by Charlsie-Kern Kruger
Kyle, the comedic persona of Olivia Bratko, contains multitudes. Hence the name of this solo performance: “Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle.”
In her publicity material, this performance is described thusly: “When you’re tired of a quotidian reality, deadpan comedic chanteuse KYLE will suck you off into a new world.” Thing about the word play: The sentence is as dry as a bone; the humor simultaneously absolutely obvious and subtle. Consider, for example, the contrast between “suck you off” and humor that is “dry as a bone.” Of course, “suck you off” is a perfectly good phrase for “carry you off.” Still, have you ever considered the double entendre? It’s obvious, yes. But have you considered it? No? Exactly. Every joke Bratko makes, each gesture, each riff seems completely obvious except that you’ve never thought of it before.
This is so astounding that you could forgive her if she delighted in her insights, offered a wink and a smile, or even a little bow or a shrug or a “Right, am I right?” exclamation. But she keeps her distance. Her deadpan is consummate. The result: an hour of physical belly laughs and intellectual loop-de-loops that will leave you dizzy and hurting and wanting more like a roller coaster that only an idiot would board, but we do, and we’re glad of it.
The show begins dramatically as Bratko strikes a Shakespearean pose and launches into a deadly serious monologue in a manner that shows incontrovertible evidence of classical training. Huh? You think. What’s this about? She pauses slightly. Then deadpan, with absolutely no loss of concentration or character, she remarks : “Pause here for a laugh.” It is a parenthetical stage direction and she follows it. She doesn’t command the audience to laugh. She pays no attention to us at all. She is completely in character, concentrating fully. It is a serious monologue. But…we laugh. Of course we do. We are . . . hypnotized. Her control is absolute. She continues the monologue, in classical style until … well, you’ll have to find out for yourself.
What follows is as original for this time as Lenny Bruce, Phyllis Diller, or Andy Kaufman were in their day. We have not seen its like. I really can’t explain her jokes. I don’t remember them. They weren’t that funny, I think, except that the perfect delivery made them spectacular.
This is wild, risky comedy but it is far from the wild improvised versatility of other wild comics (Robin Williams comes to mind). Williams could spontaneously leap into the maelstrom of improvisation and deliver the unexpected, working without a net. Bratko, obviously a perfectionist, works in such a manner that every gesture, every intonation, every flick of a finger or blink of an eye appears choreographed within an inch of its life. I offer this visual arts metaphor: If Robin Williams is the Jackson Pollock of comedy, splashing all over the place, then Bratko is M. C. Escher, as precise as an engineer designing a moon rocket.
I can’t tell you how funny this is, because the humor is not in the jokes but in the wonder of this incredibly unlikely creature. Bratko, like Klaus Nomi, seems to be a visitation from another planet and you have to be in the room to get it.
Wait a minute: Lenny Bruce, Phyllis Diller, Andy Kaufman, Robin Williams, Klaus Fucking Nomi? Is she THAT original and THAT good?
Well, that’s a hard call to make but . . . she just might be.
You should buy a ticket and catch a rising star.
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Rating: ***** (For an explanation of TheatreStorm’s rating system, click here.)
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“Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle” by Olivia Bratko. Directed by Kalia Armbruster. Lighting: Colin Johnson. Souind Design: Olivia Bratko.
Cast:
Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle Kyle: Olivia Bratko.
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