F. J. Hartland

Several years ago, the University of Pittsburgh Repertory presented both parts of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America.  It was a landmark achievement and a pinnacle for the Department of Theatre.

History is made again with their current production of Allison Moore’s Slasher, billed as a “horrifying comedy.”

It is an embarrassing low point.  A real nadir.

When I arrived at the Stephen Foster Memorial, I was greeted by a young woman in the box office—who was eating soup.  In her defense, the soup looked really good.  Little did I know that the soup would be the highlight of the evening!

The curtain on opening night went up a full FIFTEEN MINUTES late.  Normally, this wouldn’t be a problem, but Slasher runs ninety-minutes without an intermission.  In truth the show runs ninety-six minutes, so we were trapped for nearly two full hours without a break.

With Slasher director Holly Thuma has a real hot mess on her hands that goes wrong on so many, many levels.

First is the location. Pitt has a perfectly fine Studio Theatre (where Slasher would be ideal).  Instead, this production (and the audience) is shoe-horned onto the STAGE of the Charity Randall.

The acoustics are ghastly; the sight-lines, worse.  (I actually sat through several two-person scenes where I saw the face of only ONE of the actors).

And this decision to place the show on the stage means the acting space is slightly larger than a postage stamp (always such a wise move when you have a character in a motorized wheelchair).

Also, the audience is so close that the “special effects” look cheesy and amateurish.  If the audience was given some distance, the effects might have worked.

The entrances are narrow passageways, and the poor, hardworking stage crew has to navigate through them with cumbersome set pieces…sometimes slamming into the actors.  (Perhaps this was Thuma’s attempt at creating comedy?  If so, it was a success because it was damn funny).

And let’s talk pace.  Slasher is about a low…low…low budget horror film being made in Texas.  Consequently, the scenes are short and episodic.  Instead of using a unit set so scenes could move quickly, Thuma has chosen to do black-outs (to facilitate scene changes), totally disrupting any pace the play might have.  So it’s an evening of short scene…scene change…short scene….scene change…short scene…you get the picture.  Slasher ends up being a herky-jerky stop/start ride.

Then there’s the problem with tone.  What kind of play is this?  Thuma never seems to know, so each scene appears to be from a different show, making Slasher uneven at best.

The cast has talent (like the wonderful Sam Turisch.  Between this and last year’s campy Dracula, I hope the University is paying him a bundle of money!)) and shows promise (Sarah Turocy is very funny in a multitude of roles, but especially as do-gooder Christi Garcia.  Likewise, Fred Pelzer has a great opening scene with Turich).  But like the audience, they, too, are trapped like rats on this sinking ship run aground by Captain Thuma.

She, though, is not alone to blame.

Who is the Theatre Department at the University of Pittsburgh deemed this dreck worthy of an educational institution?  Really?  (Slasher would be so much more at home at some third-rate community theatre instead of a prestigious university).

Probably the same “genius” who said, “Let’s open the play on the Friday night of Pitt’s Homecoming.  That way streets will be closed…Oakland’s already limited parking will be even further compromised…and there’ll be a half-hour fireworks show right outside the theatre, making much of the play even more inaudible than it already is?”

Why not open the play Thursday and take Friday off?  Or wait and open the play Saturday?

Although with Slasher, I might have been grateful for a ninety-six minute fireworks display to drown the entire thing out.

My advice…stay home and find out where that young woman got the soup!

Slasher continues through November 7.