This kind of knuckles-dragging spoof, where clichés are milked for laughs until the comedic cow runs dry, feels dated. Ten to fifteen years ago, it was an approach to satire that still seemed fresh, as no one had previously had the idea of embracing the clichés that all their formal training had told them to despise. Yet it has become increasingly dominant in comedy, both on an amateur level and, increasingly, on a professional level as well. It’s more disappointing when, in the case of Vice Girl Confidential, the play’s creator seems so willfully oblivious to how unoriginal the approach actually is.
The play was a hit at the 2006 Fringe Festival, largely because of the boisterous cast. The cast remains as enthused and committed as ever, and everyone, including Michael, plays their roles with the utmost conviction. That enthusiasm is what keeps Vice Girl from disaster, and makes the play very enjoyable on a shallow level. Beyond that, however, maybe it should have stayed in Fringe’s vaults.
Vice Girl Confidential by Todd Michael. Directed by Walter J. Hoffman. Photos by Louis Lopardi.
Starring Jeff Auer (Duke Cragie), Emily King Brown (Florence Kelton), Thom Brown (Walter Slade), Courtney Cook (Mamie Winters), Matthew F. Garner (Muggsy Regan, Edgar Baldwin), Lawrence Lesher (Lou Braddock), Zach Lombardo (Narrator, Trigger Nelson, Frazier), Jessica Luck (June Winters, Police Woman), Todd Michael (Stella Fontaine).
Vice Girl Confidential completed its run at UNDER St. Marks on November 16. It was produced by Graycie Productions.
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