Playwright: Eric Thomas Roach
At: Factory Theater at Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston
Phone: 866-811-4111; $20
Runs through: July 28
BY SCOTT C. MORGAN
Just how much you'll laugh throughout Factory Theater's Siskel & Ebert Save Chicago depends on how much you know about the minutia of Windy City pop culture and celebrities.
The smallest throwaway joke in Eric Thomas Roach's jumbled James Bond spoof can inspire ripples of guffaws. ( The surprise appearance of 'Jesse's White Tumblers' did it for me. ) On the other hand, some stretches of dialogue can leave you in perplexed silence. ( For me, I had no context for a bland exchange between radio hosts Eric & Kathy of 101.9 FM ) .
Of course, the best satires and spoofs can transcend the people and situations being spoofed. Unfortunately, Eric Thomas Roach's play relies too much on familiarity of Chicago celebrities. ( I raised an eyebrow when Windy City Times reporter Rex Wockner was spoofed for a limp-wristed joke at a press conference scene. )
The plot hinges on Mayor Richard M. Daley ( Adam Moore ) , who enlists the help of crime-fighting movie critics Roger Ebert ( Chas Vrba ) and a re-animated-from-the-dead Gene Siskel ( Scott Pasko ) to defeat evil celebrity forces on the rise. It seems that talk-show celebrity Oprah Winfrey ( Jeannette Blackwell ) has concocted a scheme to gain control over legions of soccer moms to take over Chicago. On her side are other Chicago celebrities like scheming Chicago Sun-Times columnist Richard Roeper ( Paul Metreyeon ) and loudmouth radio host Mancow ( Anthony Tournis ) .
Despite the huge and hard-working cast, I felt that Siskel & Ebert Save Chicago could have been consistently more funny. If Roach and director Scott Oken had concocted a stronger plot instead of throwing in easy and sometimes tangential pointless gags ( like that annoying Tamale Guy ) , everything wouldn't have felt so scattershot and disjointed. Cutting a few unnecessary scenes ( like a confusing scene in Starbucks ) and characters ( the numerous waitresses that Siskel hits on ) would have helped trim the fat of the play and speed things up.
If the script and plot is hit-and-miss, Siskel & Ebert Save Chicago does have its moments. The opening film credits spoofing the ones in James Bond are a delight, particularly with nubile silhouettes lounging on Chicago monuments like the Millennium Park 'Cloud Gate' bean sculpture.
The ensemble also boasts some fine comic performances—particularly the women of the ensemble who make up the roller-derby team of the Windy City Rollers. If only there were more performers in the cast on the level of these ladies to help save the unfunny patches in Siskel & Ebert Save Chicago.