“Dearly Departed” is back from the dead — much older, a bit slicker and, happy to report, absolutely none the wiser.
The popular Bible-belt black comedy is still as delightfully dumb as a lobotomized box of rocks. . . . And just as howlingly funny.
“Dearly Departed,” one of The Avenue Theater’s most popular productions ever, has been cryogenic since its third incarnation in 2002. In three runs beginning in 1993, it played 125 combined weeks.
Thankfully, producer John Ashton and his comedy cronies can’t seem to let Ray Bud Sr., the only man who was ever bored to death, rest in peace.
Ashton has declared this old-home month — emphasis on the old. Only now, Ashton and company have reassembled at the Aurora Fox studio theater for this satirical Southern celebration of bad behavior and even worse taste.
There’s Bill Berry, lured back to Colorado from his family farm in southern Illinois to again don the apparel of pious pillar (6-feet-6!) Aunt Marguerite, a religious zealot with a tongue of fire. And Michael Katt, who’s back from his home in Seattle just to play her lazy bum of a son, Royce.
Closer to home, the cast includes some of Denver’s most seasoned comic actors in mostly fine form. Judy Phelan-Hill is the newly widowed Raynelle, the matriarch who exterminated her surly husband’s libidinous lifeline (if you know what I mean) 33 years before his real death. Pamela Clifton is the hysterically haranguing shrew Suzanne, who relentlessly pelts cheating husband Junior (Eric Weber) with verbal insults.
There’s a host of other loons and outrageous cameos, but holding everything together is the remarkable straight man Tupper Cullum as Ray Bud Jr., the only normal one in the lot.
The story is simple: This family has gathered from all parts to bury Bud Sr. And they’d like to get it done with as little dignity, and at as little expense, as possible.
It’s kind of like “Greater Tuna” — only funny.
This is the rare comedy where every scene ends on a bona fide laugh line. The actors are a bit undisciplined in spots, tempted as they are to go improvisational when this particular comedy doesn’t call for it. But they’re all-stars, and they wear their roles like comfortable old robes.
The multimedia has gone a bit more high-tech since ’02 and is best expressed in car scenes accompanied by streaming roadside video. This version incorporates two new bluegrass tunes, excellently performed by Cullum on guitar and Weber on mandolin. They change the comic momentum, but also add needed grounded humanity. (Each performance is followed by a 20-minute hootenanny.)
Potentially offensive? You bet. This family fits every redneck stereotype. They’re cheap. They wear overalls. They show no particular affection for the deceased. They fantasize about offing one another. They serve corn dogs and quarts of Budweiser at the funeral.
But it’s not offensive because, thanks to Cullum, they’re a real family. Yes, every day marks the slow and horrible death of their stupid hopes and dreams. But they look and sound a lot more like our families than any of us would like to admit. Under all the laughs, this play is a sneaky rumination on things not quite working out.
The cast will rotate some as the run goes on. Amie MacKenzie and Dana Miller share the role of Lucille; Ashton takes over for Cullum after April 8 because Cullum is starring in the Aurora Fox’s “The Rainmaker” in the theater next door.
But no matter who takes the stage, “Dearly Departed” feels like a family reunion.
Welcome home.
… What’s that? Sorry; I said, . . . “WELCOME HOME!”
John Moore: 303-954-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com
“Dearly Departed” *** (out of four stars)
Presented by Ashton Entertainment at the Aurora Fox studio theater, 9900 E. Colfax Ave. Written by David Bottrell and Jessie Jones. Directed by John Ashton. Through April 17. 7:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. $24. 303-739-1970, or
This weekend’s theater openings
“Mama Hated Diesels” A rambunctious musical portrait of America’s long-distance truckers, drawn from actual interviews that are mingled with the midnight jukebox sounds of a truck-stop cafe. A Denver Center world premiere. Through May 9. Presented by the Denver Center Theatre Company at the Stage Theatre, Denver Performing Arts Complex, 14th and Curtis streets, 303-893-4100 or and here’s
“Missa Populi” Translated from Latin as “The People’s Mass,” this original performance piece is described as “a reclaiming of the Catholic Mass as both exploration and undermining from within.” It combines history, live music, science, dance, literature and pop culture in seach of a wholly modern and human communion experience. Through Saturday. Presented by Vicious Trap at the Packing House Center for the Arts, 835 E. 50th Ave., 574-975-3620 or
“Rounding Third” Comedy about two badly matched Little League baseball coaches who want their sons’ teams to win but for different reasons. An acerbic and touching journey through the bumpy terrain of fatherhood and baseball. Through April 11. Presented by Butte Theatre at the Butte Opera House, 139 E. Bennett Ave., Cripple Creek, 719-689-3247 or
– Compiled by John Moore
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