As good as Vagina Monologues, the Angry Jellow Bubbles is a group of actresses, and sometimes actors, who write their own organic, personal script about living in the crazy world today. It's a two-hour fractured narrative of events told from the personalized, eclectic voices of the performers who release their feelings of maturing, learning and adapting to an increasing schizophrenic society.
Completely post-modern, the show is a central core of subject matter, integrated by the unique and varied voices of the cast. One of the earlier shows I saw was an empowering cry of the female gender in society, not so much a narrative, but bridging on Feminist Theatre.
During the summer at Surf Reality, on Allen Street on the Lower East Side in New York City, the Bubbles featured a six-man male cast called the Wemen, which complements and contrasts what the Bubbles did. Each show is based on the actors' own experiences, netting together a performative map of current emotional drives and social concerns that we all experience today.
What makes this POMO performance so special is the organic cast: each performer writes her/his own script based on personal views on an overall subject and incorporates it within the evenings activities; another performer can step in and the whole pastiche remains true to the drama with subtle differences.
The whole theme of the theatre event is driven by each performers own personal experience and this includes songs, dances, and even out-and-out complaining, ranting, and telling jokes. The medium in which an actor communicates is as important as the message itself.
Directed by Eva Minemar, the cast includes, sometimes but not always: Nadhege Alexandre, Michela Chiarello, Melissa Dodd, Wynn Hall, Shannon Malone, Jesse Bliss, Crystal Mayo, Melanie McCord, Colleen McNamara, Yvette Mercedes, Eva Minemar, Leslie C. Nemet, Jennifer Stokes, Angela Ward, Jay Amari, Paolo Andino, Ronnie Brescio, Walter DeForest, Sean-Micheal Longstreth, Robert Monegan. The actors pose questions such as 'Are you trying to live up to someone else's expectation?'; 'Has anyone every made you feel invisible?'; 'How is a catcall a compliment?'; and 'Do numbers define your self-image?'.
Eva Minemar has a very funny way of showing us how a full-figured woman relates to society- her morning ritual includes attempting to contain her abundant bosom in a uncooperative brassiere, and when shopping ''if I can fit into size 8 pants, I buy those pants, even if they're ugly... '' To prove that she can still posses that special number that in some way defines her.
Because we see and hear the performers arrange the theatrical picture, we feel as if we're part of their world and that they voice our own feelings. Just as the women support each other's opinions, the men challenge each other's conceptions of manhood.
Jay Amari is a star shining through on a cloudy night. He delivers a wonderfully insightful monologue about being 40 years old and racing to beat the expiration date?on his career. His piece echoes the duality of this postmodern world. He states that he works so hard to develop the relationship with the Woman who can spend rainy Sunday afternoons with, but he's still driven to conquer the Woman at the bus stop, or waiting in line at the market, or the newsstand? Indeed his view that men are two-headed beasts when it comes to relationships with women is a stellar moment.
The performers reveal their honest, funny; sad, joyous, and angry experiences of being very human in a schizophrenic world increasingly dominated by ciphers and automatons. The actors tell their true-life stories via a mixture of singing, speaking, movement, and pantomime in both collaborative and individual ways.
Angry Bubble Productions was founded in December of 1999 when Eva Minemar and Tony Lepore ran the Piano Store Theatre on Ludlow Street on New York's Lower East Side. Since then, ABP has produced over thirty-five shows and has hosted shows from twenty-five different theatre companies including traditional theatre, women's theatre, improv, and first-time works from up and coming writers and directors. On March 8, 2001 that Angry Jellow Bubbles performed for the women leaders of the world during a ceremony for International Women's Day at the United Nations.
One of the most acclaimed features of the production is the fact that every performance is unique from night to night. What's ultimately created is an eclectic ensemble piece combining a wide range of personal emotions and ideas. What allows the show to take flight is the level of honesty that is reached and is more often associated with a one-person show.
Angry Jellow Bubbles is a cool drink of water at the end of the daily rat race. There are other shows that deal with ''grrl power'' that seem to cry out it's 'us against the world'. Angry Jellow Bubbles, with the Wemen, lays out the issues that women and men deal with on a daily basis and, instead of condemning them, celebrates them, allowing women and men to share their feelings and take pride in solidarity, sharing the stage of life as real human beings. It's a free-form improv answer to ''The Vagina Monologues''; themes such as social trends, careers, first-time experiences with menstruation, sex, pregnancy and childbirth, allows cast members draw on their own experiences, making each production unique.
Grab a loved-one, your family, a cousin, or someone from work or maybe even your next-door neighbor and go to see this show. Whether you're woman or a man you will laugh and possibly even recognize yourself in the evening's activities. For upcoming performances and more information on Angry Jellow Bubbles, visit https://AngryBubble.com or call 212-465-3410.
