt
Kim gets credit for coming up with the song. I tweaked the lyrics and came up with the framing device. Thanks to everybody who performed it with me.
7) Why I Appreciate Battle Royal: A Review - Eric Jesteadt
Solo movie/game/book reviews need to be fast-paced and witty to work. This one stumbled out of the blocks with the rambling summary of the game, and Eric's delivery was too stop-start to build any flow. There were one or two funny lines ("how could the Japanese forget they were dealing with Asians?"), but everything came out muddled. Had the piece been tightly written and more rehearsed it might have worked.
8) CBS Knows Reality - Jake Gontero
I didn't really get this one. Was it making fun of reality TV? Fans thereof? No Shame itself? Just Jamal saying random things in a funny voice? I was too confused to enjoy it.
9) Get Out of My Everything - Janani
This was heartfelt and moving. Janani took a risk and came through with something strong and deep. I liked how there were layers of meaning. The line "Get out of my room, old woman" really stuck in my head; it made me think Janani was sad not only that a sweet young girl had been killed but also that the sweet young girl she used to be was also dead. Very strong work.
10) Psychiatrist - Clay and Sam
I actually have to criticize the board for the placement of this piece. It's hard for anyone to follow a piece like Janani's, but putting a piece about mocking exploited and abused children right after one about a child getting murdered was a bad choice. I know Sam and Clay came late and probably got stuck in the order at random, but a little more care should have been taken in arranging the order. (This is also an example of how important it is to submit pieces on time.)
Placement aside, this piece still could have been better. They kept going past the point when the verbal abuse quit being funny. The irony of a cynical therapist doing more harm to the patient he's supposed to help got buried under the one-liners. Better delivery could have made the characters more engaging. Sam needs to vary his tone of voice; the only way to tell if he's supposed to be upset or excited is that he talks a little louder. Otherwise he sounds the same all the time.
I may sound overly critical right now, but I think it's more helpful to point out what did or did not work in a piece rather than to just say "I liked it" or "I didn't like it so much." I hope my thoughts are helpful, but one doesn't have to take my criticism just because I offer it.
11) Of Puppies and Rings
Once again, it was good to have Jon Shelton back, even if only for one night. Eli and Jon always play well together. I liked the moment when Eli tried to hide behind the curtain but he pulled it too much and it exposed him to the audience again.
12) Shakespeare Unbound - John Bates
John. Bates. Is. Frickin'. Awesome. He always brings something fun and goes all-out performing it, and the fact he was able to improvise so well made this piece all the more enjoyable. Great job by the audience volunteer, too.
13) And Now for the Main Attraction - Ulysses S. Grant's Hairy Back (Eli)
True, it probably wasn't a surprise when Eli cut me off, but I thought this was still nice. I kind of liked the fact "Heat of The Moment" didn't play as originally intended because then Eli's proposal might have seemed cheesy. I think he did a good job of being honestly emotional without getting cliched.
(I am actually reviewing someone's marriage proposal like it was a theatrical performance. Which I guess this one was, but still, writing this review has gotten surreal. I think I'll stop now.
Eric,
Before you go criticizing the board again in a very long winded fashion. I will let you know that it was ME that did the order. Also it is hard to place pieces in an order on content when you have a piece of paper that says the following:
Piece Name
Author
(Lights up)
Monologue
(Lights down)
As was the case with Janani's piece. So when I got Sam and Clay's script I had no idea what was going to happen before I placed it.
ALSO and this has been getting to me lately. CAN WE ALL BE ON TIME?! Sam and Clay's script was received last minute. Based off of prior pieces by them I placed it where I thought a laugh would be a good thing. Build momentum going into the end of the show.
So Eric before you go criticizing the board or in this case, me, you should have found out a bit more about the situation. Getting the show all together at the last minute can be a lot of stress. And criticism afterwards doesn't help.
Your roommate,
Eli David Wilkinson
p.s. If performers are going to be arriving after 10:30 could you call or give us a heads up? Much thanks.
Eli,
I meant no ill will. Seeing the actors with scripts in hand led me to assume they had submitted full scripts. I realize putting an order together is no easy task even when you do know the content of the pieces.
As for me being long-winded, I had more to say about the pieces than the board picking the order, and in both cases, I was giving my thoughts on what I thought did and did not work so that No Shame can continue improving. But like I said, just because I offer criticism doesn't mean people have to take it.
I felt fine with the segue from my piece into Clay & Sam's, and I thought Eli's order for the show was fine overall. I don't know that any piece is "impossible to follow," and I don't think the board should put tooooo much thought into juxtaposing pieces.
Let the night turn weird, lewd, funny, tragic, poopy, infuriating, musical, poignant in whatever order happens to emerge.
Friendly reminder to the board: Be sure to mention the blog at the beginning and end of each show and have Jon put the web address in the programs. We need more action on here.
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