|
2012 Season
Picasso at the Lapin Agile By Steve Martin Directed by Greg J. Anderson Picasso at the Lapin Agile features the characters of Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso, who meet at a bar called the Lapin Agile (Nimble Rabbit) in Montmartre, Paris. It is set on October 8, 1904, and both men are on the verge of an amazing idea (Einstein will publish his special theory of relativity in 1905 and Picasso will paint Les Demoiselles d'Avignon in 1907) when they find themselves at the Lapin Agile, where they have a lengthy debate about the value of genius and talent, while interacting with a host of other characters.
Starring Quentin Roth, Nick Elias, Amanda Sjodahl, Jonathan Manchester, Laura Grieme, Tony Barrett, Pat Carroll, Stephen Bock, and Aaron Jordan-Peterson. |
|
Review: 'Picasso at the Lapin Agile' captures spirit of Steve Martin
By: Christa Lawler, for the Duluth News Tribune
The Steve Martin brand comes with expectations of absurd twists, over-the-top characters, quick-draw quips and some general limb flailing. He's a comic dichotomy with jokes that lean insider, requiring a basic idea of the width of Einstein's "The Special Theory of Relativity" balanced by a newly elderly character with a weak bladder.
Rubber Chicken Theater's production of "Picasso at the Lapin Agile," which opened Thursday at the Duluth Play Ground, is part silly sitcom-y romp, part art-versus-science debate and part futuristic speculation that captures the spirit of the funnyman.
The show, directed by Rubber Chicken regular Greg Anderson, is a non-stop kick teeming with one-liners.
It's an October night in 1904 at the Lapin Agile, a Montmartre bar and occasional drop-in spot for young painter Pablo Picasso, whose mere sketches are enough to make a messy-haired scientist sputter in immediate recognition: "I never thought the 20th century would be handed to me so casually -- scratched out in pencil on a piece of paper."
That scientist is Albert Einstein, played by Jonathan Manchester -- accent and all -- who has stopped in for a quick drink and to meet a lady. He's greeted by Freddy, the bartender played by Quentin Roth, and Gaston (Nick Elias), a grumbling gray-haired codger who collects in his head moments when he catches a glimpse of a woman's bra.
The group starts talking about Picasso when a young woman enters the bar, still flushed from an experience with the womanizing painter that happened two weeks earlier. She's hoping he will stop in on this night.
And he does, just as Einstein has proposed a toast to the man he's not yet met.
Pat Carrol's Picasso is full of bravado and practically writhing with need for a woman, stat. As he and Einstein get acquainted, they duel wild-wild-west style -- a competition of art versus science.
There are Martin tells, most noticeable in the characters' acknowledgement that they are in a play. Just minutes in, Freddy leaves the stage to pull a program from the hands of an audience member. Later on, Picasso tells a young admirer that he will meet her later ... after the play.
It's not uncommon for a writer to write himself into his work, and in this case it is the show-stealing Schmendiman, played by Stephen Bock, who captures the stand-up comedian version of Martin in a quick-hit blip. When Gaston muses that they need a third genius to complete the trinity at the Lapin Agile, Schmendiman bursts onto the stage to tell the crew about his big idea: An inflexible and very brittle building material made of asbestos, kitten paws and radium that can only be used in Los Angeles, San Francisco and the island of Krakatoa.
He cavorts, he preens and he has a cheesy mustache. He's loud and over-the-top and he's got great comic timing and hilarious stage movement.
Also noteworthy in a very "Saturday Night Live" way, Laura Grieme, who is triple-cast as Suzanne, Countess and an unnamed Female Admirer. She is a crack-up in a scene as the crazed admirer when she slithers across the floor and oozes her way up Picasso's lap.
This show runs 90 minutes without an intermission and really captures -- in a time-travel-y, comedic way -- a fictitious night when "the Earth fell quiet and listened to a conversation," as Picasso says.
