Theater review: ‘Shakespeare Unscripted’ at Theatre of Arts

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Improvisational theater is high-risk. Those who practice it are the theatrical equivalent of circus aerialists. Working without a net, they defy the audience’s gravity.

For some 20 years, Impro Theatre has been performing death-defying stunts of impromptu parody, sending up authors from Jane Austen to Tennessee Williams. In their latest offering, “Shakespeare Unscripted,” presented in conjunction with Theatre/Theater, the company undertakes the works of William Shakespeare.

One can hardly imagine a more gut-wrenching endeavor than winging a Shakespearean play completely off the cuff. However, extempore from their mother wit, these comically gifted performers fracture the Bard with a right good will.

The show, based on audience suggestion, changes nightly. Guest performers occasionally hook up with the core cast, which includes Tracy Burns, Brian Jones, Stephen Kearin, Nick Massouh and Floyd Van Buskirk. Co-directors Brian Lohmann and Dan O’Connor, who also perform, are the deftest improvisers in the bunch, but all involved keep the laughs coming and the cadence astonishingly Shakespearean.

On this particular evening, the show lost momentum in the second act – possibly because silliness like this should be compressed into a breezy one-act format. And one wishes that “light and sound improvisers” Jim Sabo and Ruben Vernier had the wherewithal to flicker those lights ever so gently when a particular scene grinds on too long. That works at comedy clubs on open mike nights and could help here. Still, despite a few bruising tumbles, these remarkably clever performers fly through the show with the very greatest of ease.

-- F. Kathleen Foley

“Shakespeare Unscripted,’ Theatre of Arts, 1625 N. Las Palmas Ave., Hollywood. 8 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays. Ends Aug. 1. $20. (800) 838-3006. Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes.