Sketch kitsch, sore buns

>> Clowns Gone Bad have their way with Hamlet in Uemlout

by AMY BARRATT

Well, I've managed to get myself in trouble with both the Saidye and the Centaur in the space of a week. For the record, I think you should check out their shows, The Last Night of Ballyhoo and Victoria, respectively. As for myself, good judgment or no, last week I decided to see the new Clowns Gone Bad production, Uemlout.

Part of the appeal was the venue, the Théatre National, an old vaudeville house on Ste-Catherine E. recently restored to a semblance of its former glory. Atmosphere-wise, it's a terrific venue for this latest offering from the clowns who brought you MoecShplat; Uemlout is a resetting of the story of Hamlet in a seedy, old-time circus. It's only too bad that we're looking up at the performers on a proscenium stage instead of down from raked stands, as in a circus tent.

The orchestra section of the Théatre National is painfully flat, meaning if you're not 6'4", you're in for an evening of duck-and-bob trying to see around the head in front of you. The seating provides generous leg-room but the chairs themselves are hard. If I'm spending a lot of time reviewing the theatre instead of the play, it's only because with any show over 90 minutes long--and Uemlout definitely qualifies--physical comfort becomes a major consideration.

As in MoecShplat, the dialogue of Uemlout is in no language known to man, though it sounds vaguely Slavic. To call it "gibberish" is really inaccurate. The Clowns have once again created a relatively simple language, and spectators do come to understand it quite well over the course of the piece.

The basic question in my mind the morning after is, how much more mileage can be squeezed out of this initially very fun idea? Although it runs considerably shorter than a traditional Hamlet, at two-and-a-half hours including intermission, Uemlout is too much of a good thing. Basing something on Shakespeare doesn't automatically lift it above the level of sketch comedy (that's not to put down sketch comedy, but everybody knows the quickest way to kill a gag is to let it go on even five seconds too long).

All that said, Uemlout is well acted, especially by Pierre Boudreault, in the title role, and Marcel Jeannin in the dual role of Kluj (Claudius) and Pruvaash (the ghost of Hamlet's father). Danielle Desormeaux is customarily brazen in the Gertrude role, Gdansk, and Laura Teasdale is the feistiest Ophelia (Opaala) you're ever likely to see. And Alain Goulem's direction is clean enough that you don't need to know Hamlet very well to follow the story. Eo Sharp (set and costumes) and David Perreault-Ninacs, perhaps the finest design team in town, have done it again.

If you've never seen this company's work, Uemlout is certainly worth a look. Nevertheless, I humbly suggest that next time, Clowns Gone Bad find a more substantial outlet for all that talent. Please spare us the clown-gibberish Lear.

This week, God help me, I'll be spending upwards of three hours in one of the most uncomfortable theatres in town, La Licorne, watching Wajdi Mouawad's Littoral. Check this space next week to see if I survived. :

Uemlout runs to June 4 at Théatre National, 1220 Ste-Catherine E., 8pm, 521-0025