Driving home from "The Second City's Dysfunctional Holiday Revue" this past Friday night, I couldn't help but compare it to an Oreo cookie. Why? Because the sweet, tasty stuff was stuck between a very hit-or-miss opening sequence and a surprisingly lackluster finale.
But in the middle were packed several delightful sketches, courtesy of The Second City's Chicago-based touring company and the return of Detroit's own Tim Robinson.
Highlights include a scene in which parents Joseph (Mark Raterman) and Mary (Megan Hovde Wilkins) visit a counselor (Tim Baltz) to discuss family life since the birth of Jesus.
Another finds a young man (Baltz) sitting in his car listening to sad Christmas music and mourning the girlfriend who dumped him earlier via a text message. One by one, family members leave the holiday party to cheer him up – but their REAL concern is what to do with the ex-girlfriend's expensive Christmas present. (Mary Sohn, a bright light throughout the show, is especially funny when she expresses shock over learning she was adopted. I won't ruin it by explaining why.)
A series of sketches at the North Pole's only bar also generate plenty of chuckles, especially when Mrs. Claus (Dana Quercioli) goes into great detail regarding her first marriage to the Easter Bunny. (She confirms a rumor we've all heard about rabbits.)
The most creative moment, however, is probably the holiday ballet performed by Robinson, Sohn and Quercioli while sitting (and sliding around) in office chairs.
There are other laugh-filled moments, of course – and a few duds. But the mostly out-of-town cast keeps the show moving and the guffaws rolling no matter what.
And what of the much-missed Robinson? He was his usually zany self on Friday night – although no one in the current troupe seems able to bounce off his infectious energy quite like Brett Guennel, Quintin Hicks and Jaime Moyer could…
REVIEW:
'The Second City's Dysfunctional Holiday Revue'
The Second City, 42705 Grand River Ave., Novi. Wednesday-Sunday through Dec. 28. Tickets: $15-$20. For information: 248-348-4448 or http://www.secondcity.com
