Back Stage
- December 15, 2006
The Eight: Reindeer Monologues
December 15, 2006
By Gwen Orel
Santa has been a Very Bad Boy. That's the message of the snarky The Eight: Reindeer Monologues, presented by Phare Play Productions. "That man has been a walking, talking, holly-jolly sex crime waiting to happen," says Cupid (Augustin Correro), an effete, very much out gay deer.
The Eight are the elite flying reindeer who pull Santa's sleigh. One by one, they tell the audience their opinions about the accusation that Santa raped Blitzen, and while they're at it, gossip and confess. It's an opportunity for talented actors to strut their stuff, and Phare Play's cast is winning. Director Jeff Goode keeps a good pace, and the show, on a bare stage with a Christmas tree (no designers listed), begins strongly with Dasher (Dan Parillis), the team's senior member, who resents being ousted by Rudolph even for one night.
The Santa Claus: Special Victims Unit idea wears out its welcome, but human angst in reindeer guise stays fresh. "No deer has ever won an Academy Award," gripes Hollywood (you and I know him as Prancer), played by Shea Locke. "A reindeer has the right to her own body. Why are we treated like livestock?" wonders Blitzen (Eve Armstrong). Comet (intense and funny Kevin Sebastian) won't hear a word against the man who rescued him from a wasted life: "When you hear of a young deer gone bad — that's me," he says. But because he's biased in Santa's favor, there's no real suspense. Sure, the image of a drunken Mrs. Claus as described by Vixen (Peggy Queener) — in gold paint, pasties, and with a terrified elf strapped to her crotch — is amusing, but also a little tiresome, and the play draws to a weak and inconclusive end. How much you enjoy The Eight: Reindeer Monologues will depend entirely on how long incongruity engages you.
Presented by Phare Play Productions at the Producers' Club, 358 W. 44th St., NYC. Dec.11-23. Mon.-Thu., Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 3 and 8 p.m. (Additional performances Sat., Dec. 16, 3 p.m., and Fri., Dec. 22, 8 p.m.) (212) 352-3101 or www.theatermania.com.