Josh Kornbluth's HAIKU TUNNEL Returning to The Marsh in January

The Marsh San Francisco presents a revival of master storyteller Josh Kornbluth's hit solo show HAIKU TUNNEL. Inspired by Josh's real-life experiences as a temp worker at a San Francisco law office, HAIKU TUNNEL is a comic re-imagining of his disastrous transition from "temp" to "perm." Created in collaboration with David Ford, the show plays 8pm Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, January 15-February 7 at The Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia St. For tickets ($20-$35 sliding scale, $55-$100 reserved), the public may visit www.themarsh.org or call 415-282-3055 between 1 - 4pm, Monday through Friday.

In this hilarious adventure, Kornbluth confesses to the audience that he is an ideal temp -- but whenever he goes "perm," horrible things happen. In HAIKU TUNNEL, Kornbluth details an assignment at a downtown San Francisco law firm called Schuyler & Mitchell (S&M), where he finds himself working for a powerful tax attorney. Although he has begun to suspect that his boss may actually be Satan, the firm makes him an offer he can't refuse (insurance coverage for his psychotherapy), to become a permanent employee. A first botched assignment leads to a panicked cover-up attempt, a late-evening break-in, a surprise encounter with a beautiful young associate, and more. HAIKI TUNNEL is a comedy about neurosis, office work, and envelope-moisteners.

HAIKU TUNNEL opened in 1990 at San Francisco's Solo Mio Festival, to great critical acclaim. The San Francisco Chronicle said it was "a witty, succinct, incisive one-man saga" and the San Francisco Examiner called it "poetry in hilarity...thoroughly entertaining." After extended runs in the Bay Area at The Marsh and elsewhere, HAIKU TUNNEL was adapted into a feature film, co-directed by Josh and his brother Jacob Kornbluth (Inequality For All, The Best Thief in the World) that played at the Sundance Film Festival and was released nationally by Sony Pictures Classics in 2001.

Described as a cross between Woody Allen and Spalding Gray, Josh Kornbluth has been performing autobiographical one-man shows since 1987, many of which were developed at The Marsh. The San Francisco Chronicle declared, "Kornbluth takes a world we ignore, or barely observe, and brings it into brilliant comic relief," while The New York Times credited Kornbluth with finding "a comfortable balance between rollicking entertainment and pained self-examination."

Mr. Kornbluth launched his career as a solo artist with Josh Kornbluth's Daily World, in which he described his childhood as the son of communists in 1960's New York. Other works include Red Diaper Baby (for which he received a Drama Desk Award nomination), The Mathematics of Change, Ben Franklin Unplugged, and the San Francisco Mime Troupe production Mr. Smith Goes to Obscuristan, among many others. He is currently completing Love & Taxes, his second feature film co-directed with his brother. He has appeared in several other feature films including his adaptation of Red Diaper Baby; Strange Culture, a documentary about artist and professor Steve Kurtz; and Francis Ford Coppola's Jack, starring Robin Williams. His second audio-book, titled Ben Franklin: Unplugged ... and Other Comic Tales, was recently released on Audible.com.

David Ford is a director, collaborator, and Goldie Award-winning playwright who has worked on countless solo shows over his 25-year career in the business. Frequently working on projects at The Marsh, Ford has collaborated with many other Bay Area favorites including Brian Copeland, Charlie Varon, Marilyn Pitman, Geoff Hoyle, and Cherry Terror.

To post a comment, you must register and login.