FRINGE REVIEW: Hot Pepper, Air Conditioner, and the Farewell Speech

Repetitive dialogue, movement and music make three plays about office society feel like musical theater.

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FRINGE REVIEW: Hot Pepper, Air Conditioner, and the Farewell Speech

POSTED: Friday, September 21, 2012, 3:22 PM

Filed Under: Arts | On the Fringe Theater

Every year, there's hundreds and hundreds of performances at the Philly Fringe and Live Arts Festival, and unless it's one of the big shows, it's sometimes hard to tell what you're going to get. Here at Critical Mass we're sending writers to as many shows as we possibly can for 75 pocket-sized reviews over the course of the fest. Check back in with us at On The Fringe every day for real talk on what these things actually are!

SHOW: Hot Pepper, Air Conditioner, and the Farewell Speech

GROUP: Chelfitsch

GENRE: Theater

ATTENDED: Wed., Sept. 19, 7 p.m.

CLOSES: Sat., Sept. 22

BRIEF SELF-DESCRIPTION: From acclaimed Japanese playwright-director Toshiki Okada comes this triptych of plays that capture the malaise and instability of young low-level office workers with humor and striking movement. Set within an office break room, this trio of interconnected stories is accompanied by the performers’ choreographed gestures, everyday motions that have evolved into startling physical images of emotion and thought.

WE THINK: Repetitive dialogue, movement, and music make these three plays about office society feel like musical theater. Everyday conversation, though spoken (with projected English supertitles), takes on a songlike importance, and stilted, awkward motions become like dance, insisting on expression despite the constrained office personalities and colorless business attire. Chelfitsch's young cast brings an energy and charm that bridges the culture gap with grace and humor.

—Mark Cofta

Posted by Mark Cofta @ 3:22 PM Permalink | Post a comment

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