Written by Travis Ballenger
April was hard, really hard, and depending on where you’re standing, things seem to only get harder. So why not, in all that depressing reality, take a moment to just laugh? That’s what the producers at Little Benita Productions and HyLo Entertainment think. MOCK YOUR WORLD, a new musical comedy review, with music and lyrics by Andrew Byrne and directed by Andrew Neisler and Lee Kasper, seeks to bring comfort through laughter.
“Sometimes we get really angry about things when we really need to laugh at ourselves”, says Lisa Rothauser a producer and one of the four actors in the show, including David Pearlman, Lindsay Nicole Chambers, and Stanley Bahorek. The evening justly opened with the brilliant Latrell Jackson. The self-described Real Housewife of Truth warmed our bellies, preparing us for the forthcoming adventure. Latrell’s routine, based on Wendy Williams’ Hot Topic, can give the tall talk show hostess a run for her money any day, with segments called “Dear Black America” or “I Wish a White Motherf***er Would”. Latrell was a perfect start to this evening of bawdy comedy.
The show featured pieces like Brokeback Mountain the Musical (with the incredibly funny Pearlman and vocally on point Bahorek) and “Chinatown Bus” exposing people hooking up on the infamous bus—something I didn’t know about, but was confirmed by a friend…apparently it happens all the time! The entire cast performed the “based-on-a-true-story” song and Rothauser, with her powerful vocal instrument, and Chambers, who understands comic timing to a T, really stood out and owned the stage.
The writer held nothing back. Really. There was nothing off limits. It’s difficult to make me squirm. Honestly, you can say and do almost anything and I’m completely unfazed. F**k Me in the A**, while driving me and my companion to laugh so hard I nearly spilled my drink, turned my face a deep red. Be prepared for moments like that peppered throughout the evening. I suggest that, like me, you have a couple of drinks before and at the show. It’s part of the experience.
MOCK YOUR WORLD runs until June 6th at The Stand Restaurant and Comedy Club. For more information, check out mockyourworld.com
