On Hiatus is that rare sketch ensemble: together for two years with a strong, smart point of view.
The show is called ‘Retro Lens’ but within the very first scene it’s strongly suggested that, rather than an overarching theme, it’s a title you’ll never hear referred to again. But an argument could be made that the title points to the many characters who exist within ideologies inconsistent with reality.
This was my first time seeing On Hiatus but I loved their voice. A satirical bent, their scenes have the confidence to trust the audience without beating home the message and moving it from sly to preachy. In one scene a young couple expecting their first born sing it a lullaby about all the ways they’re going to care for this soon-to-be-baby: organic food, locally sourced cotton, and you the audience figure they’re just making fun of bougie parenting, until they add that they won’t vaccinate the kid. Then they list list every disease they won’t vaccinate against. Gentle reader, it is a long list. A very long list in a calming James Taylor voice. In another I witnessed some of the greatest slam poetry this side of Sunday nights at the Green Mill: Emily Forest, Megan Hansen, and Adrienne Teeley performed a synchronized piece about trying to be a woman in 2015 and finished it with an erotic ode to their favorite dessert. It had the audience howling and myself in tears. Many of the sketches had that level of sharp observation and honest emotion, from two roommates dealing with a Harry Potter obsession to a kid telling his neighbor about experiencing the Surrealist art at the Art Institute. Not every scene hit but those that did really, really hit in a refreshing way. It’s one thing to want to punch up in your humor, it’s another to know how to do it well.
Comprised of Andy Antao, Nick Curatolo, Emily Forest, Megan Hansen, Travis Marsala, Adrienne Teeley, and Nathan Wainwright, and directed by John Hildreth, there are two more chances to check out On Hiatus: May 22 and May 29, Fridays, at 10:30pm at Stage 773.
