The New York Neo-Futurists come just in time for the holidays: Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind is a gift for all who love the theatre. There are no stars and no wannabe stars, just a solid ensemble of five versatile and hilarious performers presenting up to 30 short plays in one hour. Like the glory days of Saturday Night Live, Too Much Light is not just funny but faintly surreal.
Playful savvy is infused into every aspect of the show. You pay $10 plus whatever comes up on the roll of a six-sided die. You give your name and receive a tag with a new one (I was "Winger"; my friend Michelle became "Brioche"). If the play sells out, they order out -- pizza for all!
The Neo-Futurists include new sketches each weekend according to another roll of the die. Clearly, some had performed sketch No. 24, "Let's Play the Penis Game!," before. Standout sketches included No. 13 ("Neonesco"), a spot-on satire of Ionesco, and No. 16 ("We do not torture or blowing the sweet sounds of submission"), which involves a pinwheel and pixie dust.
John Pierson was a flexible charmer, particularly in sketch No. 7, "An Interview With Death." Some of the sketches are touching: In No. 3, "The King and I: Washington Heights," Sarah Levy sings "Whistle a Happy Tune" while Yolanda Kae Wilkinson describes a senior citizens' musical theatre production at a Jewish community center. Rob Neill was a funny commander in chief in No. 28, "How Things Work Now." No. 6, "Communication: A Charade," is a funny and true demonstration of genderspeak.
It's inspiring theatre, and it makes you want to join in. The troupe, trained by the founder of the Chicago ensemble, Greg Allen, is holding auditions for actors and writers on Dec. 1, 3, and 4; see the company's website at www.nyneofuturists.org.
Presented by the New York Neo-Futurists. Starting January 20, 2006, the show runs every Friday and Saturday night at 10:30pm at The Kraine Theater, 85 East Fourth Street, between 2nd & 3rd Ave, NYC. www.theatermania.com
The above review was from the production at the Cherry Lane Theatre, 38 Commerce St., NYC, which ran from Nov. 4-Dec. 17, 2005.