Here is a review of the stage show By Molly RosenbergerLights, camera(s), DRAMA: “The Real World: Space Edition” knows what I like. Immediately drawn by the title of the show as I am a closet fan (not anymore) of reality trash TV, I could not wait to head to The Public House Theatre to catch the new show written and directed by the very talented Stephen Kropa. Set one hundred and fifty years in the future we are transported to a space shuttle occupied by Commander Sandra Thompson (Sarah Koerner) and fellow Space Engineer David Green (Christopher Woolsey) headed for the Channel Two Spaceship. Unbeknownst to The C2’s fun-guy Commander, Vincent Castro (Patrick Poulin), Thompson is headed to relieve him of his duties and take over his order. In simpler terms, this show was not shy in saving any of the space drama for yo’ mama.
The use of props provided an episodic feel to the show which definitely created more of a television program atmosphere. More specifically, each cast member took turns entering the stage with a cardboard model of whichever ship the successive scene takes place. This mirrored television in the way programs typically cut to a gorgeous victorian home you wish to afford one day or the front of a dive bar where you know many a lady has snuck a picture of her other lady friend on the toilet to depict where the scene would then be held. I enjoyed this detail along with other space invoking details such as the scene in which Woolsey brushes his teeth in zero gravity with a floating electric toothbrush. No gravity. No problem. Big funnies.As far as the drama goes, as a girl I was so many excited there were a couple of romantic storylines to follow, my favorite being between Woolsey and The C2s self-appointed botanist Kate Tride (Abby Vatterott) who has adorably dedicated herself to proving the existence of plant life on the sun. Woolsey’s milkshake brings all the feels to the space yard, as it is clear from the start of his trek to The C2 that he has left a significant other behind. The dynamic of Vatterott’s manic obsession for Woolsey which is met almost always with a firm “not gonna happen” is a classic and fulfilling cat-mouse game.The entire cast puts on very strong performances, each with such distinction to create countless engaging moments on stage, but perhaps my favorite performance of the evening was Poulin’s portrayal of the fun-loving jokester, Commander Castro. He may have his unprofessional shortcomings, like when first meeting Woolsey’s character remarking, “engineer? more like en-jew-neer, am I right?” He is a character that makes more than one and actually more than a lot of mistakes, but there is an innocence Poulin utilizes to portray Castro, allowing the audience to see a potential screw-up as the underdog with a heart of gold. Maybe a man cannot run a Spaceship on poop jokes alone, but he can make a room full of grown ass people giggle at them. Having seen writer/director Kropa perform before I could easily see him sliding into the role of Castro. Perhaps for his next show he’ll also add actor to his credits…you know, really Zach Braff one out of the park! But for now he should be more than happy to watch this seasoned bunch of comedians/actors master his material to present a show which is OUT OF THIS WORLD (had to)!!!!!!!!!!By Molly RosenbergerLights, camera(s), DRAMA: “The Real World: Space Edition” knows what I like. Immediately drawn by the title of the show as I am a closet fan (not anymore) of reality trash TV, I could not wait to head to The Public House Theatre to catch the new show written and directed by the very talented Stephen Kropa. Set one hundred and fifty years in the future we are transported to a space shuttle occupied by Commander Sandra Thompson (Sarah Koerner) and fellow Space Engineer David Green (Christopher Woolsey) headed for the Channel Two Spaceship. Unbeknownst to The C2’s fun-guy Commander, Vincent Castro (Patrick Poulin), Thompson is headed to relieve him of his duties and take over his order. In simpler terms, this show was not shy in saving any of the space drama for yo’ mama.
The use of props provided an episodic feel to the show which definitely created more of a television program atmosphere. More specifically, each cast member took turns entering the stage with a cardboard model of whichever ship the successive scene takes place. This mirrored television in the way programs typically cut to a gorgeous victorian home you wish to afford one day or the front of a dive bar where you know many a lady has snuck a picture of her other lady friend on the toilet to depict where the scene would then be held. I enjoyed this detail along with other space invoking details such as the scene in which Woolsey brushes his teeth in zero gravity with a floating electric toothbrush. No gravity. No problem. Big funnies.As far as the drama goes, as a girl I was so many excited there were a couple of romantic storylines to follow, my favorite being between Woolsey and The C2s self-appointed botanist Kate Tride (Abby Vatterott) who has adorably dedicated herself to proving the existence of plant life on the sun. Woolsey’s milkshake brings all the feels to the space yard, as it is clear from the start of his trek to The C2 that he has left a significant other behind. The dynamic of Vatterott’s manic obsession for Woolsey which is met almost always with a firm “not gonna happen” is a classic and fulfilling cat-mouse game.The entire cast puts on very strong performances, each with such distinction to create countless engaging moments on stage, but perhaps my favorite performance of the evening was Poulin’s portrayal of the fun-loving jokester, Commander Castro. He may have his unprofessional shortcomings, like when first meeting Woolsey’s character remarking, “engineer? more like en-jew-neer, am I right?” He is a character that makes more than one and actually more than a lot of mistakes, but there is an innocence Poulin utilizes to portray Castro, allowing the audience to see a potential screw-up as the underdog with a heart of gold. Maybe a man cannot run a Spaceship on poop jokes alone, but he can make a room full of grown ass people giggle at them. Having seen writer/director Kropa perform before I could easily see him sliding into the role of Castro. Perhaps for his next show he’ll also add actor to his credits…you know, really Zach Braff one out of the park! But for now he should be more than happy to watch this seasoned bunch of comedians/actors master his material to present a show which is OUT OF THIS WORLD (had to)!!!!!!!!!!