Alan Tudyk

Stage Review: AN EVENING WITHOUT MONTY PYTHON

Eric Idle co-directs a 40th Anniversary tribute of the British sketch troupe’s most infamous bits including the Dead Parrot Sketch, the Lumberjack song and The Spanish Inquisition

Grade: A

Stars: Jeff B. Davis, Jane Leeves, Alan Tudyk, Rick Holmes, Jim Piddock Director: Eric Idle, BT McNicholl

For those of us too young to be able to enjoy an actual “live” evening with the Monty Python troupe (those PBS re-runs of MONTY PYTHON’S FLYING CIRCUS had to do), Eric Idle has decided to celebrate the 40th Anniversary with AN EVENING WITHOUT MONTY PYTHON.

Hence, no John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam, Idle himself nor Graham Chapman (whose still dead) — just a bunch of other actors filling in (quite nicely at that) with a comprehensive production featuring the best silly bits, musical numbers and of course the “Dead Parrot” sketch which feel as fresh and original as the day the dropped on the BBC.

The Los Angeles run (which began last night) runs until October 4th at the Montalban Theatre and then it moves to New York at the Town Hall from October 6th through the 10th.

Jane Leeves introduces the show asking “Who is Monty Python and why hasn’t he gone away?”

After a little under an hour and half, the reason is clear why these comedy genises refuse to fade – Monty Python was simply one of the funniest sketch comedy troupes ever conceived. And even with Leeves, Jeff B. Davis, Alan Tudyk, Rick Holmes and Jim Piddock serving as stand-ins for the real deal, these adept performers manage to catch every nuance, every tic, every crazy word puzzle with precision and still have you clamoring for more.

Idle (who also brought MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL to the stage as SPAMALOT) co-directs this with BT McNicholl and it’s a blast to watch these sketches resuscitated back to life. The free form, non-sequiter approach that benefited the TV series so well is re-assembled in similar fashion stage. Sketches randomly end for no apparent reason and some bleed into the next with no rhyme or reason.

Idle has also updated some of the sketches with a few new pop cultural references (such as Dyson Vacuums and a nod to Neil Patrick Harris), while regional in-jokes regarding Burbank, West Hollywood and screenwriters are tossed in for a few hearty laughs as well.

But more important is the selection of the sketches. In addition to the aforementioned “Dead Parrot” sketch, Idle makes sure he hits all the greatest hits. From “The Ministry of Silly Walks,” “The Spanish Inquisition,” the Spam chant and of course “The Lumberjack Song.” There are also a few obscure bits peppered in as well making the night a full course meal.

While some of the actors do have the occasional physical resemblance to the various Python members – Tudyk as Chapman, Davis as Cleese, Holmes as Palin, and Paddock as both Idle and Jones – the sketches vary who plays what from the original incarnations, allowing the new actors to make each sketch their own.

It’s a hard act to follow, but these actors are phenomenal and the fact that it works so well is a testament to how bloody talented they are. A lot of hard work went into bringing their own energy to such tried and true (and overly familiar sketches).

Of the stand-out moments, Holmes gets to re-enact the “Travel Agent” sketch from the show and goes off on a long involved tangent that never quite stops. Tudyk (a Joss Whedon regular on FIREFLY and DOLLHOUSE) gets to showcase what a truly underrated performer he is. He’s flawless throughout the show and if you didn’t know any better, you’d think he was British. He is given the Cleese part in the Parrot sketch, but takes it into surprisingly darker and more intense territories. It’s a signature moment for him and he delivers it with zeal.

I think it was also a stroke of genius to bring Leeves into the fold – assuming both male and female parts throughout. She also has Python ties, having had an early role in MONTY PYTHON’S THE MEANING OF LIFE. A sketch in this revue even reminds the audience of that. Leeves (best known for her role on FRASIER) has such an amazing comedic presence (and her singing is superb) that AN EVENING WITH MONTY PYTHON is reminder of why she should be working more consistently.

Perhaps the true success of the show is how the audience was clamoring for more by show’s end. Concluding with an encore consisting of “The Lumberjack Song,” the audience kept clapping (and stayed in their seats for an unusually long period of time) hoping another encore would manifest.

It never did, but when you leave an audience wanting more, it proves how superbly paced and structured your show is.

AN EVENING WITH MONTY PYTHON didn’t have to do something completely different to be a success and it’s nice that Idle remembered that. Like the Beatles are to rock music, Monty Python is to comed - and that’s the beauty of seeing this timeless, wonderful material revived 40 years later in the theatrical arena which still feels as fresh as the day it was first conceived. Here’s hoping the genius of Monty Python is still around for another 40 years and we’re still asking then why "he" hasn’t gone away.