Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Theater Review: Attack of the Killer Mutant Leeches

By Mark-Brian Sonna of MBS Productions

Attack of the Killer Mutant Leeches by Dennis Millegan, currently playing at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre, has got to be one of the stupidest shows I’ve ever seen, and I mean it as a compliment! Pocket Sandwich Theatre is famous for its melodramas, and while this may not have had as many wicked puns as their most recent show I reviewed, Jack the Ripper, it is so well executed I found myself giggling, guffawing, and groaning with delight at all the bad jokes, visual puns, and corny dialogue.

The story is cobbled together from a hodgepodge of bad B movie elements: Nuclear “radiation”, a bad guy who wants to “dominate” the world (though in this case he’s so dumb he’s just interested in “dominating” the county), secret government espionage, a blond bombshell who is sultry and trashy, and of course leeches that have grown to the size of human beings! In order for the story to work, the script and the actors must capture the feel of the “bad acting” that was inherent in these films. I’m delighted to say that every member of this cast was able to act badly, and thus doing justice to the material. Though the cast was strong, Shane Hamlin as the hunky Sheriff Goode and Shannon Rasmussen as the sexy blonde Luttie Mae really stood out for their zesty adlibs and for not just pulling off double entendres but some triple and quadruple entendres too.

Killer Leech

The payoff, of course is the leeches. With such an ominous title, one's expectation of the leeches is high. The leeches steal the show! Costume Designer McGowan created to what amounts to life sized sock puppets for the actors to be covered in. The tongues of the leeches were pink stockings, thus allowing the leeches slurp to death their prey effectively. The effect was hysterical since the creation was so obvious and so fake, like many of the monsters in the old B movies, that the audience squealed with delight every time the leeches would make an appearance. The baby leeches also added to the visual excitement. These leeches were also very talented; they could dance and sing, and at one point they even made out. The Leech love-making moment culminating with the leech kiss has got to be one of the funniest and stupidest things I’ve ever seen on stage and I have been non-stop talking about it since I saw the show. Just writing about it has made me break out in laughter, and my two cats who sit by me as I write this are looking at me like I’m crazy and that I’ve lost my mind. Go see this show if only for this one scene.

On the technical side, the show went smoothly. The set was appropriately tacky, the lighting served the piece well, and the direction was good. If I had any complaints it was in the volume: the actors would get soft every now and then. They’d forget that they had to speak over the “swamp noises” which were nicely realized by Tony Banda.

I’m very happy to recommend Attack of the Killer Mutant Leeches, and it’s worth repeating: it is truly one of the dumbest shows I’ve ever seen and I loved every minute of it!

Pegasus News content partner - MBS Productions

Related stories

• MBS Productions’ top moments of DFW theater, opera and dance in 2008 (Dec. 27, 2008)

See more stories in:

• Arts > Comedy
• Arts > Fine Arts > Theater > Plays