One Nation, Under Fraud
at Organic Theater Greenhouse Lab Theater
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I suppose hopeful expectations had something–maybe a lot–to do with my disappointment. I’ve enjoyed director Burns’s work as an actor; in Wild Men and the old Friends of the Zoo shows, he displayed a dark, nervy edge sadly lacking here. And the title One Nation, Under Fraud leads one to anticipate some much-needed satire on the political and religious hypocrisy that dominates our culture. But aside from a couple of silly sight gags poking harmless fun at Newt Gingrich (as an orphans’ bogeyman) and Rush Limbaugh (as a high school debater), this show steers clear of political comment. Just as well; the hints of liberal sensibility on view here exemplify the gutless drift that has paved the way for the right-wing resurgence of the 1990s.
Though several scenes initially promise parodic insight, they quickly dumb down. In “Biograph,” a white suburban woman (Dee Ryan) runs in terror from a black man (John Hildreth) she presumes wants to rob her–and can’t overcome her fear even after she realizes he’s the parking-garage attendant trying to help her find her car. Rather than explore the characters’ misperceptions and apprehensions, the vignette opts for noisy, improbable physical comedy, with Hildreth stripping to the waist like a jungle hunter to chase Ryan around the theater. (Worried your scene is falling flat? Make the actors run around the audience. Viewers can’t get that on TV–yet.)
Whatever the cause, this lazy, pandering production lives up all too well to the smug stupidity attributed to Rush Limbaugh in one sketch: “We’re America and we can do whatever we want.” We’re Second City, the company seem to be saying, and we can do whatever we want. Audiences like the whooping boosters who stacked opening night might agree, in the short run anyway. But to this viewer, Second City E.T.C., like America, is in a lot of trouble.
