Sunday, March 17, 2024

EULOGISER BUNNY (PLAY)

 


Written and performed by Cameron Ribbons

Q The Locals 2024 season

Q Theatre Queanbeyan March 16

 

 

Reviewed by Len Power

 

In and out of Queanbeyan in a flash (it was only on for one night), Eulogiser Bunny was the second instalment in the Q the Locals 2024 Season. Writer and performer, Cameron Ribbons, has been quoted as saying he “just wants everyone to have a good, silly time”.

The show was a funeral service for Ribbons himself. There was a slide of him projected on a screen behind a lectern. A pastor, played by Ribbons, conducted the service. He was Pastor Fastor who was somehow associated with the Fasta Pasta company, a cue for a long and tedious Pastor Fastor’s Fasta Pasta word game.

Eventually he talked about the deceased.  There were short videos illustrating various moments in Ribbons’ fictional life as well as some audience participation. The audience members chosen for these readings seemed suspiciously part of the show.

There was also a murder mystery to solve and a pen and a slip of paper for this purpose were issued to everyone on arrival in the auditorium. A long video of various weird aspects of the victim’s life and death (a slasher in a bunny costume, I think) was played close to the end of the show and then it was time to reveal the killer.

In the absence of a program or any background information, I am guessing that this meandering, unfocussed show was devised by Ribbons himself. The jokes were obvious and not very funny and both performer and show needed the firm hand of a director.

The whole show, although barely an hour long, seemed interminable. Like that other bunny, it just kept going and going and going.

 

This review was first published by Canberra CityNews digital edition on 17 March 2024.

Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.