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The Boychick Affair is Out There!
By Tony Reverditto
You are cordially invited to invite yourself, your friends and your family to attend "The
Boychick Affair: The Bar Mitzvah of Harry S. Boychick".
Filled with mayhem in the tradition of "Tony n' Tina's Wedding", from the absurd ceremony to the frolicking dinner reception, comes a Bar Mitzvah like no other. This politically correct, yet incorrect Interactive, Improvisational-Prod-uction tries to tackle the issues of several dysfunctional characters. You could pretty much pick the overt, pushy cast of characters out of the crowd, and whether you like it or not, they literally pull you into the act and into dances. If that isn't enough, they go on to accost those in attendance at the dinner seating as well. Some of banter was amusing with the characters as they continually interrupt the meal and impose their problems on you. At times, I had the very bizarre feeling that we had crashed a Bar Mitzvah, because we didn't know any of these people!
Gregory Mikurak does an excellent job and was a ray of sunshine as the central character Harry. I was surprised how convincing he was at playing a thirteen year old coming of age, considering he is pushing twenty (a hot commodity in Holly-wood terms). I am not going to give away the storylines, but the cast of characters try to give it their all and try to put their best comic selves out there.
One pivotal incident is that dear old dad has failed to pay the catering bill and the family argues about it in front of everyone. Tito, a close Hispanic family "friend" comes through with some excellent Mexican food to feed the guests which was a clever idea that forced a non-traditional celebratory meal; so, don't expect Kosher, cuz you're not going to get it.
Half of the time there was way too much going on at too many tables and it was difficult to know where to look. And that's fine and works during storyline down time, but it would be far more effective to get the cast focused on each of the characters when they are highlighted to air their dirty laundry. It would also behoove the production to involve more individual audience members in various storylines while the entire cast directs their attention to the core action.
All in all, my group enjoyed hanging out with, even started scolding the characters and some members of the cast had decent comebacks. Is it for everybody? Probably not, but, because we weren't afraid to loosen up and have a little fun, we had a good time. We even talked about it later that evening over a glass of wine, had a few retrospective laughs and agreed that with some tightening it could work well for the kind of demographic it can attract. Produced, written, and directed by the ambitious and multi-faceted, Amy Lord, who created the Off-Broadway smash-hit "Grandma Sylvia's Funeral" and also steps into the cast as Harry's all over the map mother.
If you're up for a silly theatrical event based on a cultural experience and don't mind getting into the act, get out there and see it. The group of energetic actor's deserve all of the community support they can get in the pursuit of their artistic endeavors.
The cast includes: Jacqueline Blumsack, Albert Cristofano, Marty Dusig, Andrea Friedline, Adrian Harrell, Sarah Harris, Phillip Hersh, Lesley Hunt, Daniela Jacobson, Brian Larabee, Amy Lord, Joanie Marx, Greg Mikurak, Carlos Luis Orrala, Constance Reese and Benny Solmor.
Final Performances: Saturday March 21 & April 4 @ 7:00 p.m.
(With possible extended-run)
Sportsmen's Lodge Hotel
12825 Ventura Blvd.
Studio City, CA 91604
Tickets are $25.00 to $36.00 (meal included)
Info Line:
(310) 980-6260
Individual Ticket Sales (under 10):
Brown Paper Tickets
(800) 838-3006
Group Ticket Sales (10 or more): Rosalie Lazarus (818) 986-2908 Special Occasions & Corporate Events: info@boychickaffair.com