Take a Comedic History Tour

Along with delivering classics like The Tempest and  this summer, Marin Shakespeare added a new classic to its calendar. 

I didn't have high expectations for The Complete History of America – Abridged, playing at the Forest Meadows Amphitheater at Domincan University in San Rafael through Sept. 25.

I was wrong.

The show, which was first conceived of in the mid-1980s out of the fondly-remembered Black Point Renaissance Fair in Novato, more or less delivers on the promise of its title: a history of the U.S. through vignettes, drastically shortened and comedicly altered. The show has traveled around the country and seen countless iterations. But, now it’s back where it started and updated with jokes about Sarah Palin and a sketch on Barack Obama.

In fact, one of the original authors, Reed Martin of Sonoma, volunteered an updated version for the Marin Shakespeare production. 

The key to the success of the meandering plot, or what there is of one, is that it’s actually, genuinely funny. It starts with the first explorers landing in America and ends with the Cold War and hits on some (though not all) of the notes in between.

Although Complete History of America – Abridged was originally written by three locals (Martin, Adam Long and Austin Tichenor) as a sort of comedic tour de force, one gets the sense that the actors are more adlibbing and riffing, then sticking to a memorized script. That’s would be a dangerous game to play without talented actors, but, fortunately, Darren Bridgett, Cassidy Brown and Mick Mize are just the talented actors needed for an improvised and wacky show like this, judging their audience as any good stand-up comedian would.

Director Robert Currier, of San Rafael, has added some local flavor to the non-stop jokes too – my favorite referenced the historical contributions of “Sir Francis Drake – of Boulevard fame.”

In fact, the best parts of the show aren’t the rehearsed bits – ranging from an Italian explorer and a guy in drag to a film noir detective and a guy in drag – but the banter in between the skits. This is a trio that is able to stall while someone changes costume, and tell you that they’re stalling, but still make it funny.

Lots of outdoors shows don’t work as outdoor shows because they take themselves too seriously – something that’s hard to do while the audience snacks on cookies and car alarms go off in the background. This show works for exactly the opposite reason: it never takes itself too seriously. When a trapdoor broke and one of the actors fell through, he was able to shake it off, yelling, “This would never happen in Britain.”

If you go, though, be warned you may become part of the madcappery. Sit too close to the stage and risk being soaked with water or having your drink taken. Sit further back and laugh at the suckers who sat too close.

And, if you bring drinks, hide them from the actors!

The 411: The show runs Friday to Sunday through Sept. 25 at the Forest Meadows Amphitheater at Dominican University. The weekly Marin Shakespeare schedule changes, so check here for a full calendar. Tickets can be purchased here or at the door. Audience members between the ages of 21 and 34 can "pay your age" for a ticket.