Review: Chasing the Clouds Away With AVENUE Q at Rise Up Theatre Company

Can you tell me how to get, how to get to...Avenue Q? It's a wondrous place where puppets and humans coexist peacefully and harmoniously. Most of the time. This salacious spoof of Sesame Street opened on Broadway in 2003 and won three Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Twenty years later, its themes are still as funny and relevant as ever. Luckily, it's playing at Rise Up Theatre Company in Rancho Cordova, so you have a chance to meet this irreverent cast of characters until May 27.

This motley mishmash of humans and monsters is led by the puppet Princeton, a recent college grad who is searching for his purpose in life, and Kate Monster, a (you guessed it) monster who is pursuing her dream of opening a school for (you guessed it) monsters. Princeton is played by Peter DeMarzio, one of the most impressive finds I've seen in community theatre. His lament, "What Do You Do With a B.A. in English?" (answer: you write theatre reviews) is quickly answered with "It Sucks To Be Me," beginning the show's delicious descent into debauchery and political incorrectness. Kate Monster is the beguiling Christina Martinez, who infuses Kate with just the right combination of naivete and spunk. There's a tigress lurking beneath the shy exterior, and Martinez lets it escape when her newfound romance is threatened by resident slut Lucy, who is performed with impressive vocals by Morgan Bartoe. Audience favorites "If You Were Gay" and "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist" will keep you laughing until you're treated to the treasure that is "The Internet is for Porn." Galvanized by an Oscar the Grouch/Cookie Monster hybrid named Trekkie Monster (portrayed with a delightful growling authenticity by Daniel Zink), the male residents of Avenue Q work to convince Kate that the web is for more than Amazon and stocks.

The entire cast's diverse talents are showcased by a cleverly functional set by Walter Pierson and handmade puppets by Clare Radford and William Palitti. Director Courtney Conklin has filled a niche for community theatre in Rancho Cordova with her up-and-coming Rise Up Theatre Company and this wittily uproarious production of Avenue Q. I can tell you how to get, how to get to Avenue Q, but do it before it closes on May 27.

Tickets and more information may be found by visiting Rise Up Theatre Company's website at RiseUpTheatreCo.com, or by visiting in person at The MACC at 10191 Mills Station Rd.

Photo credit: Josh Pierson

To post a comment, you must register and login.