By: Christa Lawler, for the Duluth News Tribune
The Steve Martin brand comes with expectations of absurd twists, over-the-top characters, quick-draw quips and some general limb flailing. He's a comic dichotomy with jokes that lean insider, requiring a basic idea of the width of Einstein's "The Special Theory of Relativity" balanced by a newly elderly character with a weak bladder.
Rubber Chicken Theater's production of "Picasso at the Lapin Agile," which opened Thursday at the Duluth Play Ground, is part silly sitcom-y romp, part art-versus-science debate and part futuristic speculation that captures the spirit of the funnyman.
The show, directed by Rubber Chicken regular Greg Anderson, is a non-stop kick teeming with one-liners.
It's an October night in 1904 at the Lapin Agile, a Montmartre bar and occasional drop-in spot for young painter Pablo Picasso, whose mere sketches are enough to make a messy-haired scientist sputter in immediate recognition: "I never thought the 20th century would be handed to me so casually -- scratched out in pencil on a piece of paper."
That scientist is Albert Einstein, played by Jonathan Manchester -- accent and all -- who has stopped in for a quick drink and to meet a lady. He's greeted by Freddy, the bartender played by Quentin Roth, and Gaston (Nick Elias), a grumbling gray-haired codger who collects in his head moments when he catches a glimpse of a woman's bra.
The group starts talking about Picasso when a young woman enters the bar, still flushed from an experience with the womanizing painter that happened two weeks earlier. She's hoping he will stop in on this night.
And he does, just as Einstein has proposed a toast to the man he's not yet met.
Pat Carrol's Picasso is full of bravado and practically writhing with need for a woman, stat. As he and Einstein get acquainted, they duel wild-wild-west style -- a competition of art versus science.
There are Martin tells, most noticeable in the characters' acknowledgement that they are in a play. Just minutes in, Freddy leaves the stage to pull a program from the hands of an audience member. Later on, Picasso tells a young admirer that he will meet her later ... after the play.
It's not uncommon for a writer to write himself into his work, and in this case it is the show-stealing Schmendiman, played by Stephen Bock, who captures the stand-up comedian version of Martin in a quick-hit blip. When Gaston muses that they need a third genius to complete the trinity at the Lapin Agile, Schmendiman bursts onto the stage to tell the crew about his big idea: An inflexible and very brittle building material made of asbestos, kitten paws and radium that can only be used in Los Angeles, San Francisco and the island of Krakatoa.
He cavorts, he preens and he has a cheesy mustache. He's loud and over-the-top and he's got great comic timing and hilarious stage movement.
Also noteworthy in a very "Saturday Night Live" way, Laura Grieme, who is triple-cast as Suzanne, Countess and an unnamed Female Admirer. She is a crack-up in a scene as the crazed admirer when she slithers across the floor and oozes her way up Picasso's lap.
This show runs 90 minutes without an intermission and really captures -- in a time-travel-y, comedic way -- a fictitious night when "the Earth fell quiet and listened to a conversation," as Picasso says.
Rubber Chicken’s “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” is Funny, Intelligent Theatre
By: Dennis Kempton, for the Oeuvre Arts Magazine
Steve Martin wrote Picasso at the Lapin Agile in 1993. Yes, that Steve Martin. The comedian from the movies. The play opened in Chicago, went to Los Angeles, and ended up in New York for a relatively successful run. It is the story of two of the twentieth century’s greats in art and science–Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein, on the occasion of their meeting each other at the bohemian Montmartre, Paris establishment, the Lapin Agile.
Set in 1904, it is the period just before both Picasso and Einstein, aged 23 and 25 respectively, gained any real traction in the annals of world history. On the cusp of publishing his theory of relativity, Einstein, during this time, was a patent office agent, and Picasso, before rendering his famous painting, “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon” was a wandering bon vivant, seducing women with his irresistible Spanish passion. In fact, these two pioneers stand astride the scientific and artistic worlds of the last century. Einstein’s contributions to science–mindboggling. Picasso, a co-founder of the Cubist movement and of collage, stands with both Matisse and Duchamp in revolutionizing the way we look at art today.
