52 Pick Up
theater simple @ Little Theatre
2:00pm, Sat 11 Mar 2006
I love 52 Pick Up, I really do. Ever since I first saw this show in 2002, I’ve come back again. And again. And again. A few times. Twice in 2002, twice just prior to this years’ Fringe (benefit gigs for Urban Myth), and this performance marks the fifth occasion I’ve had the good fortune to see this randomised relationship unfold before me.
For the uninitiated, a deck of 52 playing cards is shuffled and thrown into the air at the start of the performance. Each card contains a scene from The Relationship; the random order in which they’re picked up can affect the mood of the piece. For example, too many of the “heavy” (or sad) cards at the top of the performance can send the audience on a thoughtful trip; start frivolous, and it becomes a comedic performance.
Andrew and Llysa never fail to put in great performances, and it’s a secret gift having seen this piece many times – you start to see all the little flourishes, all the little segues between scenes that they improvise, depending on the fall of the cards. And today’s cards fell in a pleasing manner – a nice mix of up’n’down, some great sequences (especially leading into “Penny For Your Thoughts”), with the only bummer being the rather morose final card.
Still, it’s almost impossible to leave the theatre after having seen 52 Pick Up and not feel utterly invigorated by the experience. Utterly worth seeing… again and again and again.
And I did see it again, at 4:30pm, Wed 15 Mar 2006. Wooh! Six times!