by ***1/2 (out of 5)
You want mayhem? You’re gonna get served up some mayhem in what may prove to be the most frivolous hour of your Fring.
Megan Stalter broke through our small screens playing desperately deluded characters, much like Kayla, the aspiring agent’s assistant she portrays on the award-winning (HBO) Max series, Hacks. For this one hour, however, she’s at war with the audience, her musical accompanist, and the tech support alike. One moment she’ll be antagonist. The next, offering oral sex. She’s essentially clowning on cabaret as well as comedy and fringe shows, too. And she is an improperly proper variant of clown. Picking up and tossing an empty chair she finds amid the packed audience. Exaggerated costuming and belaboring of bits. All of which makes any attempt at earnestness that much more jarring. So no, you won’t find a narrative arc or experience a revelatory moment here. You won’t really get to know the real Megan Stalter. It’s a conceit that’s worked wonders for her so far.
An Evening of Mayhem with Megan Stalter runs through Aug. 27 at Gilded Balloon Teviot Debating Hall
