Austinist Reviews Get Your War On!

Another of our favorite elements was a musical break of sorts, featuring Telephone Line by E.L.O.. We love that song, but we haven't thought of it in years. Because the comic strip usually features office workers talking on the phone, the E.L.O. song was the perfect musical interlude. And our brains appreciated a break from the constant stream of words words words.

The timeline of the show, which runs about 1:10, is just after September 11 to the present. So you can surmise that things move along very rapidly. We were forced to recall many little newsbits we had utterly forgotten, such as when Kissinger was named chair of the 9/11 commission. We're not completely sure we wanted to remember all of this depressing history.... Then again, the Rudes presented the misery in a way that made us laugh. A lot.

And speaking of the Rudes, we feel we must mention each by name because the performances were all so strong. This is an ensemble piece, and every player pulled equal weight. Lana Lesley was frustrated and wry. Chad Nichols was glib. Oh, and hysterically North Korea (you just have to see it). Amy Miley was sardonic. Robert Pierson was soooooo happy. And Jason Liebrecht was pissed off. Like, spittingly pissed off. Don't get us wrong -- the players don't have roles. These are just some of the gamut of emotions that each depicted. The gist of the work is that it presents all of the feelings you've probably had about the political climate over the last five years.

The only drawback of the piece is that it's a work in development, and as such has a rough patch or two. We were put off by two "flashback" sequences that warped the timeline to the 80's. The actors took far upstage positions, and David-Byrne-danced while Val-speaking long-ago mistakes (e.g., the U.S. stance on the Russian invasion of Afghanistan) that spotlight the folly and hypocrisy of current policy. These segments threw us off, both mentally and visually.

Nevertheless, these really were blips on an otherwise seamless radar. We suspect the production will get more intense, tighter, and funnier as time goes on, and we definitely recommend it for a thought-provoking, fun night of theatre. We'll likely check it out later in the run to see how things have progressed.

GET YOUR WAR ON!
Now - February 4, 2006
Thursday-Saturday at 8 PM
The Off Center (2211-A Hidalgo St) Map
Tickets: Fridays and Saturdays: Sliding Scale $10 - $18;
Thursdays are Pay-What-You-Can;
Buy tickets online or at the door

Image (c) Rude Mechanicals.