These serious achievements and the larger than life personae of these two innovators are given a delightfully light touch of fancy with Martin’s smartly written script–even though it contains enough of Martin’s well-known gags sense of humor to make it just a tad bit corny at times. In what, at times, feels like an extended SNL skit, the play ends up a mix of bawdy humor, existential angst, and a bittersweet foreshadowing of the calamities of the century yet to unfold for those on stage.
Greg J. Anderson directs this production of Picasso at the Lapin Agile for Rubber Chicken Theater at the Play Ground. Jonathan Manchester is Einstein and Pat Carroll is Picasso. The show opens with bartender Freddy (Quentin Roth) setting up the bar for the day when first Gaston (Nick Elias) and then a harried and buttoned up Einstein appears to wait for his red-headed date. The banter between these actors in the opening moments is natural and humorous, although one quickly realizes that Manchester is the only character in the show committing to a genuine accent–something pleasant and detail-oriented in a period piece and geographically specific bit of theatre, comedy or otherwise. The thing about accents is that they can be comedy gold, accentuating the dialogue in ways unexpected. And bearing in mind this is a comedy, they don’t have to be spot on, but they are an entertaining device. Nevertheless, the show is put on a good footing in the opening scene. From the beginning, the fourth wall is broken down in moments that aren’t too heavy-handed and just enough to highlight Martin’s singular self-deprecation in the writing.
The dialogue and monologues are curiously entertaining and thought-provoking, including Picasso’s agent Sagot’s (Tony Barrett) humorous explanation as to why it’s so hard to sell paintings of Jesus and sheep—not together, mind you. Here we glimpse moments of Martin’s inner humor as Barrett deftly explains the reasons why paintings of Jesus are undesirable in the bedroom and in the kitchen. Without putting too fine a point on the script material, Barrett does a fine job. The debate between Picasso and Einstein about the importance of science and of art and their equality in the realm of impacting society is also equally engaging. Carroll’s more laid back acting choices in his portrayal of Picasso might not be in keeping with the famed painter’s notorious reputation as a lothario (indeed, Picasso is regarded as one of the top ten womanizers of the twentieth century) but he manages to capture the early halting personality of an artist waiting for his big break and self-aware of his burgeoning talent.
There are some standouts in the cast, including the hilariously versatile Laura Grieme, doing triple duty as Suzanne, the Countess, and an ardent female admirer of Schmendiman (more on him in a moment, though). Grieme’s Suzanne, one of Picasso’s many conquests, has fallen for the soon to be legendary artist and awaits his arrival at the Lapin Agile so they can be reunited. Her portrayal is sweet and constrained and also lusty when the dialogue requires it. Toward the end of the show, she shows, even if it’s for brief moments on stage, real physical comedy chops, when, mistaking Picasso for Schmendiman, she gnaws on the bar and crawls up Carrol’s leg lasciviously.
For his part, Schmendiman, an inventor, is a product of Martin’s imagination, but Stephen Bock is a near show-stealer when he bounds on stage to shake up the action in a “what the hell?” kind of role that is a moment of pushing the show over the comedy peak. An inventor of a building material, Schmendiman is certain that he will be the third in the trifecta of those who will hold the greatest influence over the developments of the twentieth century–Picasso and Einstein, of course, agreeing that they are two of the three, in a debate about what the future holds in store that is both humorous and poignant at the same time. It’s a shame Schmendiman hasn’t more time on stage as Bock’s energy and pitch perfect self-seving grasp of his brief appearance add a giggling punctuation point to the absurdity on stage.
Martin’s script calls for a mysterious “visitor” to enter the action toward the end of the show. The identity of the time traveler is quite evident once he’s on the scene and played by Aaron Jordan-Peterson, the casting allows Peterson to play up his natural comedic ability for a change. Heretofore, Peterson has been a musical ensemble member of several Playhouse productions but may have found his niche with Rubber Chicken Theater.
