Dec 02 2008
Inspecting Carol - Play Review
Inspecting Carol is the unlikely title of a humorous Christmas play. The “Carol” is not for a female’s first name; it is short for Charles Dickens’s immortal “A Christmas Carol.” The “Inspecting” part refers to the imminent visit and evaluation of a theatre company by a representative of the National Endowment for the Arts. Thumbs up means the company will get its grant and live happily ever after. Thumbs down means it will fold.
If you can imagine all the uniquely strong personalities in the TV series The Office and transfer them to stage actors, you have a good sense of what this show is. The action is almost entirely a depiction of the drama behind the drama. There is a pompous person, an insecure person, some creatively off-the-wall people, one normal person, and a few just trying to stay afloat. Add to this many incredibly good zingers in the script!
I recently saw this performed by the Marple Newton Players, a well-established community theatre outside of Philadelphia. Kudos for a job well done and thanks for giving me some belly laughs!
