'Clown Bible' A Musical, Slapstick Scriptural Tour-De-Farce

Ten Red Hen, an innovative young company whose '99-Cent Miss Saigon" was one of the best things in the Bay Area last year, have outdone themselves with 'Clown Bible,' a musical comedy revue from Scriptural stories, Genesis to the Gospels, off to a bang when Adam & Eve pluck red noses from the Tree of Life, & God, silhouetted in a circle of light above the stage, shouts through a ringmaster's
bullhorn, "Alright, put 'em on!"

And they do--through a tapdancing, stuttering Moses, working overtime to appease the Lord and curb his tribe's appetites; Samson as an Action Hero, grinning and letting the Philistines have it (singing "I'm Samson, I'm crazy ... Get out of my way so I can do my hair!"), until getting vamped by a Delilah right out of a kitschy old movie; and Jesus preaching in parables, like jokes that the Apostles just don't seem to get ...

The music is original and good, with a swinging little combo onstage that becomes part of the action (the guitarist, as David, soothes the raging Saul; Dave Malloy at the keyboards--coauthor & composer--doubles as Job, whose Sorrows are represented by the loss of his piano, accordions & pitchpipe, while the other cats rib him for it). It's a talented young cast doing its schtick, featuring operatically voiced Jane Chen, a fine performer, as two persons of The Godhead.

Don't miss this work-in-progress. It's out there entirely on its own, with its own slant, a different feel. And it's genially, not contentiously, funny. The stories are almost all literal from Scripture, with a couple apocraphal transitions. A constant, delightful surprise.

(A full review was posted March 30 in the Weekend Edition of the Berkeley Daily Planet--berkeleydailyplanet.com)

'Clown Bible' runs through April 14 at Willard Metalshop Theater, 2425 Stuart St. (behind Willard School on Telegraph Ave) Berkeley $15-20 at the door or brownpapertickets.com (though nobody will be turned away for lack of funds). Info at: tenredhen.net