Dyan Bailey fights with Tommy Simon, while Pete Jacokes and Jeff Mansk watch in a scene from 'Douche Douche Bhang Bhang' Photo: SMyers
With a title that makes newspaper editors nervous, one might assume "Douche Douche Bhang Bhang" at Go Comedy! Improv Theater is some sort of sex comedy, or even a sexy spoof of the 2005 movie "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang." But "DDBB" is neither, as those of us who braved the pre-Dream Cruise madness discovered on a recently Thursday night.
Go Comedy's fifth original scripted comedy opens in the studio of yoga instructor-slash-pot dealer Rain (Tommy Simon), whose lofty platitudes and "Wall of Women" – photos of his supposed conquests – mask the fact that he hasn't had a date in ages. And given his propensity to over-dramatize his philosophical nonsense, it's not hard to understand why.
Instead, Rain has a faithful (but emotionally damaged) follower, played by Jeff Mansk, who hangs on to every word his Yogi utters. But when a pot sale to a 15-year-old (Peter Jacokes) goes awry and the kid's very butch mother (Dyan Bailey) intervenes, all their lives are changed forever!
The script by Lauren Bickers (with assistance by Sean McGettigan) starts out a bit too slowly, as the lengthy exposition between Rain and his fawning student seems to go nowhere in particular. And in long doses, Rain's self-aggrandizing, always-in-motion persona wears thin. But the plot kicks into high gear with the arrival of the boy and, later, his mother. And from that point on, the laughs come fast and furious.
The physical contrast between Simon (short, slender) and Mansk (tall and round) serves their characters (and the story) well, which helps deliver one of the show's most memorable moments: a long, feet-off-the-ground, swing-Rain-around bear hug.
Jacokes has perfected the art of playing a teenager, and Bailey dominates the stage every time she walks onto it.
"DDBB" is preceded by "Travel Earth Timeshares," and followed by "Silent" and "Matt Naas & The Sing-A-Long Singers."
REVIEW:
'Douche Douche Bhang Bhang'
Go Comedy! Improv Theater, 261 E. Nine Mile Rd, Ferndale. Every Thursday at 9 p.m. through Sept. 10. $10 for the entire night. 248-327-0575. http://www.gocomedy.net
