theater
Steam-Punk Sex Farce
Local director gets funky with The Underpants
T
he script — Steve Martin’s rewrite of a German sex
farce. Droll and just a little bit naughty, it’s exactly
the type of play that sells a heap of tickets.
Johnny Ormsbee is a young director better known
for exploring universal truth through unorthodox
theatrical experiences than fi nding fun in a stock sex
farce. But pair the two and you get the Very Little
Theater’s latest offering, The Underpants, a traditional
comedy gone wild with kazoo-playing gypsies.
I sat down with Ormsbee last week at Allan Bros. to
discuss his latest project and uncover what happens when
an experimental director picks up a conventional script.
What happens? Things get crazy. Finding inspiration
in everything from surrealist painters to Charlie Chaplin’s
classic fi lm Modern Times, Ormsbee and cast have
radically altered the intentions and moods existing in the
original script, and they channel a steam-punk vibe for
the set and costumes. They even tweak the “winner” at
the end, hoping to conclude on a somber note.
Ormsbee says any play is open to interpretation. “We
look at the script and see if it warrants any addition,” he
explains. “A good script should be able to change with
the times.”
If you’ve visited Ashland during these “Bill Rauch”
years, you’ve seen ample examples of using texts as a
jumping-off point to tell a different story. It’s a brave —
and often controversial — gambit.
“It’s been rumored that we’ve gone over the top,”
Ormsbee says. “I don’t feel as though we’ve gone too far,
but we might have,” he adds, noting that VLT audiences
might draw the line at “humping chairs.”
This chair-humping business, along with the Tim
Burton-esque costumes and a wicked-wild set, has
raised more than a few eyebrows. Ormsbee is not
deterred. “I’m interested in getting people out of their
boxes,” he says. “We need to mix it up.”
And mix it up he does, with a cast comprised of
newcomers to the VLT mainstage, although the actors
are by no means unknown to the local theater scene. A
carnival feel is evoked with live music that leans heavily
on kazoos and tin cans. Ormsbee describes this music
as “junk band gypsy folk rock.”
Are the actors on board? “They are very excited,” he
says. “We are going to try to do the best show Eugene
has ever seen.”
Getting actors to commit to the surreal is Ormsbee’s
gift. Starting the current rehearsal process with a
bawdy Martha Stewart joke, Ormsbee has tried to lead a
truly collaborative effort. “They’ve taken my vision and
lifted it with me,” he says.
The Underpants promises to be a unique and
ultimately human experience. Ormsbee points out that
comedy is one of the few art forms that embraces us
as physical beings, completely in and of our bodies.
“We regurgitate, we defecate, we have sex,” he says.
“Comedy allows us to leave the phallocentric world of
the English language and be human.”
Whether the play (re)connects you with yourself or
just makes you laugh for a couple of hours, it offers the
chance for some bawdy entertainment. Come watch —
who knows what will happen?
In Ormsbee’s words: “I would ask audiences to open
themselves up to the idea of being able to see the world
in a different light.” — Anna Grace
arts
SHORTS
Expression, Occupied
T
he upcoming benefi t for Occupy Eu-
gene, appropriately named “Occupy
Free Expression,” is a testament to
how well OE can channel local talent and cre-
ativity into an articulate platform for social
change.
The event will feature talent from Occupy
emcee Plaedo Wellman to other local slam
fi xtures. The evening will begin with more
formal poetry readings and segue into the
harder-hitting, more gut-wrenching material.
“I think that ideas about social, political
and economic reforms have a much greater
chance of being understood and appreciated
by more people and absorbed into our culture
and daily life when those ideas are converted
into artistic expression,” wrote event organizer
Jennifer Frenzer-Knowlton.
Historically, most successful revolutions
are backed by those capable of expressing
the plight of the oppressed in a more
abstract, perhaps more approachable way
than by marching through streets or chanting
slogans. Eugene is fortunate to have such
spokespeople and artists like Wellman, who
can stitch social change together with spoken
word to capture the heartfelt earnestness of
oppression that oftentimes is lost in more
traditional forms of protest.
“Culture provides meaning and it provides
context,” says Wellman. “I think that by having
an evening, an event with poets to speak, we
are giving a context that provides meaning
for Occupy and for people that are politically
informed or socially informed, people that
want to make changes in the way we live our
lives. And structural changes to the way we
organize our system.”
“Occupy Free Expression: An Occupy
Eugene Benefi t Event” will take place on
Sunday, Jan. 15, 4-6 pm at Tsunami Books.
— Andrew Hitz
The Underpants opens Friday, Jan. 13, and runs through Jan. 28; for
times, tickets or further info, visit theVLT.com or call 344-7741; $10-$15.
The Underpants
MAN BITES DOG
January 13 - February 4
previews January 11 & 12
Directed by Fred Gorelick
Tom Stoppard’s witty and uplifting comic
exploration of marriage, fidelity and integrity.
Don’t miss Storm Kennedy, Dan Pegoda and
a stellar cast in this Tony Award winning play.
Thanks to our sponsors:
Get Your Tickets Early...
Call 541-465-1506 or at lordleebrick.org
Regular Menu:
By
Steve
Martin
Directed by
Johnny
Ormsbee
A rollicking satirical farce about how
a couple’s conservative existence is
shattered when a pair of bloomers falls
down in public, only briefly, but with
surprising consequences.
Jan. 13-15*, 19-22*, 26-28
Winter Theatre Classes Registering Now
Curtain 8:00 pm Thursday–Saturday
2:00 pm for *Sunday Matinees
Tickets: $15 ($10 for Thursday)
Acting & Playwriting for Kids & Adults
Call 541.684.6988 to register
WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM
THEVLT.COM
For tickets, call 541-344-7751
Box office open 2-5:30 Wed.–Sat.
2350 Hilyard Street, Eugene
On Facebook at TheVLT
Jumbo American Dog ................ $4.25
Big All-Beef Frank ...................... $4.50
Polish Kielbasa .......................... $5.25
Sicilian Sausage ......................... $5.25
Cajun Hot Links ........................ $5.25
Mediterranean Chicken Sausage $5.25
Oktoberfest Sausage .................. $5.25
Jalapeño Cheddar Frank ............ $5.25
Chili Dog Supreme .................... $5.50
Giant German Beer Sausage ...... $5.25
British Pub Sausage ................... $5.25
NY Coney Island Dog ............... $5.50
Vegan Meatless Sausage ............ $5.25
Dog Of The Day:
Knock-Out Knockworst ......
Hungarian Garlic Sausage ..
WED: Cheddar Frank ....................
THUR: Bavarian Bratwurst ............
FRI: Andouille Sausage ................
SAT: Black Forest Beef Sausage ....
MON:
TUES:
$5.25
$5.25
$5.25
$5.25
$5.25
$4.75
2 GREAT LOCATIONS:
17th & Pearl • 6th & Charnelton
OPEN MON - SAT 11am 5pm
www.DoginaBoxEugene.com
EUGENE WEEKLY JANUARY 12, 2012
25