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One-Man Star Wars Trilogy in Chicago
Apparently the One Man, Charles Ross, was a hit at the Vancouver and Toronto Fringe Festivals in 2002. Now he's in Chicago until January 3, 2004. I took my girlfriend for her birthday, a little nervous because she's a theatre snob and a huge Star Wars geek; luckily this production satisfied her on both counts. Coming onstage all in black, with elbow pads (he has many occasions to throw himself to the ground) he sings/hums the music, does all the special effects and sound effects, and acts all the parts. Skeptical? A reviewer who saw him in Toronto said "If George Lukas [sic] could see this, he'd rediscover the secret lost in the two most recent films: that it's imagination -- and not computer driven imagery -- which made the original Star Wars so great." I couldn't agree more: every scene he performed was brilliantly evocative of the original, and the audience -- on this second night of the run, a mix of hard-core fans and newspaper reviewers with press kits -- never ceased to be surprised at how spot-on he was, the whole way through. Other reviews raved about his "energy", which I feared would mean he was like my first roommate, a huge Star Wars fan but also way too energetic for me and didn't use deodorant. But his energy just kept the show moving along and by the end his sweat showed that the choreography of the visual effects was not easy.
Every article about the show says that Mr. Ross has seen the Trilogy "over 500 times", and his performance leaves little room for doubt on this point, but those who have also seen it as many times may find a few quibbles -- every now and then, reciting a memorable line, he changes it just a little, which would sometimes break my immersion in the world he created, but only for a moment. It did take a little time to get warmed up to him, but at 20 minutes per movie, he gets up to speed fast, so by the time he had Luke sullenly watching the double sunset on Tatooine, I -- and the rest of the audience -- was putty in his hands.
I highly recommend that anyone in the Midwest take a chance on this show. It's only an hour long, so if you're a total loser who hates it, you won't be stuck there for as long as you were stuck in The Phantom Menace. And, don't worry, the prequels never come up in the show: this is only the Real Star Wars."
No doubt his relatives -- after being subjected to little Charlie's performances every holiday dinner, year after year -- put up the money to produce this show.
At least it gets him out of the house ;-)
quiquid id est, timeo puellas et oscula dantes.
His name wasn't Ghyslain was it?
...the Puppetry of the Penis guys didn't think of this first.
"Is that supposed to be...Jabba?! Oh man *retch*"
RW
I find myself wondering at the validity of that statement for about 5 seconds.
Quite how one could be both a theare snob and star wars - ahen - person - entirely slips my well defined features.
A slashdotting - you get the stick first and then the carrot !
Chicago is Midwest now? I must have missed something here...
Perhaps it was geography class.
Visit their website and type midwest in the search box. Enjoy several hundred references to Chicago being in the midwest.
I took my girlfriend for her birthday, a little nervous because she's a theatre snob and a huge Star Wars geek; luckily this production satisfied her on both counts. im glad you got laid
Ok, Magellan. If Chicago isn't in the Midwest, perhaps you'd like to share with the rest of us just exactly where the fsck you think it is?
Yes and ther are 50 states and we live in the northern hemisphere.
Wow the highschool you went to was worthless...
Or, I'm betting you're one of those kids that rode the short bus and wore a helmet.... yeah...
No, not the football players, the ones that were smarter.... special ed!
Thanks for bringing back news for nerds...it doesn't get nerdier than this!
I lost the big V about 10 years ago. What does that have to do with anything?
Happy 40th birthday!!
And he probably told his family that after he's done with the Star Wars trilogy theater version, he's gonna tackle the Lord of the Rings trilogy one-hour theater play, and then he'll do The Matrix trilogy one-hour version (this is where his slow-mo special effects stunt work will shine).
And then they probably kicked him and his computers straight out of the basement, "By God, we told you that you wouldn't live at home forever, no matter how much of a nerd you think you are! We found you an apartment and we'll pay the rent, just get out and take your caffeinated beverages with you!"
Quite aside from being legally questionable and ethically bankrupt, isn't C&D-ing Shoggoth On The Roof a bit...risky? I mean, I sure wouldn't be reading the response from the Old Ones' legal team. (Does anyone doubt that the mad Arab Abdul Alhazred, J.D., would be drafting counsel?)
For a taste of the horror that awaits these litigious fools, check out this 401 page from yog-sothoth.com ...
I agree. All true Sci-FI fans know that it is the Star Trek fans who have difficulty dating.
Hey freaks: now you're ju
It's odd---you're the second person I've seen refer to Episode 3 as if you've already seen it. I have come to the conclusion that there's a time-traveling group of movie connoisseurs who frequent slashdot. I have only one thing to say to you: if you give me a time machine, I'll keep quiet about it.