Reduced Shakespeare Company Returns to D.C.

By Broadside Staff Reporter Emily Sharrer

Do not let the name fool you.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company is not just some boring acting ensemble peddling the country with yet another version of “Hamlet” or “Romeo and Juliet.” To the contrary, the three man troupe that was just nominated by the Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle for “Best Touring Production,” actually specializes in comedy. From March 11 to April 15, the Reduced Shakespeare Company will bring two of their original plays, “The Complete History of America (abridged)” and “The Bible: The Complete Word of God (abridged),” written by company members Reed Martin, Austin Tichenor and previous member Adam Long, to the Lansburgh Theatre in Washington, D.C.

“We are known for taking long, boring topics and making them short and silly. Everything in our shows is reduced–the subject matter, the cast (only three actors play all the roles), very simple set and props and costumes. The humor runs from smart to silly, physical to verbal, intellectual to puerile,” Martin said.

In “America,” the troupe chronicles the whole history of the country from its very beginnings all the way up to the current George W. Bush administration. For each time period, the story angle shifts and is then told in the form of communication that would have been used at the time.

“Indian folk tale, town crier for the Revolution, Matthew Brady civil war photos, old time radio for the 1920s to ‘40s, etc. Highlights include the Abraham Lincoln assassination ballet and Lewis and Clark as an old-time comedy team,” Martin said.

Sometimes theaters request that the RSC bring certain shows to their theaters, but in this case, the RSC chose “America” and “Bible” for a couple main reasons.

“What’s more important than American History and the Bible? Especially in an election year? Our ‘Complete History of America (abridged)’ has played very successfully several times in D.C. It’s just a natural fit of topic and city,” Tichenor said.

This is the first time since 1995 that the troupe will bring “The Bible,” which has been nominated for a Helen Hayes award, to D.C. The RSC invites people of all religious backgrounds to see “The Bible,” which provides a non-offensive look at age-old religion. Scenes in the show include the “Top Ten Rejected Commandments, God explaining to Abraham what circumcision is and why he’s asking Abraham to do it to Isaac, and our big finish: a splashing song and dance called ‘That’s Armageddon!’” Martin said.

“I think people are leery that we’re going to be blasphemous or disrespectful of people’s religion,” Tichenor said. “The Bible (abridged) is our irreverent celebration of the Greatest Story Ever Accepted as Fact, and fortunately we’ve had ministers of all denominations attend and bring their congregations. In fact, if I can throw some quotes at you: Sister Mary Anne Walsh of the Arlington Catholic Herald called the show, ‘Wacky. Zany. And a little profaney.’ And a minister from the Church of Scotland told us our ‘Bible (abridged)’ was better than the Book!”

For most of the shows at the Lansburgh Theatre, RSC members Dominic Conti, Jerry Kernion and Tichenor will team up. Meanwhile, other trios will be performing in Alaska, Louisiana and Holland.

“Our quest for world domination continues. We’re the McDonald’s of comedy,” Tichenor said.

The group, who ran for almost 10 years in Piccadilly Circus, London is excited about doing a run in D.C., where they say that so far, pre-sales have been adequate and that the past crowds have been very receptive to their act.

“D.C. audiences have always been enthusiastic about our shows,” Martin said. “We seem to always have good crowds, which is why we keep coming back.”

“The D.C. crowds love us. There really is no accounting for taste. And we love the D.C. crowds. They’re smart and they’re not afraid to laugh,” Tichenor said.

Martin and Tichenor are hoping for large turnouts for all their shows from members of all different age groups. The two say that the subject matter is meant to appeal to older crowds, as well as kids in their teens.

“We say our shows are rated PG-13, pretty good if you’re 13. But really, we get people of all ages, which is enormously gratifying. The shows are definitely aimed, however, at audiences with senses of humor,” Tichenor said.

“People who are not familiar with the subject matter of the shows enjoy them anyway, because it’s fast, funny and physical. People who are very familiar with the subject enjoy the show perhaps even more, because they appreciate that we get our facts right when we aren’t twisting for comic effect,” Martin said.

College students, particularly, will get a kick out of the material which the troupe has taken to hundreds of colleges and universities across the U.S. and U.K. over the past 20 years.

“I think another reason that students enjoy our shows is that a great deal of our humor comes from making fun of how badly many subjects are taught at school,” Martin said.

These actors are not just stage actors, however. They just shot a pilot for TBS called The Week Reduced, there’s talk of a book for 2009, two other pilots that have been sent out to networks and a new stage show. Also, once the nominees are chosen for the 2008 election, Tichenor and Martin will get to work adding new material to “America.”

“They keep writing American history, so we have to keep reducing it,” Tichenor said. “And this election year will literally make history: either a woman or an African-American will be the Democratic Party nominee. I’m only sorry it couldn’t have been Oprah. We coulda had a two-fer.”

Right now, however, the two are looking forward to their upcoming shows and drawing in a big crowd to see their self-created pieces.

“You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll kiss good money goodbye,” Martin said.

Tickets for the event are between $40 and $53 and can be purchased at the Shakespeare Theatre online box office, or on the phone at 202-547-1122.
For more information on the RSC, you can visit their Web site or their MySpace page. Weekly podcasts can be found on both sites, as well as on iTunes.