The newly resuscitated Denver Repertory Theatre is back after a 15-month dormancy, promising an intriguing slate that should make its return well worth the wait.
The Rep will soon be presenting “Dizgruntled,” which tells the underexplored story of Walt Disney being called before the House Un-American Activities Committee. Also William Mastrosimone’s dark comedy “The Woolgatherer,” which pairs a disturbed waitress and a stranded trucker. And “9/11,” written by Rep founder David C. Riley, which centers on the five surviving members of a 75-member firefighting brigade who are led in group therapy by a Muslim psychologist.
Bring them on.
Can you tell I’m stalling? …
Because until those promising titles come to life, today we’re left to consider “Polish Joke,” which, in the great tradition of Polish jokes, isn’t at all funny. It doesn’t even seem to want to be. It’s the odd and angry journey of a self-loathing Pole who puts himself through the sausage grinder trying to escape that oft-maligned line-
age that’s been “the punch line of Western civilization for centuries.” With some awful Polack jokes thrown in.
“Polish Joke” is impossible to classify. It’s unpleasant as a comedy, unfocused as a social commentary. Polish playwright David Ives not only perpetuates horrible stereotypes about the Polish but the Jews, Irish, Latvians, WASPs and more.
The Denver Rep isn’t known for comedy, and “Polish Joke” shows why. Is it a joke that they trumpet the play on posters and programs as having won a 2005 Tony Award – or just an outright lie? Because it hasn’t even been perfomed on Broadway, much less won an award.
The title is an incisive double-entendre. Tormented protagonist Jasiu Sadlowski (Riley) is a joke who happens to be Polish. At 9, his Chicago elders browbeat into him that being a Pole means life is inherently futile. He’ll never be more than a janitor’s assistant. His quest is to make something more of his life than his DNA will allow.
This depressing premise might make for a fascinating play if its central question explored whether that generational self-defeat is inherent in the Polish mind-set or lingers because the rest of the country is racist? Or if the point were to demystify and disempower racial epithets of all sorts.
But “Polish Joke” is really about one guy who spends his adult life trying to lie about his heritage and doesn’t get away with it. In a painful series of surreal scenes, everyone Jasiu meets is (for some unexplained reason) obsessed with his heritage. He finally finds his home only by running away from it.
Director Kris Hipps’ stilted staging never finds a tone or comic sensibility that works. How could she, when the play careens from absurd farce to existential angst to thoughtful commentary? It’s a mess.
Riley is one of Denver’s best actors. Believe me, no one plays creeps more creepily than this guy. But Jim Carrey, he’s not. He doesn’t play Jasiu for laughs; he plays him for squirms. His every line is laced with acerbic anger and self-loathing. This works great if you’re doing Shepard or Mamet, but in a (purported) comedy, it comes off as a bit maniacal.
His green four-person support cast has a few nice moments but is largely overmatched trying to convincingly create 23 ridiculous oddballs.
The last half-hour grows interminable because we’re never exactly sure why Jasiu’s nationality should matter to anyone in the first place.
A woman berates him: “Why is it important you are Polish? Who cares?”
Exactly.
Theater critic John Moore can be reached at 303-820-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com.
“Polish Joke” | * 1/2 RATING
COMEDY-DRAMA|Presented by Denver Repertory Theatre|Written by David Ives|Directed by Kris Hipps|Starring David C. Riley|At John Hand Theater at Lowry, 7653 E. First Place |THROUGH DEC. 9|7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays|2 hours |$12-$15|303-339-0056
