It’s improv, it’s a sitcom, it’s online, it’s the genre-defying performance Naked in a Fishbowl, and it promises to be unpredictable. Four New York women roll with the punches as they improvise their way through discussions of friends, family, sex, and the vuvuzela–a South African horn. In the June 14th performance, Lucy (D’Arcy Erokan) made the cast a five-some.
The actresses begin each episode knowing only the opening setting and must continue the ongoing story based on the show’s history and the characters they have developed. Since each episode is invented on the spot, the episodes have the ability to be incredibly relevant to recent events. The episode I attended dealt with the World Cup (thus, the vuvuzelas), Father’s Day, and Flag Day—all details inserted by Sara (Katharine Heller) and played up by the rest of the cast.
I had not seen an episode of the show before, but I quickly became familiar with the traits and stories of each of the characters through their connotative acting. Bonnie (Lauren Seikaly) immediately asserted herself as the group’s leader by taking control of Lucy’s son’s third birthday party. Sophie (Brenna Palughi) came across as childish, but creative, with a propensity for destroying things, and Jean (Lynne Rosenberg), the rough-around-the-edges alcoholic proved that she doesn’t like children. The actresses also invoked characters who were not seen on stage, such as Lucy’s oft naked husband Todd.
The actresses do not have the benefit of the weekly viewership expected from a TV sitcom. They must therefore remind the audience of their characters and stories without being expository. The women manage to do this without dedicating the show to it. The actresses create a show that can stand alone, yet is part of a series of episodes: not a simple task.
The episode included a full range of emotions from humor to tenderness. The spontaneity and diversity of the conversation lent the performance a life-like authenticity. Watching Naked in a Fishbowl is like spying on people you know.
Naked in a Fishbowl
Monday nights at 7 p.m.
Soho Playhouse
Tickets are $35
Past episodes are available for your enjoyment at www.nakedinafishbowl.com
