If you lead a local church and have been inclined to believe that society is abandoning the old-fashioned holy ways and instead embracing the worst that secularism offers, you might want to take your entire congregation over to see this one, so you can stand up at the end, nod, and give a hearty “I told you so.”
For the most part, though, I think “Biblical Fan Fiction” is, and was intended to be, harmless fun — although the show does convey a kind of artistic schizophrenia, a deep split between the playful and the obnoxious.
At times, it seems like the performers are not entirely sure what kind of show they wanted to present.
The show features four actors — Charlie Griffin, Christie Johnson, Joe Liorens and Lyndie Schmidt — taking on sagas from the Old Testament. The skits (written by Griffin) sometimes have the same kind of irreverent feel as Mel Brooks portraying Noah in his 1981 bad taste comedy “History of the World Part I.”
But there are also times when the show feels like it could have successfully been geared toward kids.
In between the skits, they play videos of two boys (Markus and Miles Griffin) acting zany, and some of the skits are cute and funny, as when Noah is auditioning animals for a place on the ark, and interviews a hyena with a passion for bad puns.
Plenty of other times, though, it seems like the main idea for laughs was to stick as many vulgar words into the mouths of Biblical characters and call it a day. Since this brand of humor is a dime a dozen these days on any number of cable TV shows, the comedic value wares out pretty quickly.
“Biblical Fan Fiction” might have worked better if it had gone for an entirely G-rated approach, and geared it toward families with kids looking for some silly, goofy fun.
Perhaps Griffin thought that kind of audience might avoid a Biblical spoof, so he aimed for those rowdy college frat party types who, after multiple beers, will laugh uproariously anytime some says the F word. Who knows.
The performers are good, and demonstrate some fine comedic timing.
“Biblical Fan Fiction” is being performed in the Purple Venue. Catch it on the following dates:
* Friday May 26 at 7 p.m.
* Saturday, May 27 at 11:15 a.m.
For tickets visit Orlando Fringe.
Michael Freeman is an Orlando journalist, playwright and author of the book “Bloody Rabbit”. Contact him at Freelineorlando@gmail.com..