The show’s script is dense with debate and dialogue about what’s real in art, science, and the impacts both make on the future to come. What’s nice about the density is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously and audiences are treated to some intellectual back and forth while being entertained with clever gags and bawdy humor. Isn’t that they way we prefer it, anyway? Picasso at the Lapin Agile is a 75 minute romp through a century to come, replete with the seriousness of science, the transformational power of art, the convergence of the two, and the irrevocable impact made, although unknowable to the players on stage, as they make a heartfelt toast to the stars and to the unfolding hundred years of innovation and tribulation awaiting the world.
By: Dennis Kempton, for the Oeuvre Arts Magazine
Steve Martin wrote Picasso at the Lapin Agile in 1993. Yes, that Steve Martin. The comedian from the movies. The play opened in Chicago, went to Los Angeles, and ended up in New York for a relatively successful run. It is the story of two of the twentieth century’s greats in art and science–Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein, on the occasion of their meeting each other at the bohemian Montmartre, Paris establishment, the Lapin Agile.
Set in 1904, it is the period just before both Picasso and Einstein, aged 23 and 25 respectively, gained any real traction in the annals of world history. On the cusp of publishing his theory of relativity, Einstein, during this time, was a patent office agent, and Picasso, before rendering his famous painting, “Les Demoiselles d’Avignon” was a wandering bon vivant, seducing women with his irresistible Spanish passion. In fact, these two pioneers stand astride the scientific and artistic worlds of the last century. Einstein’s contributions to science–mindboggling. Picasso, a co-founder of the Cubist movement and of collage, stands with both Matisse and Duchamp in revolutionizing the way we look at art today.
These serious achievements and the larger than life personae of these two innovators are given a delightfully light touch of fancy with Martin’s smartly written script–even though it contains enough of Martin’s well-known gags sense of humor to make it just a tad bit corny at times. In what, at times, feels like an extended SNL skit, the play ends up a mix of bawdy humor, existential angst, and a bittersweet foreshadowing of the calamities of the century yet to unfold for those on stage.
Greg J. Anderson directs this production of Picasso at the Lapin Agile for Rubber Chicken Theater at the Play Ground. Jonathan Manchester is Einstein and Pat Carroll is Picasso. The show opens with bartender Freddy (Quentin Roth) setting up the bar for the day when first Gaston (Nick Elias) and then a harried and buttoned up Einstein appears to wait for his red-headed date. The banter between these actors in the opening moments is natural and humorous, although one quickly realizes that Manchester is the only character in the show committing to a genuine accent–something pleasant and detail-oriented in a period piece and geographically specific bit of theatre, comedy or otherwise. The thing about accents is that they can be comedy gold, accentuating the dialogue in ways unexpected. And bearing in mind this is a comedy, they don’t have to be spot on, but they are an entertaining device. Nevertheless, the show is put on a good footing in the opening scene. From the beginning, the fourth wall is broken down in moments that aren’t too heavy-handed and just enough to highlight Martin’s singular self-deprecation in the writing.
The dialogue and monologues are curiously entertaining and thought-provoking, including Picasso’s agent Sagot’s (Tony Barrett) humorous explanation as to why it’s so hard to sell paintings of Jesus and sheep—not together, mind you. Here we glimpse moments of Martin’s inner humor as Barrett deftly explains the reasons why paintings of Jesus are undesirable in the bedroom and in the kitchen. Without putting too fine a point on the script material, Barrett does a fine job. The debate between Picasso and Einstein about the importance of science and of art and their equality in the realm of impacting society is also equally engaging. Carroll’s more laid back acting choices in his portrayal of Picasso might not be in keeping with the famed painter’s notorious reputation as a lothario (indeed, Picasso is regarded as one of the top ten womanizers of the twentieth century) but he manages to capture the early halting personality of an artist waiting for his big break and self-aware of his burgeoning talent.
