THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING
Reviewed by Amalisha HuEck
The world premiere of Thank You So Much For Coming at The Broadwater Black Box (Second Stage) is touching upon what it means to be a woman, a woman who want to be seen and also does not want to be seen at all, a lonely woman, a desperate woman, a woman in extreme need of love and affection, a sad woman, a woman who likes entertaining, and hosting the best parties in the world. From the arrival to Cynthia's party, audience participation is a must. Lots of spontaneous humor is created by improvising greatly with some audience members. Cynthia's fanciful party has no 4th wall, one feels like they are truly in the party and she is the ultimate party host. Everyone even gets a party hat and wears them. The change happens when the phone starts ringing and people start canceling. Slowly we can see who she is, that fun woman under the umbrella of the party host and how haunting the phone calls can be.
An outstanding improv capability and clown work are greatly expressed by Alex Kern (she/her) an actor, writer, comedian, and clown from Cleveland, Ohio. She is a writer and performer of this solo show and identifies most as a clown. With an extremely fantastic sense of humor, she plays with some audience members like they are her puppets. There is also a dark side of Cynthia's character being explored, from dreams and nightmares to Zombie walks. Beautiful music breaks the heaviness of the moments and after all - the feeling of sympathy is experienced.
Co-Written & Directed by the skillful hand of Natasha Mercado (she/her) an actress, director, producer, writer, and theatre arts educator who 'implements vulnerability, physicality, and wholeheartedness to give this performance a unique edge' which is greatly expressed. Together with Alex's talent abilities, the masterpiece is created. Their love for clown work and comedy is clearly visible and explored. Natasha also leads workshops across the country for people interested in exploring those techniques.
Thank You So Much For Coming is a sixty-minute immersive comedy experience that has won a BEST OF BROADWATER ENCORE AWARD and returns for
2 Encore performances
June 29 @ 8PM and July 1 @ 6PM at the
Broadwater Blackbox (6322 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038) as part of Hollywood Fringe Festival 2023. Tickets are $10
If you want to have a good time, laugh a lot and be entertained, go to Cynthia's party. You will not regret it. The party truly is exceedingly excellent. Don't forget to reserve your ticket and go!