Playwright: the Fister ensemble. At: The Annoyance Theatre, 4830 N. Broadway. Phone: 773-561-4665; $10. Runs through: Sept. 2
"Fisting" can refer to the centuries-old sport of boxingas in "fisticuffs"or it can be a euphemism for an exotic sexual practice akin to a prostate exam. This ambiguity is tailor-made for Annoyance Theater's aesthetic, and is exploited to its fullest for this lightning-round exercise in double-entendre.
A snippet of the Pogues' "Dirty Old Town" locates us in Irelandspecifically, the village of Dingle, whose chief industry is its world-famous confectionery. Cark Sarker, the factory's foremost fudgepacker, is appalled to learn that his only daughter, Jizabel, has fallen in love with Little Dicky Diddler, son of the late Big Dick Diddler, who died of injuries inflicted in a fisting duelthat's a boxing match, rememberwith his childhood friend. Will the lovers find happiness or will the pugilistically challenged Little Dicky fall in defeat to Jizabel's angry Da?
According to the ensemble for this Annoyance Theatre production, "fisting"there's that word againis also an improvisation technique wherein the participants "try to make a dirty joke without making a dirty joke." Whether the vocabulary preceded the scenario, or vice versa, the results are a veritable glossary of juvenile giggles: Little Dick's mother, for example, is a baker renowned for her dill bread, madeyou guessed itfrom "dill dough," as in "I want your dill dough in my mouth." Likewise, "Butt buddies" is the name adopted by boys who share cigarettes ( called "fags" in the UK ) , speakers of Gaelic are "gaelickers" ( pronounced "GAY-lickers" ) , and "nut sacks" are lucky charms worn by athletes. Playgoers desiring topical satire will also glimpse allusions to contemporary LGBT issues, corrupt politicians and questionable clergymen ( whose reading of the gospels, while not quite blasphemous, is radical, to say the least ) .
Since the entertainment inherent in this brand of humor begins to wane following, say, seventh grade, the Fisters are wise to deliver their material at a poker-faced sprint that wraps up their surprisingly cohesive story in a swift 45 minutes. And if the accelerated pace sometimes stifles the laughs of the few audience members who may not have heard most of these gags before, it nevertheless bears testimony to the skills and virtuosity of the performers. If this is your cup of tea, then this is your room.