The ultimate show
PraHaHa scores with some tropical humor
By Matej Novak
Staff Writer, The Prague
Post
(May 8, 2003)
"Goofy musicals are in," says John Cecil, writer, director and star of Tourist!, a musical
comedy opening at Divado v Reznicke
Friday, May 9. And he should know. His PraHaHa
theater company successfully staged three previous shows during his year and a
half in Prague, and
the last, Emergency Non-Stop, has been accepted into New York's upcoming
International Fringe Festival. Urinetown,
another "goofy musical" currently on Broadway, played in the festival
two years ago. If Cecil is right, perhaps he'll be on to bigger -- and goofier
-- things before too long.
"The show is about tourism," says Cecil, proving that Tourist! is not just a clever title. There has been some confusion
regarding the show's setting, however, as most people familiar with Cecil's
work assume it is about Prague.
"And in many ways it is," says Cecil, "although this show is set
on a remote tropical island." Cecil wryly calls it a "metaphor for
all tourism."
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Though this is Cecil's first Prague
show not set in the Czech Republic -- for variety's sake, he says -- Tourist! retains PraHaHa's now-familiar
quality of not taking itself too seriously. The performers allow the audience
to laugh with them as well as at them. And the foreign setting does not mean
the show is devoid of Czech references. There are some Czech-speaking
headhunters on the island -- a mystery anthropologists
are still trying to solve, says Cecil.
Tourist!
is strangely similar to an episode of Scooby-Doo,
but not in the sense that a bunch of kids get together to solve a mystery.
Rather, the show plays with recognizable stereotypes and wacky situations, both
an essential part of its comic appeal. There are two storylines, one involving
a honeymoon, betrayal and eco-terrorists, which we learn are "just
terrorists with a prefix." The other concerns a woman's search for her
pen-pal husband, who was captured by the aforementioned headhunters eight years
ago and never heard from again.
The entire cast does a fine job portraying a series of exaggerated characters,
but of particular note are the bumbling, somewhat inept native eco-terrorists
played by Jim Kerrigan and Curtis Matthew -- it's just too bad this pair wasn't
given a song. Cecil's slimy hotel owner (think used-car salesman) is also
memorable. But the real standout is Brandon Snips, editor of the environmental
magazine Nature Nurture and consummate nerd, played by Benjamin Keaton.
His rubbery physicality is reminiscent of Jim Carrey, particularly in the Ace
Ventura movies, and his contorted facial gestures are a comic treat; if his
eyes popped any further out of his head, he'd actually be a cartoon.
The songs are simple and provide added comic relief, especially with titles
like "You've Got Great Hair." They also play off recognizable styles
and melodies. A good example is "King for a Day," reminiscent of
"King of the Road." During the performances, a live band will provide
musical accompaniment.
With Cecil leaving Prague
later this year, this may be the last chance to catch PraHaHa
in action. But Cecil is hesitant to call this their last show. Instead, he
says, "I'd call it the ultimate show."
Matej Novak can be reached at mnovak@praguepost.com
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