There are some standouts in the cast, including the hilariously versatile Laura Grieme, doing triple duty as Suzanne, the Countess, and an ardent female admirer of Schmendiman (more on him in a moment, though). Grieme’s Suzanne, one of Picasso’s many conquests, has fallen for the soon to be legendary artist and awaits his arrival at the Lapin Agile so they can be reunited. Her portrayal is sweet and constrained and also lusty when the dialogue requires it. Toward the end of the show, she shows, even if it’s for brief moments on stage, real physical comedy chops, when, mistaking Picasso for Schmendiman, she gnaws on the bar and crawls up Carrol’s leg lasciviously.
For his part, Schmendiman, an inventor, is a product of Martin’s imagination, but Stephen Bock is a near show-stealer when he bounds on stage to shake up the action in a “what the hell?” kind of role that is a moment of pushing the show over the comedy peak. An inventor of a building material, Schmendiman is certain that he will be the third in the trifecta of those who will hold the greatest influence over the developments of the twentieth century–Picasso and Einstein, of course, agreeing that they are two of the three, in a debate about what the future holds in store that is both humorous and poignant at the same time. It’s a shame Schmendiman hasn’t more time on stage as Bock’s energy and pitch perfect self-seving grasp of his brief appearance add a giggling punctuation point to the absurdity on stage.
Martin’s script calls for a mysterious “visitor” to enter the action toward the end of the show. The identity of the time traveler is quite evident once he’s on the scene and played by Aaron Jordan-Peterson, the casting allows Peterson to play up his natural comedic ability for a change. Heretofore, Peterson has been a musical ensemble member of several Playhouse productions but may have found his niche with Rubber Chicken Theater.
The show’s script is dense with debate and dialogue about what’s real in art, science, and the impacts both make on the future to come. What’s nice about the density is that it doesn’t take itself too seriously and audiences are treated to some intellectual back and forth while being entertained with clever gags and bawdy humor. Isn’t that they way we prefer it, anyway? Picasso at the Lapin Agile is a 75 minute romp through a century to come, replete with the seriousness of science, the transformational power of art, the convergence of the two, and the irrevocable impact made, although unknowable to the players on stage, as they make a heartfelt toast to the stars and to the unfolding hundred years of innovation and tribulation awaiting the world.
Four on the Floor: Picasso at the Lapin Agile
By: Kriss Osbakken, for The Reader
Find a shade of comedian Steve Martin at the Play Ground in the Tech Village at Lake and Superior. His 1995 play, “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” continues Thursday, April 26 through Saturday, April 28. Directed by Greg J. Anderson, this story is as absurdist as Godot.
It’s one of two local plays this weekend that happen in Paris with an emphasis on l’amour. It’s 1904 and Picasso shows up at a neighborhood bar, the Lapin Agile (agile rabbit), where Einstein has been nervously waiting for a redhead. The two young chaps eventually vie over how to create: is it by letters or lines? Picasso suggests Einstein to be a fake; Einstein wonders if Picasso is an idiot savant.
Anderson could not have more aptly picked Pat Carrol to play womanizer Picasso, exuding ego and bombast. But could sloe-eyed Einstein be the ultimate womanizer? We will always wonder if his educated wife, Mileva, was really the one who deserved the Nobel Prize for the theory of relativity. He divorced her and left the kids for America, but at least gave her the prize money.
This little bar draws some astute women. Suzanne (Laura Grieme) is looking for the Spaniard, with whom she’s had a liaison, but admits, ‘it was too quick”. Barmaid Germaine, (Amanda Sjodahl) confesses to hooking up with him too. Why? She wanted to find out what it was like with an artist.
Germaine and Suzanne prophecy about the new century: “Cruelty will be perfected”; “smoking in restaurants will be banned”; a yo-yo will be a popular toy; I don’t want to be one.
Martin’s humor jumps all over.. Slapstick: a woman pulling off her white blouse to put on a white blouse. Polish: the world should not become like a Polish village- unpronouncable. Art dealer Sagot (Tony Barrett) explained Picasso’s picture to friends for 2 hours; the friends left after an hour. The bartender (Quentin Roth) tells about asking a baker to bake a pie in the shape of the letter ‘e’; an alphabet pie rant ensues.
