WORLD PREMIERE! Long before Felix met Oscar, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin were ill-fitting roommates in the south of France; a fateful co-habitation that would change the face of art – and Van Gogh’s face, too. It’s a lesser-known tidbit of theatre history that these two masters were also the subjects of Neil Simon’s original draft of “The Odd Couple.” Sacred Fools now presents the first-ever performance of this abandoned script, and the odd tale of how it was written. Based on an untrue telling of a true story.
The Art Couple
Reviews
Long before Felix met Oscar, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin were ill-fitting roommates in the south of France, which turned out to be a fateful co-habitation that changed the face of art - as well as Van Gogh's face! Playwright Brendan Hunt cleverly re-imagines these two art masters as the subjects of Neil Simon's original draft of The Odd Couple, which Hunt presents as being co-written with yet another of the oddest couples possible - Sam Shepard, here introduced as Steve, an oddball busboy looking for his first big break. Neil and Sam's imaginary collaboration in creating "The Odd Couple" is the basis for Hunt's THE ART COUPLE, an untrue telling of a true story between two of the oddest couples to ever grace a stage!
I want you to imagine the Venn diagram where high art intersects with fart jokes. That sweet spot, if you want to call it that, is the where Sacred Fools latest show "The Art Couple" lives.
The ensemble does a splendid job in multiple roles. Marie-Françoise Theodore does a stellar turn as both the mouthy prostitute Rachel and the elegant Madame Giroux. Corwin Evans' superb projection design and Andrew Schmedake's lighting impart an alluring intimacy to the collage of paintings featured throughout. The set design by DeAnne Millais is simple but effective, allowing audience viewing from opposite sides, while Linda Muggeridge provides a stylish assortment of costumes. - RECOMMENDED
The Art Couple is the richest situation comedy that I have ever seen on stage. It keeps the audience in stitches for a two full acts.
Long before Felix met Oscar, Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin were ill-fitting roommates in the south of France, which turned out to be a fateful co-habitation that changed the face of art - as well as Van Gogh's face! Playwright Brendan Hunt cleverly re-imagines these two art masters as the subjects of Neil Simon's original draft of The Odd Couple, which Hunt presents as being co-written with yet another of the oddest couples possible - Sam Shepard, here introduced as Steve, an oddball busboy looking for his first big break. Neil and Sam's imaginary collaboration in creating "The Odd Couple" is the basis for Hunt's THE ART COUPLE, an untrue telling of a true story between two of the oddest couples to ever grace a stage!
I want you to imagine the Venn diagram where high art intersects with fart jokes. That sweet spot, if you want to call it that, is the where Sacred Fools latest show "The Art Couple" lives.
The ensemble does a splendid job in multiple roles. Marie-Françoise Theodore does a stellar turn as both the mouthy prostitute Rachel and the elegant Madame Giroux. Corwin Evans' superb projection design and Andrew Schmedake's lighting impart an alluring intimacy to the collage of paintings featured throughout. The set design by DeAnne Millais is simple but effective, allowing audience viewing from opposite sides, while Linda Muggeridge provides a stylish assortment of costumes. - RECOMMENDED
The Art Couple is the richest situation comedy that I have ever seen on stage. It keeps the audience in stitches for a two full acts.