Skip to main content

NEW YORK HUMOR IN"OLIVE AND THE BITTER HERBS"

By Chuck Graham, TucsonStage.com

photo by Tim Fuller
This Passover Seder becomes a time of truce for (from left) David Alexander Johnston, Eric Anson, Susan Claassen, Susan Kovitz and Jack Neubeck.
Watching a culture clash take place in a haunted mirror during a seasonal Jewish holiday doesn’t happen often, but here it is at Invisible Theatre in a Charles Busch-wacky production of “Olive and the Bitter Herbs.”
James Blair is at the controls as director, with IT’s managing artistic director Susan Claassen flaunting her love for the eccentric in the title role of Olive Fisher
Although that title could well be the name of a popular vegetarian rock band, it is actually Busch’s way of framing Olive as eternally bitter about everything.
From the gay couple who live next door in her rent-controlled East 30s Manhattan co-op, to the noisy roomer upstairs (who’s dead now, thank goodness), Olive is unhappy. Not just unhappy, but unhappy-unhappy, expressing herself in the most creatively insulting dialogue directed at everyone else onstage.
On opening night there was instant recognition and constant laughter from the audience, connecting with her double barreled insider complaints common to Big Apple life at the middle-class bohemian level, a lifestyle delightfully expressed through the catchy set design by Blair and Claassen.
In the play Olive resents having become an actor of a certain age, still hoping for that big role – even though her career peaked some 30 years ago as the “star” of a popular series of commercials with the hook line “Gimme the sausage” (remember that vintage TV ad where the salty old lady kept asking “Where’s the beef?” Like that).
Acting as loyal band members in this ensemble effort are Wendy (Susan Kovitz), a retired theater manager who considers herself a kind of caretaker for Olive; Robert (David Alexander Johnston), also retired, formerly an editor of children’s books; Trey (Eric Anson), the gay companion of Robert; and Sylvan (Jack Neubeck), who is sweet on Olive and no doubt has a fondness for astringent wines.
All are popular veterans of the Tucson theater scene, carrying their roles responsibly and getting all their laughs. Each develops an identifiable character and keeps up the energy that builds as Olive becomes more taken by the unseen figure in her full-length framed mirror at the edge of the stage.
This spooky fantasy gets the mundane name “Howard,” but his presence is announced by the ghostly lights and eerie sounds you would expect from a spirit with a more fearsome handle. Howard never speaks, however. We come to “know” him through the comments of others.
Plot-wise, there isn’t a lot happening. Mostly the others are drawn to Olive’s apartment because of some past connection to Howard. There aren’t any labyrinthine trails to follow, no red herrings to dismiss.
The real fun is just in catching all the jokes, which are pretty good, filled with Busch’s over-the-top attitudes whetted by that New York edge. Exactly the kind of humor Classen can deliver so well.
“Olive and the Bitter Herbs” continues through April 27 with performances at 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays, plus a 4 p.m. matinee Saturday, April 26, at Invisible Theatre, 1400 N. First Ave.
All tickets are $28, group discounts available. For details and reservations, 520-882-9721, or visit www.invisibletheatre.com

Popular posts from this blog

Moody noir musical 'Gunmetal Blues' depicts misfortune in surreal world

Moody noir musical 'Gunmetal Blues' depicts misfortune in surreal world December 09, 2008, 9:49 a.m. CHUCK GRAHAM Tucson Citizen "Gunmetal Blues" rises out of the darkened Invisible Theatre stage as a 1930s nightclub gangster caper that's four parts atmosphere and one part action, with a twist. Armen Dirtadian looks terrific as Sam Galahad, the well-dressed loser who's old enough to know better but has never learned to resist. Dirtadian is well-known around Tucson for his dashing roles as the broad-shouldered leading man at Gaslight Theatre, but is keeping his personality in the shadows here. He plays a private eye so down on his luck, no client is ever turned away from his tattered office. Betsy Kruse Craig (another Gaslight star) steps into the IT spotlight as that tall blonde who doesn't care how much trouble Sam gets sucked into. She also plays three other blondes with their own suspicious motives. Taking on several additional roles is Mike Padilla, wh

Broadway World Review: Invisible Theatre Opens 51st Season with THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT

  Review: Invisible Theatre Opens 51st Season with THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT https://www.broadwayworld.com/phoenix/article/Review-Invisible-Theatre-Opens-51st-Season-with-LIFESPAN-OF-A-FACT-20220905?fbclid=IwAR2mZ5Iwsj_LVsppP13ho-poXjIDN-MW5ZLgWOnVKAQIzB91JuexqHQOUZo  The play is based on a book transcribed from a controversial essay. by  Robert Encila-Celdran   Sep. 05, 2022              At the heart of THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT is the heady and contentious intersection of journalism and creative prose. Invisible Theatre's 51st season-opener is based on John D'Agata's book of the same title, co-authored by Jim Fingal, who had served as a fact checker of John D'Agata's original essay from which the book was transcribed. Prior to their shared achievement, the authors had a wrangling seven-year discourse related to questionable details about D'Agata's otherwise compelling narrative about the culture of suicide in Las Vegas. The 2003 essay, titled  What Happens There

INVISIBLE THEATRE ANNOUNCES AN EXCITING AND DIVERSE LINEUP OF PLAYS FOR ITS 2022-2023 SEASON!

 INVISIBLE THEATRE ANNOUNCES AN EXCITING AND DIVERSE LINEUP OF PLAYS FOR ITS 2022-2023 SEASON!  (April 1, 2022, Tucson, AZ); Invisible Theatre’s Managing Artistic Director, Susan Claassen and Associate Directors James Blair and Betsy Kruse Craig, announce six plays for the company’s 51st Anniversary Season. The lineup includes the SW premieres of acclaimed Off-Broadway contemporary plays, romantic comedies, the Arizona premieres of the award-winning musical tribute to the great Billie Holiday with BILLIE! - Backstage with Lady Day and intimate portraits of outspoken “Defenders of Liberty” like witty and brassy Molly Ivins in RED HOT PATRIOT: The KickAss Wit of Molly Ivins and the Off-Broadway acclaimed WIESENTHAL that tells the compelling story of Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal. The season also includes THE SABBATH GIRL, a contemporary comedy with an old-fashioned heart, SMALL MOUTH SOUNDS, a unique and compassionate new play that asks how we address life’s biggest questions when words f