You never know when this play will end. It seems to be over and another hi-jink occurs. At last, a ‘country boy’, a singer of love songs (guess who?) time-travels into the bar, instigating new philosophical discussions. We’re brought into outer space. Then a pronouncement. Martin the comedian and Martin the philosopher meet head on in this farce.
By: Kriss Osbakken, for The Reader
Find a shade of comedian Steve Martin at the Play Ground in the Tech Village at Lake and Superior. His 1995 play, “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” continues Thursday, April 26 through Saturday, April 28. Directed by Greg J. Anderson, this story is as absurdist as Godot.
It’s one of two local plays this weekend that happen in Paris with an emphasis on l’amour. It’s 1904 and Picasso shows up at a neighborhood bar, the Lapin Agile (agile rabbit), where Einstein has been nervously waiting for a redhead. The two young chaps eventually vie over how to create: is it by letters or lines? Picasso suggests Einstein to be a fake; Einstein wonders if Picasso is an idiot savant.
Anderson could not have more aptly picked Pat Carrol to play womanizer Picasso, exuding ego and bombast. But could sloe-eyed Einstein be the ultimate womanizer? We will always wonder if his educated wife, Mileva, was really the one who deserved the Nobel Prize for the theory of relativity. He divorced her and left the kids for America, but at least gave her the prize money.
This little bar draws some astute women. Suzanne (Laura Grieme) is looking for the Spaniard, with whom she’s had a liaison, but admits, ‘it was too quick”. Barmaid Germaine, (Amanda Sjodahl) confesses to hooking up with him too. Why? She wanted to find out what it was like with an artist.
Germaine and Suzanne prophecy about the new century: “Cruelty will be perfected”; “smoking in restaurants will be banned”; a yo-yo will be a popular toy; I don’t want to be one.
Martin’s humor jumps all over.. Slapstick: a woman pulling off her white blouse to put on a white blouse. Polish: the world should not become like a Polish village- unpronouncable. Art dealer Sagot (Tony Barrett) explained Picasso’s picture to friends for 2 hours; the friends left after an hour. The bartender (Quentin Roth) tells about asking a baker to bake a pie in the shape of the letter ‘e’; an alphabet pie rant ensues.
You never know when this play will end. It seems to be over and another hi-jink occurs. At last, a ‘country boy’, a singer of love songs (guess who?) time-travels into the bar, instigating new philosophical discussions. We’re brought into outer space. Then a pronouncement. Martin the comedian and Martin the philosopher meet head on in this farce.
Theater Review: Rubber Chicken Theater Presents Picasso at the Lapin Agile
By: Ennyman, for Ennyman's Territory (blog)
Friday evening I went to see a local production of Steve Martin's Picasso at the Lapin Agile directer by Greg J. Anderson. The play is hilarious and the production company did an excellent job of conveying the nuanced wit of Steve Martin. When the stars came out at the end, you got it.
The setting for this play is a bar in Paris called the Lapin Agile. For the non-French speakers here, Lapin means rabbit. And "agile" (pronounced ah-jheel) means agile. Or nimble. It's the nimble rabbit, and home-away-from-home for the womanizing young Picasso, as famous for his women as for his work.
People who write for Hollywood or for the theater understand that script writing is about creating great moments and great lines. It's a a mark of Steve Martin's giftedness that he has been able to produce so much rich material over the course of a lifetime. I would compare him to Oscar Wilde on this score. Had Wilde been born in the twentieth century he would no doubt have been at home in Hollywood after getting his start on Saturday Night Live.
Live theater is such a high risk venture. No matter what you're feeling or going through you have to be on. There are no second, third and fourth takes if you don't get it right the first time. The show proceeds, unedited. And in this show the pace is fast, with lots of dialogue for all the main characters. If anyone forgot their lines you couldn't tell. There were no prompters and apparently no need.
Returning to the set, it's simple and comprehensible as a bar. There are a couple small tables, one stage right and the other stage left, and a few bar stools in front of the centrally located bar itself. Behind the bar is a painting of sheep in a pasture, which at various times becomes the focus of conversation. How the various characters respond to the picture is revealing.
