The underpants may sag but the show does not

A line from Nathan Wojciechowski’s character, Herr Versati, burned in my mind after I left Monday’s dress rehearsal for “The Underpants.”

“A man is only when he contributes to the human race. The heroes are the thinkers, poets, painters, musicians; and the layperson is only important to the degree that he knows them.”

As I’ve said in the past, I’m not an avid theatergoer and my knowledge of the performing arts is woefully plebian. That aside, I thoroughly enjoyed “The Underpants.”

The setting is pre-World War I Germany. A loose draw string causes a woman’s undies to fall down around her ankles in public. This event causes quite a stir that sets a zany chain of events in motion.

She has to contend with her dim-witted brawny bureaucrat husband, a bizarre love triangle, a nosey neighbor who lives out her sexual fantasies vicariously, and an easily confused scientist with a Tourette’s streak.

The two act play is chocked full of quirky social and political commentary, meta-jokes that break the fourth wall, and loads of innuendo that will incite laughter from even the staunchest prude.

The line delivery is quick, which means you’re going to have to be smart to catch a lot of the jokes, but there’s still enough raunchiness and slapstick to make it enjoyable to the casual audience member.

Costuming and makeup was on par.  It added a much-needed absurdity and helped dispel some of the more tense observations I could have made.

Though my credibility as a reviewer is severely handicapped by my lack of theatre knowledge, I picked out a minute detail, for which I rightfully have the credentials to scrutinize.

The newspaper prop used during the dress performance was printed in color.  I sincerely doubt that color newspapers were widely circulated in 1910 Germany.

That’s no reason not to attend one of the 4 performances of “The Underpants,” so make sure you catch it before the crowds move on to the next sensational thing.