Pigs Eye Theatre - All in the Timing: Pigs Eye's plays show timing is everything

All in the Timing By David Ives	Directed by Jerome J. Urmann
March 14 - 29, 2003 at Cedar Riverside People's Center

Pigs Eye's plays show timing is everything

by Renee Valois
Special to the St. Paul Pioneer Press

March 16th, 2003

They say successful comedy is "all in the timing." Some say the same about success in life. If you meet an attractive person when you're ready for the relationship, sparks will fly. But if the timing is off...disaster.

An intriguing collection of six one-acts performed by Pigs Eye Theatre plays around with the effect timing can have on life — and theater. In the first piece, "The Sure Thing," a woman sits at a table in a cafe, reading a book. A man approaches her and asks if the chair next to her is taken. She brushes him off and rings the bell sitting on the table, which signals an abrupt change — then the two instantly do the scene over as very different characters and with very different results.

Each time the bell rings, we get to see how the two will attract or repulse each other, depending on how they play the scene. Actors Ann Frances Gregg and Ryan Parker Knox have a lot of fun with the various replays, which require instant and dramatic changes — such as from slob to erudite Harvard man or from shy bookworm to sly vixen. As the two gradually move through the story, it's fun to see how character and timing make a difference in how two people may connect and even fall in love.

Although "The Sure Thing" is a sure winner, not all of David Ives' other five one-acts are as strong. "Variations on the Death of Trotsky" is so oddly ludicrous it becomes funny in a quietly skewed way. "Degas c'est moi" and "Philadelphia" are surrealistic, with some mildly amusing moments.

"Seven Menus" takes place in the same restaurant, over the course of years. Each time the lights go down and then up, some of the characters change — and we see how partners come and go and fortunes rise and fall as time changes — but the location doesn't. Like "The Sure Thing," its humor includes a thread of enriching poignancy.

"Speed the Play" skewers the playwright David Mamet, giving us ridiculously abbreviated versions of some of his works, including "American Buffalo" and "Glengarry Glen Ross." It lampoons his fondness for profanity by using the f-word as much as possible and finally asking "has everyone said f— yet?" You'll certainly get your quota for the day — or even the year — in this one piece.

The eight actors in the ensemble besides Gregg and Knox include Joanna Burr, Joe Papke, Sheila Franklin, Gary Keast, Sam L. Landman and Zoe Pappas. Each plays a wide variety of roles and all are fun to watch.

Director Jerome J. Urmann has them exaggerate their emotional responses in many scenes to create comic caricatures. This works with the feel of the pieces, which are reminiscent of sketches from Second City or Saturday Night Live — but with greater depth. The set and props look like they came from Goodwill, but that actually complements the quirkiness of the production.

Ives' collection of one-acts has more spark in its strangeness than the average full-length play. The gimmicks at the core of each piece vary — as does the quality. But if you can find the time to go, you'll probably enjoy "All in the Timing."

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