The first to arrive are Freddy (Quentin Roth) and Gaston (Nick Elias) who do what bar settings must do. They banter as bartender and bartendee. Next to appear is an odd looking fellow in a suit who says he's here to meet a woman. He takes a seat and begins scribbling notes in a book. The banter goes on until finally he's asked his name. When he says he's Einstein, the bartender gets angry and says that Einstein is supposed to appear fourth in the play and not third. He leads Einstein into the audience, grabs a program from someone's hand and points out the cast "in order of appearance." Einstein leaves, apologizing for his error. Steve Martin's fingerprints are all over the place in this script.
Amanda Sjodahl as the waitress Germaine enters next and this trio of regulars at the Lapin Agile discuss themes that will set up the later arrival of Picasso himself. Einstein (Jonathan Manchester) returns and awaits the lady he is to meet at some other club in the Moulin Rouge. The bar staff are confused, but Einstein notes that "she thinks like me." It is soon learned that the book he is writing is called The Special Theory of Relativity. And indeed she does eventually arrive before it's all over.
Suzanne (Laura Grieme) arrives fifth, another one of Picasso's amore's (victims) smitten by the art world's most beloved narcissist. Her story continues the setup. She has one of his drawings. But when Sagot (Tony Barrett) the art collector arrives and sees it, he notes that it would be worth more if she could get him to sign it and offers to buy it. Barrett played the role well.
The discussion is re-directed to the painting of a pasture with sheep and it gets compared to one of Picasso's drawings. The pasture scene has a simple explanation (except for that of the complex Einstein) whereas the Picasso drawing has "a million, a billion, a trillion opinions, yet the drawing remains the same." Can this be a summing up of the great divide between elitist art and popular art for the masses?
Finally Picasso arrives, the star we've all be waiting for, played wonderfully by Pat Carrol exuding confidence and charm. Except when it comes to Suzanne who is there to worship him, and he can't remember who she is. "You're a womanizing bastard fraud," she exclaims. His retort: "If you're trying to praise me that's a poor choice of words."
Once Picasso's on the set Carrol turns him into a real presence. But so is Einstein. But who could have anticipated these bright lights having to compete with yet two more unexpected characters. The first is Schmendiman, played with hilarious aplomb by Stephen Bock. Picture a cross between Steve Martin and Will Farrell. You laugh just because. Schmendiman is an entrepreneur businessman. When Einstein, Picasso and the entourage are talking about what the twentieth century will be like, Schmendiman chimes in that he knows what the building materials will be like. He's just developed a new product for building walls made from uranium, cat's claws and asbestos.
Well, you get the idea.
Finally there is yet another star, this one from the future. But I'm not going to spoil it for you. He just brings another dimension to an already multi-dimensional story. It's a little like the foam that spills over when you pour too much beer too quickly into a frosted mug. Except in this play they were all relishing the wine.
Some lines that I especially liked in the play included these... "Ideas are like children. You have to watch them carefully or they might go wrong." and "A mirror is like the mind. If you don't use it, it won't reflect."
Kudos to director Greg J. Anderson for assembling this cast, for doing what it takes to bring to life one of Steve Martin's treasures here in the Twin Ports.
By: Ennyman, for Ennyman's Territory (blog)
Friday evening I went to see a local production of Steve Martin's Picasso at the Lapin Agile directer by Greg J. Anderson. The play is hilarious and the production company did an excellent job of conveying the nuanced wit of Steve Martin. When the stars came out at the end, you got it.
The setting for this play is a bar in Paris called the Lapin Agile. For the non-French speakers here, Lapin means rabbit. And "agile" (pronounced ah-jheel) means agile. Or nimble. It's the nimble rabbit, and home-away-from-home for the womanizing young Picasso, as famous for his women as for his work.
