BWW Preview: THE WILD PARTY: Give Me a Bottle of Bourbon and Half a Chicken and I'll Conquer the World!

"Are you ready to laugh? Are you ready to smile? Are you ready to sing and dance for a while?"

So asks Burrs (Justin Rapp), a sinister and disturbed clown, of the rest of the cast and the audience: are they ready--really ready--for The Wild Party?

It's not shocking that I'd be invested in an Out of the Box show (you'll see my hair and makeup handiwork on stage), but I'm more excited than usual about our upcoming show: a cabaret-style production of The Wild Party. Based on a once banned, book-length poem by Joseph Moncure March, The Wild Party is a music-heavy production in which exposition and poetic language coexist in the lyrics. Andrew Lippa's story of conflicted romance between Queenie and Burrs, the vaudeville dancer and the clown, is more decadent than it sounds. It's a profligate, corrupt Gatsby, a story of rage and revenge in which the glamour of the 1920s is combined with debauchery and disarray. In the universe of The Wild Party, being the life of the party is akin to being dangerous and perverse. Queenie and Burrs' party attracts the edgier fringe of 1920s society: drug addicts, prostitutes, people of color, and homosexuals.

Out of the Box's Production of The Wild Party straddles the line between musical theatre with a minimalist set and an audacious cabaret show where the audience should always be prepared to be part of the action, especially if they're seated at one of the on-stage cabaret tables. There are certainly moments of humor and frivolity in The Wild Party, and the characters are brazen and memorable. Listen for my new life anthem, as declared by Kate (Samantha Eve): "Give me a bottle of bourbon and half a chicken and I'll conquer the world!" But don't be lulled into a false sense of happy endings by the lighter fare (another highlight of which being Madelaine True [Deborah Bertling] singing about her desire for an old-fashioned lesbian love story). Queenie and Burrs are abusive and violent, and their relationship both perishes and flourishes under the pressure of their passion--their party is a physical manifestation of their barely contained displeasure with each other.

The Wild Party is a dark and sexy theatrical presentation; a bold, sleek adaptation of the show that proves all you need to throw a wild party is wild company. Streamlined to only the essential aspects of the story, Out of the Box's rendition of Lippa's prohibition-era bacchanalia is still a complete production, even without the addition of a lifelike set. The dark recess of the black box playing space, sandwiched between the band and the cabaret tables, is an appropriate atmosphere for the show. Without overindulging in set pieces and props, there's nothing to distract from the stark realism of the performances and the strange and sometimes unsettling effect of the poetic bleakness of the lyrics paired with sultry jazz. Stylized and gritty, Out of the Box emphasizes the harsher, more depraved aspects of culture in the 20s, but creates links of relatability that connect the emotional compulsions of the past with those of the present: compensation for boredom, anger, and depression; the terrifying and beautiful satisfaction of power perpetuated through violence; and the unexplainable but undeniable allure of chaos. The tragic end delivers unexpected poignancy, and is sure to astound.

Come for a drink, stay for the music, and get excited about The Wild Party (I recommend splurging for space at a cabaret table if you want to be closer to [or part of] the action). It's an intelligent show that presents the reckless abandon of society's outer edges.

Featuring: Deborah Bertling as Madelaine True, a handsome lesbian always on the prowl; Katherine Bottoms as Mae, a diminutive flapper girl; J.D. Driskill as Eddie, the boxer; Samantha Eve as Kate, the cocaine-snorting, Bourbon-drinking, "classy" prostitute; Musique as Black, a mysterious new arrival to the party who catches Queenie's fancy; Justin Bryant Rapp as Burrs, the very scary clown; Donnie Ross as Phil D'Armano and Christian Watts as Oscar D'Armano-the very fabulous "brothers"/lovers; and Rachel Short as dissatisfied vaudevillian chorus girl, Queenie.

Out of the Box Theatre Company Presents:
The Wild Party
by Andrew Lippa
Directed by Samantha Eve
www.outoftheboxtheatre.org

Wednesday, April 8, at 8:00 P.M.
Thursday, April 9, at 8:00 P.M.
Friday, April 10, at 8:00 P.M.
Saturday, April 11, at 8:00 P.M.

TICKETS: $35 on-stage cabaret table seating (where prohibition-themed cocktails and other beverages and treats can be purchased and enjoyed), $28 general, $15 student (with student ID)

Photo Credit: Kim Reierson

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