OVERWEIGHT, unimportant:
MISSHAPE-A European Supper
Written by Werner Schwab
Translated by Michael Mitchell
Directed by Yasen Peyankov
at Trap Door Theatre, 1655 W. Cortland (map)
thru Nov 12 | tickets: $20-$25 | more info
Check for half-price tickets
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Looking at society’s obsessions thru a well-paced bar brawl
Trap Door Theatre presents
OVERWEIGHT, unimportant:
MISSHAPE – A European Supper
Review by Katy Walsh
An attractive couple walks into a bar… No, it’s not the opening of a joke. It’s the catalyst that bonds ordinary locals into bizarre misfits. Trap Door Theatre presents OVERWEIGHT, unimportant: MISSHAPE – A European Supper. The usual suspects are getting their drink on. Piggy and Bunny are knitting and sniping. Karlo is looking for a fight. Herta is looking for a drink. Pussy wants money for the jukebox. Jurgen wants attention for his pontifications. The bar owner just wants the booze and the cash flowing. It’s just another night at the pub, right? Wrong! Tonight strangers are visiting this world of permeating stank. Perched in the corner, the lovebirds are oblivious. And suddenly, that makes them the enemy. The refined couple become the reason for all the unhappiness in the bar… in the world. They have something everyone wants. And what wouldn’t the regulars do to satisfy their hunger for bar justice? 
As is a hallmark of Trap Door, the audience joins the play already in progress. When the house opens, it’s obvious the bar has been open for awhile. The characters are rocking out, making out, and passing out. There’s a full bar, tables and a juke box. It could be any dive bar in Small Town, USA but Set Designer Joey Wade gives it an international flair. Costume Designer Lena Sands adds to the ambiance. She dresses the strangers in glamorous white. She clads the regulars in eclectic pub-crawl fashions. The visual is immediately familiar and unfamiliar. I’ve been ‘memorably put in this room.’ When the conversation starts, the comfortable vibe fades.
Playwright Werner Schwab, along with translator Michael Mitchell, penned vivid dialogue with multiple meaning. The barflies try for polite discussion topics but settle on the routine. Who sells it? Who beats it? Who *isn’t* getting it? The word choices are lyrical and crass. Just like the characters. Under the direction of Yasen Peyankow, this cast is a hot mess. There is ‘something that forces a hunger in itself,’ and Peyankow uncages the talented ensemble to explore it. In one scene, the mob frenzy is horrifically intense. After the shock wears off, I’m able to appreciate the irony and even comedy of the moment.
OVERWEIGHT, unimportant: MISSHAPE – A European Supper is fascinating. It looks at obsession unchecked. It wraps up the deterioration of humanity to outsiders AND insiders into a well-paced bar brawl. The message is definitely weighty, important and shaped into an interesting evening of entertainment.
Rating: ★★★
OVERWEIGHT, unimportant: MISSHAPE – A European Supper continues through November 12th at Trap Door Theatre, 1655 W. Cortland (map), with performances Thursdays thru Saturdays at 8pm. Tickets are $20-$25, and are available by phone (773-384-0494) or online at TicketLeap.com. More info at TrapDoorTheatre.com. (Running time: One hundred minutes, which includes one intermission)
All photos by Michal Janicki
artists
cast
Kirk Anderson, Dado, Géraldine Dulex, Andy Hager, Carolyn Hoerdemann, David A. Holcombe, Beata Pilch, H.B. Ward, and Nicole Wiesner
behind the scenes
Yasen Peyankov (director); David Steiger (dramaturg); Joey Wade (set design); Richard Norwood (lighting); Lena Sands (costumes); Gregor Mortis (sound design); Allison Raynes (stage manager); Zsófia Ötvös (make-up) Meredith Miller (props); Michal Janicki (graphics); Michal Janicki (photos)
