ImprovBoston Takes Aim at Buddy-Cop Comedy - 'Manthorne and The Baron: Cambridge Nights'

Directed by Patrick French; Starring Alex LeBaron, Brendan Mulhern, Jackie Arko and Hannah Foell

Performances Fridays at 10 p.m. through December 9 at ImprovBoston; 40 Prospect Street, Cambridge, MA, Box Office 617-576-1253 or www.improvboston.com/gorefest, $16 Adults, $12 Students

Days before ImprovBoston's "Manthorne & The Baron: Cambridge Nights" debuted, the theatre advertised a show poster and plot synopsis that set forth some pretty high expectations.

On the poster stand two police officers – one statuesque and stolid, the other a bit more paunchy, each donning sunglasses and poker faces – amid the dusky indigo and coral Cambridge skyline. 

And the plot summary: "When a crime so shocking leaves Cambridge reeling and its citizens questioning their identity, Chief of Police Alec "The Baron" Lebarren (LeBaron) takes it personally. Motivated by justice and looking for revenge, Lebarren decides to fight fire with fire, forcing Jack "The Man" Manthorne (Mulhern) into a partnership with an ultimatum. As these two veteran crime fighters get closer to the truth by giving the third degree to a motley crew of locals (all played by Arko and Foell), they too begin to unravel. If they are to restore peace in the streets and trust within the community, they will have to face the truths they each buried long ago."

It's a colossal undertaking, which left me with this question: Can an improv show – customarily performed totally off the cuff and seemingly unarranged – live up to the prearranged material the theatre promised?

The cast answered back with a dithering "kind of." 

Plain and simple, improv is an experiment. Always. And the experiment's conclusion is often determined more by the sharpness of the actors' wit, rather than the convincingness of their portrayal. The core challenge for the actors then is to make the appropriate knee-jerk decisions that not only entertain the audience but also weave in the right information to advance the story's plot – normally, at a moment's notice. 

And there's the rub.

In the show, the actors certainly don't make it easy on themselves. For Mulhern and LeBaron, remaining one character throughout undoubtedly helps ground their interpretations of the story's two central figures. We can see who they are and get a feel for their stories simply because we have a longer chance to know them. But for Arko and Foell, who each portray about five characters, it's an uphill battle trying to maintain distinct accents, mannerisms and character history.

The group meets the challenges head on, but by and large, the show feels a bit patchy. Some of the women's' characters are performed exceedingly well, and you crave their reprise after one three-minute scene is swiftly (read frantically) swapped for another, but others fall a bit flat. Although, it's tough to hold too rigid of standards to something as playful as this show is, especially when you never have to deal with anything you don't like for too long – unless, of course, it's the men's characters.

Representing half of the buddy-cop duo, Mulhern plays the less heroic, more clueless character you just want to hug, especially when his personal life goes to hell. He does well with the curveballs he's thrown, though, at times, he overplays the part in his attempt to come off more loveable than Lebarren.

LeBaron, the other half, is perhaps most effective in his stern and rugged characterization of Lebarren. Out of all the performers, he is the one who keeps it together best when the story's direction seems uncertain. And the unsmiling nature of his character, complete with pensive pauses, is an effective cover and smart tool if awkward gaps arise and perhaps the most humorous thing about him.

Foell gives it her best effort, but seems to bite off a bit more than she can dramatically chew, trying to nab one too many scene-stealing moments that often don't jibe with the pace of the other actors. She must, however, be commended for her brazen decision-making – without which might make for a rather humdrum show.

Arko is, for me, the most likable in the show. Her various characters seem incredibly natural and she shows impressive range and comedic flare. Like Foell, she takes the lead often, but I'm a bit more compelled to go along with it when she does so because of the unaffected chutzpah she brings to the stage.

Casual theatergoers may be initially unimpressed by the cavalier approach the company seems to take with the mechanics of the show – transitions are hardly fluid and a few of the actors appear a bit caught off guard when the spotlight suddenly shifts in his or her direction. But that's sort of the fun of it, lest we forget the challenging work they do. After all, it's not only acting; it's on-the-spot acting, writing, directing and then some. The fact that she show can turn any which way at a moment's notice, purely on the whim of the performers, is pretty much the beauty of the genre. And at the very least, the cast and director Patrick French courageously embrace that element.

It's not the best improv show in the Hub, which is a very tall order given Boston's numerous improv theatres and troupes abounds, but fans of the genre (and the buddy-cop genre, for that matter) should go and have a beer or three, if only to enjoy the tight-knit audience milieu the theatre has cultivated in it's 30 years of grooming young talent. And they should go back for the encouraging variety of productions offered six days a week at ImprovBoston.

As for every Friday through early December, the spirit is undoubtedly present atop the small stage in this intimate Cambridge theatre. The focused talent demanded by improv comedy isn't as noticeable. Not yet anyway.  

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