June 17, 2005
THEATER BEAT
The egg-on-face awkwardness of newscasters with nothing to say is
captured incisively in Gip Hoppe's "A New War," in which a pair of
smilingly earnest anchors (Emily Kerns, David Shick) must report at length on a
shadowy conflict against "an unnamed enemy in an undisclosed
location," illustrating this non-story with a blank screen that might be
the night sky over the "hot zone."
But dead TV airtime is about the only target this flimsy would-be
satire of the new American triumphalism takes down, try as it might to skewer
such soft targets as insipid celebrities, heartland wing nuts and creepily
arrogant political figures. You can get an idea of Hoppe's rapier wit from his
character names: Defense Secretary Mike Halliburton, Atty. Gen. John Bechtel,
country star Billy Bob Braggart. Stop, you're killing me.
The cast gives strictly sketch-comedy performances under director
Angela Pupello, with Simon Sorrells standing out in a variety of guises, from a
squinting, malapropism-spouting president ("our precocious freedoms")
to a crusty Defense secretary ("our young weapons are performing
bravely").
Melinda Lively makes the most of her moments in several small,
pert roles, while Joe Nieves makes a little too much of his.
There's not a lot to laugh about in Hoppe's near-future scenario:
Gas prices have plummeted in the wake of multiple Bush-led wars,
remote-controlled weapons make bloody house calls, the Constitution is
summarily suspended. OK, the notion of a "Fatherland Security" chief
(Sorrells again) giving dispatches in beret and trench coat is a lot more fun
than Michael Chertoff. And the wigs throughout are hilariously bad. But
"Stuff Happens" it ain't.
"A New War," Theatre 68, 5419 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood. 8 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Ends Aug. 3. $15. (323) 860-8868. Running time: 1 hour, 10 minutes.