Antics in the boardroom

Piverton Monologues is a unique show at festival!
BAILA LAZARUS EDITOR

Sixteen people are sitting in the Dayson Boardroom at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver when Chris Piverton charges in, thrusting the doors open like a surprise gust of wind.

"Nine hundred! No way!" he exclaims with glee, looking at some figures on a Palm Pilot. "I've exceeded my own expectations!"

And with this burst of energy, Piverton sweeps the entire roomful of his new associates (the audience) into a world filled with company philosophies, PowerPoint presentations, nonstop cellular phone calls and organizational mantras.

This is The Piverton Monologues at Chutzpah!

Piverton (played by Donald Adams) is working his way up the corporate ladder in the fictional Dexcom, a company that is about "passionate collections," otherwise referred to by its euphemism "revenue rescue." Piverton has invented a ridiculous mathematical formula to track workers' hours in client companies. Using statistical probabilities, he can calculate the difference between how much employees say they work and how many hours they actually put in. The monetary value of the difference is then taken from the employees and returned to the employer, while Dexcom takes a cut.

Into this context we, members of the audience, are brought, ostensibly to help Piverton as his new team.

For a while this fake environment is fun. We are spoken to as though we are really working for Dexcom, shown presentations of the company's goals, and get caught up in Piverton's energy and laughable incantations.

"Revenue rescue is not just about order," Piverton entreats. "It's about saying, 'We're taking care of you.' " "We're creating harmony in society." "We gotta reach for the stars. You can do it!"

This is all expressed in the loud, easily identifiable voice of a southern minister and one half expects Piverton to shout "Hallelujah" at any moment. His pep talk is constantly interrupted, however, by numerous cellphone calls, that serve to increase his stress level and Piverton has to dip into his briefcase on more than one occasion for a swig of antacid liquid.

After a lengthy stay in the boardroom, the entire entourage of audience and actor head to the stairwell for some more theatrics, then down to the adult lounge and, finally, youth lounge where the performance ends. Over the course of the play, Piverton's persona becomes more revealing and, rather than a successful, upward-moving businessman, we see him as a stressed-out, type-A employee who has compromised too much in his lifetime in order to achieve, well, almost nothing.

As a concept, David Goodman's and Richard Reynold's Piverton Monologues has promise. And Adams brings an immense amount of energy to the role. But as a comedy, the writing is hit-and-miss. Many jokes fall flat, garnering little response from the listeners; and the entire script, which runs almost 90 minutes, could do with a fair amount of chopping. Adams lost the southern preacher inflection after about half an hour and, anyway, the accent seemed a bit clichéd for the role and even out of place for a Canadian audience. After all, how many CEOs do you know who sound like Jesse Jackson?

Still, the show is worth a visit, especially after all the first-performance wrinkles are steamed away, if only to see the tremendous acting skills of Adams and to experience the JCC's adult lounge turned into a strip club.

Piverton runs March 1, 2, 5, 6, 8 and 9. For tickets, call 604-257-0366.

Dance the night away

Dancer and choreographer Moe Brody returns to the Chutzpah! festival for a second year, this time with Sploosh, featuring dance groups from around the Lower Mainland in a program of dance moves from hip-hop to stomp-style tap. Last year, Brody had three sold out shows. Sponsored by Celebration 2010, Sploosh is on the Norman Rothstein Theatre stage March 3, 4 and 5, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $14.

Musical traditions mix

Toronto-based classical pianists Boris Zarankin and Inna Perkis bring a musical expression of their life together as Russian immigrants and artists to Chutzpah! 2003. Hosted by Max Wyman and Susan Mertens, the program will feature the music of other partners in life and music, including Robert and Clara Schumann and Gustav and Alma Mahler. The program will also feature the world première of a four-hand piece entitled "Jewish Melodies" by Russian-Jewish composer M. Burshtin. Zarankin and Perkis perform March 6, 8 p.m., in the Norman Rothstein Theatre. Tickets are $18.

Some of Vancouver's top vocalists share a mixed program of music March 2. Nancy Newman and Rudy Rozanski will perform original compositions interlaced with liturgical, folk and contemporary Jewish music; Annette Altman and Cantor Yaacov Orzech will sing a variety of Yiddish, Israeli, cantorial and Italian songs; and mezzo-soprano Elena Steele will share both traditional Russian romance ballads and gypsy folk music, as well as a few of Broadway's best show tunes. The performance starts at 3 p.m., in the Norman Rothstein Theatre. Tickets are $16.

Under the leadership of Ivan Linde, with accompaniment by Joyce Cherry, the 26-voice Jewish Men' Choir will showcase Jewish choral works including liturgical music, Yiddish folk songs and Jewish popular music. Featured will be Orzech, Arthur Guttman, Arnold Selwyn and Maurice Moses. The choir performs March 9, 4 p.m., in the Norman Rothstein Theatre. Tickets are $16.

Acting it up on stage

Looking for a state of release and liberation from a boring, dead-end job? Jobless "experts" Barry Greenfeld and Sid Filkow demonstrate what it takes to achieve a state akin to nirvana, the condition of "firedom," in the interactive, improvisational comedy You're Fired, which plays on the Second Stage March 8, 7 p.m., and March 9, 2 p.m. Tickets are $12.

In a completely different vein, Alexandra of Judea tells the epic story of the Hasmonean Dynasty, the house of Maccabee. Alexandra survives foreign invasions and civil war, political intrigues and two murderous husbands to rule as the last queen of the independent kingdom of Judea, with the help of her ally, Cleopatra III of Egypt. An abridged version of the play will be presented as a staged reading, with commentary by the playwright Lauri Donahue and audience discussion, on the Second Stage March 2, 4:30 p.m. Admission is free.

Laughing and singing

Local favorite Barry Greenfeld hosts an entourage of fellow comedians, including David Granier and Randy Charach, at the Comedy Cabaret March 8, at 10 p.m., on the Second Stage. Tickets are $12.

Groove Cabaret showcases the musical talents of Vancouver band Davis Trading, comprised of Gabe Davis, Jory Groberman, Micah Groberman, Marc Labrie and Mark Hildreth. Davis Trading blends funk, rock and hip-hop music. The cabaret is on the Second Stage – complete with refreshments of the adult variety – March 1, 10 p.m. Tickets are $12.