Toronto Fringe adventures continued yesterday at the Tarragon Theatre Solo Room with The McComedy Show, written by Shannon McDonough and Michael McLean, and directed by Margaret Smith.
The pre-show music gets the audience set to go, with the nostalgic sounds of beloved TV theme songs from the 70s and 80s. A multi-media show that combines live solo performance with video sketch comedy, has The McComedy Show McDonough morphing in and out of a series of hilarious TV personalities (and dialects) in this TV-themed sketch homage.
Book-ended by McDonough, as a TV producer, entering and exiting her apartment, we’re treated to sketch after sketch of high-energy, fun. Sketches include bits from reality TV, commercials, local cable shows and satirical renderings of famous shows. Onscreen, a hysterical “Toddlers & Tiaras” segment has McDonough as the attention-seeking, whirling dervish of a young pageant veteran and McLean as her stage mother mom, who acts as her coach and sugar dealer; “Coming Out Stories” features a gay man and a lesbian preparing to come out and reveal what’s obvious to the rest of us to their clueless mothers; and “Gay Mafia?” explores the seedy underbelly behind the scenes of a home decorating/improvement show. Live bits include batty southern Willy May in “The Psychic;” some helpful and frank advice from French Canadian North Bay resident Madeline in “Madeline’s 2 Cents;” and, “I Am not an Extra” (a combo of live performance and onscreen clips), where Sam instructs us in the art of being a zombie on The Walking Dead (with awesome zombie makeup work by Tamsin Smith). And so much more to make you LOL.
The McComedy Show also features the voice-over and onscreen talents of Paul Bellini, Maggie Cassella (who also co-wrote “Madeline’s 2 Cents”), Shelley Kidwell, Michael McLean, Marcy Rogers, Richard Ryder, Marilla Wex and Karen Wright.
Hilarity ensues as Shannon McDonough takes us on a TV-themed sketch comedy trip with a wacky fun cast of characters in The McComedy Show.
The McComedy Show continues at the Tarragon Solo Room until July 11; check for exact times/dates here. And give Shannon McDonough a follow on Twitter.
life with more cowbell 