Review: Schmeater's TRUMP THE KING Mimics Current Political Events a Bit Too Much

It would be fairly difficult to not know what's going on with the political campaign these days especially all the asinine things a certain candidate keeps saying which have been fodder for every news cycle and comedian for months. So I guess it was just a matter of time before we get a bit of theater about him which we have with Theater Schmeater's world premiere play of NiCK Edwards' "TRUMP The KING or POTUS DRUMPH: Another Sh**ty Adaptation of Alfred Jarry's Ubu Roi which May or May Not Resonate with a Contemporary American Audience". And while the show offered up a few laughs I mostly walked away with two major problems with the piece, one structural and one personal (which others may well encounter too) but we'll get to those.

The play, loosely adapted from Alfred Jarry's 1896 play "Ubu Roi", follows a disappointing man-child named Doknow Drumph. He's pretty much a failure at life especially in the eyes of his father. So when the King of Nowhere steps down Drumph throws his hat in the mix of candidates to become the new king. Everyone looks on his candidacy as a joke but somehow he mysteriously pulls ahead of the rest and eventually becomes King. Once he's achieved his goal he realizes he has no idea how to govern the people of Nowhere and begins instituting several outlandish laws that only really benefit him and his friends leading many citizens of Nowhere to flee the country to the neighboring Candanada.

Sound familiar? Well, they start the play by stating that the person they are presenting is fictional and is in no way any actual person living or dead. He, of course, very closely resembles a certain orange skinned public figure but for the sake of the joke and not wanting anyone to get sued (myself included) we'll just refer to the person they might be mirroring with a non-descript pronoun. Through the course of the play, they go through every crazy and offensive thing he has done and said. They talk about the small hands, the wall around the country, the banning of certain religions from the country, etc. While, as I said, this afforded a few nostalgic laughs, after awhile it just became a highlight (or lowlight if you will) reel of his worst moments and this leads me to my major structural problem. We know all this. We know all the things he's been saying and we've already laughed and cringed at them. And we all already have in our minds the horrifying scenario that if he wins he'll destroy the country and many will be forced to leave. So what's new? Without any new insight on this situation I was wondering as the play went on why we were there. This leads me to my personal problem. I am personally terrified of this potential outcome and become even more so with each sound bite. So I just don't think I'm in a good place to see it as an entertainment yet. Maybe if he loses and we get some distance from it we could get a good chuckle but right now the play kept reminding me where we are and that was not entertaining. And so without anything new to say or hope to offer the show kind of ambled on down a very bleak road.

The ensemble of the show does a good job with the piece especially Kevin Bordi as Drumph who does a great imitation of ... er ... him. And the rest manage some good laughs as the other candidates and the various wives and advisors of Drumph. But as fun as those moments were they were all still undercut with my personal terror as well as the fact that we've seen this all before. And so, with my three letter rating system, I give Theatre Schmeater's production of "TRUMP The KING or POTUS DRUMPH: Another Sh**ty Adaptation of Alfred Jarry's Ubu Roi which May or May Not Resonate with a Contemporary American Audience" a disturbed and a little bored MEH. Political discord is fine and thank God we live in a country where this is still possible (for now) but give me something I haven't seen a hundred times already on The Daily Show or Facebook or the news.

"TRUMP The KING or POTUS DRUMPH: Another Sh**ty Adaptation of Alfred Jarry's Ubu Roi which May or May Not Resonate with a Contemporary American Audience" performs at Theater Schmeater through October 15th. For tickets or information visit them online at www.schmeater.org.

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