People who write for Hollywood or for the theater understand that script writing is about creating great moments and great lines. It's a a mark of Steve Martin's giftedness that he has been able to produce so much rich material over the course of a lifetime. I would compare him to Oscar Wilde on this score. Had Wilde been born in the twentieth century he would no doubt have been at home in Hollywood after getting his start on Saturday Night Live.
Live theater is such a high risk venture. No matter what you're feeling or going through you have to be on. There are no second, third and fourth takes if you don't get it right the first time. The show proceeds, unedited. And in this show the pace is fast, with lots of dialogue for all the main characters. If anyone forgot their lines you couldn't tell. There were no prompters and apparently no need.
Returning to the set, it's simple and comprehensible as a bar. There are a couple small tables, one stage right and the other stage left, and a few bar stools in front of the centrally located bar itself. Behind the bar is a painting of sheep in a pasture, which at various times becomes the focus of conversation. How the various characters respond to the picture is revealing.
The first to arrive are Freddy (Quentin Roth) and Gaston (Nick Elias) who do what bar settings must do. They banter as bartender and bartendee. Next to appear is an odd looking fellow in a suit who says he's here to meet a woman. He takes a seat and begins scribbling notes in a book. The banter goes on until finally he's asked his name. When he says he's Einstein, the bartender gets angry and says that Einstein is supposed to appear fourth in the play and not third. He leads Einstein into the audience, grabs a program from someone's hand and points out the cast "in order of appearance." Einstein leaves, apologizing for his error. Steve Martin's fingerprints are all over the place in this script.
Amanda Sjodahl as the waitress Germaine enters next and this trio of regulars at the Lapin Agile discuss themes that will set up the later arrival of Picasso himself. Einstein (Jonathan Manchester) returns and awaits the lady he is to meet at some other club in the Moulin Rouge. The bar staff are confused, but Einstein notes that "she thinks like me." It is soon learned that the book he is writing is called The Special Theory of Relativity. And indeed she does eventually arrive before it's all over.
Suzanne (Laura Grieme) arrives fifth, another one of Picasso's amore's (victims) smitten by the art world's most beloved narcissist. Her story continues the setup. She has one of his drawings. But when Sagot (Tony Barrett) the art collector arrives and sees it, he notes that it would be worth more if she could get him to sign it and offers to buy it. Barrett played the role well.
The discussion is re-directed to the painting of a pasture with sheep and it gets compared to one of Picasso's drawings. The pasture scene has a simple explanation (except for that of the complex Einstein) whereas the Picasso drawing has "a million, a billion, a trillion opinions, yet the drawing remains the same." Can this be a summing up of the great divide between elitist art and popular art for the masses?
Finally Picasso arrives, the star we've all be waiting for, played wonderfully by Pat Carrol exuding confidence and charm. Except when it comes to Suzanne who is there to worship him, and he can't remember who she is. "You're a womanizing bastard fraud," she exclaims. His retort: "If you're trying to praise me that's a poor choice of words."
Once Picasso's on the set Carrol turns him into a real presence. But so is Einstein. But who could have anticipated these bright lights having to compete with yet two more unexpected characters. The first is Schmendiman, played with hilarious aplomb by Stephen Bock. Picture a cross between Steve Martin and Will Farrell. You laugh just because. Schmendiman is an entrepreneur businessman. When Einstein, Picasso and the entourage are talking about what the twentieth century will be like, Schmendiman chimes in that he knows what the building materials will be like. He's just developed a new product for building walls made from uranium, cat's claws and asbestos.
Well, you get the idea.
Finally there is yet another star, this one from the future. But I'm not going to spoil it for you. He just brings another dimension to an already multi-dimensional story. It's a little like the foam that spills over when you pour too much beer too quickly into a frosted mug. Except in this play they were all relishing the wine.
Some lines that I especially liked in the play included these... "Ideas are like children. You have to watch them carefully or they might go wrong." and "A mirror is like the mind. If you don't use it, it won't reflect."
Kudos to director Greg J. Anderson for assembling this cast, for doing what it takes to bring to life one of Steve Martin's treasures here in the Twin Ports.
