Holiday fundraiser at Springs Ensemble Theatre is an amusing seasonal social satire
Following the very funny Hand to God earlier this year, Springs Ensemble Theatre continues its 13th season with the world premiere of Holly Jolly Holy Sh!t, which feels like a cross between Die Hard and A Christmas Carol.
The play is written by Colorado Springs playwright, Kate Hertz and follows Milo (Micah Speirs), a slacker whose superpower in life is that he’s a smooth talker; give him long enough with anyone and he can talk his way into whatever he wants. This skill has made him a valuable resource to Officer Garrison (Jeremiah Walter), a dirty cop who’d rather be an artist, as the person he can call on to defuse tough situations over the phone.
This holiday season, Milo is called to assist Anderson Anderson & Anderson, a real estate development corporation run by three tough-as-nails girlbosses (Barbara Summerville, Ashley Crockett, and Karen Anderson). The business needs help getting Ava (Autumn Schindler), an angry activist who is threatening to kill herself if the developers don’t back off, out of the building they are trying to demolish. To hasten the situation, the developers call Officer Garrison, who calls Milo to talk Ava out of the building without creating a PR disaster.
However, there’s one small problem: Ava is Milo’s ex-girlfriend and the one person on whom Milo’s BSing doesn’t work. While dealing with his longtime roommate, Jordan (Ellie Hinkle), and her relationship drama, Milo has to figure out how to break through to Ava and learns the importance of justice, honesty and not being a huge jerk.
Barbara Summerville, Ashley Crockett, and Karen Anderson delight as tough-as-nails real estate developers.
Hertz’s script is a madcap caper about the horrors of American capitalism and the limitations of individualism, packed full of socially relevant zingers. The play excels at communicating its themes, and its jokes — particularly those involving the girlboss developers and the artsy police officer — are sharp; however, some of the dialogue and characterizations could benefit from further development.
Though the story is consistently engaging, the exposition-heavy introduction, talky conclusion and lengthy phone conversations throughout occasionally cause the piece to drag. The entire action of the play is confined to Milo’s apartment, with the characters “entering” the scene through a phone call. Director Steve Emily stages this by having characters enter the stage and occupy a distant part of the stage around Milo. Emily’s blocking during the few group scenes is quite good, especially in the final moment of Act 1 when Milo is being overwhelmed and circled by the demands of all the play’s characters.
This moment, aided by the strobing lighting design of Jenny Maloney, is a striking visual encapsulation of the horror Milo feels as all his smooth-talking schemes fall apart all at once. Yet, much of the play consists of smaller, more intimate phone conversations, which, despite Emily’s best efforts, means much of the play is stagnant. Smartly, for the show’s final scene between Milo and Ava, Emily directs the actors to drop the phone call and connect on stage; it’s a profoundly simple choice, but the engaged blocking gives the play new momentum for its stirring conclusion.
Matt Radcliffe designs the festive set, which features Milo and Jordan’s apartment on the flat, lower level, with the room Ava has locked herself in at the children’s community center being nestled on a slightly raised level on stage left. The sharp divide between these parts of the stage even extends to the tree, with half the tree in the apartment being decorated and lit up while the tree in the children’s center is barren. It’s a simple set that gives the actors plenty of room to spread out and make big choices.
Micah Speirs and Autumn Schindler share a tender moment on the set designed by Matt Radcliffe.
Milo is a tricky role, but seasoned local actor Micah Speirs is up for the challenge. Effortlessly charming as Milo, he has a great deadpan and captures Milo’s blasé attitude toward the world. And yet, he’s not totally unfeeling, as Speirs demonstrates through his tender interactions with his long-time roommate Jordan — played with grace by Ellie Hinkle — and deep conversations with Ava.
In contrast with Milo’s chillness, Autumn Schindler is loud, aggressive and utterly sincere as Ava. Schindler’s character is incredibly passionate, which sometimes causes her to speak before she thinks, and yet she is portrayed so earnestly that you have to take her seriously. Schindler and Speirs’ rapport is familiar yet strained, and it slowly becomes more relaxed as the characters continue their conversation over the phone.
Jeremiah Walter delivers a hilarious supporting performance as the sensitive police officer, Garrison. Walter’s dopey physicality, paired with his incredible reactions and a silly character voice, make for an outstanding comedic performance. Speaking of funny, Barbara Summerville, Ashley Crockett and Karen Anderson’s performances as the trio of sniveling developers and other bit characters were a treat! Summerville, Crockett and Anderson have great chemistry together and get to deliver some of the script’s funniest jokes.
The play is a fiercely funny social satire that serves as a humorous reminder of the power of human connection in an increasingly disconnected world. And, though the plot doesn’t explicitly revolve around Christmasy things – if you can make it past the coarse language and dirty jokes –Holly Jolly Holy Sh!t’s story features an ample amount of holiday heart that makes for an off-beat, heartwarming winter comedy.
Jeremiah Walter and Autumn Schindler bond over a melon.
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