One-man shows are still gracing the stage in the 2000s and are more enjoyable than ever. More often than not, the format of the shows are similar to stand-up comedy if not otherwise basically the same thing. A few years ago, Drew Droege approached things a little differently onstage and did so in a way that keeps incredible pace but also divulges a lot information to the audience as the shows progresses. The show titled Bright Colors and Bold Patterns written and performed by Droege at the Barrow Street Theatre in New York City to an engaging and enthusiastic live audience.
The show titled Bright Colors and Bold Patterns written and performed by Droege at the Barrow Street Theatre in New York City to an engaging and enthusiastic live audience.
Droege takes the stage alone as ‘Gerry’, and energetic and flamboyantly gay friend of the soon to be married couple Josh and Brennan. Taking place at a vacation house in Palm Springs in celebration of the two grooms, the point is to have fun and unwind. Though as the drinks flow and, the alcohol leads to cocaine, Gerry slowly but surely spills the beans, entertains, offends, astonishes, and informs the other guests and the audience. He of whom also completely ignored the simple instructions of not wearing bright colors and bold patterns, Gerry is full of unwavering energy and has no filter on how loud he speaks or the information he divulges to guests regardless of who is listening, or who even may care. A simply staged play it is, and even more so in its format, Bright Colors and Bold Patterns is actually one of the easiest plays to relate to particularly where friends like Gerry are concerned.
The set is well constructed and decorated, showing outside of the back of the house with the pool and a small yet convincing glimpse of the inside. Then, there is just Droege. He talks to ‘everyone’. Keep in mind, only he can see them, but that’s one of the things that gives this show its own unique style. He’s able to speak a hundred miles an hour, move from one person to the next, change topics on a dime, and weave in and out of different conversations with relative ease. The most impressive part of it all, is how convincing he’s able to do it all. Once he starts, he practically does not stop, and though it can seem as if he’s having a conversation with himself, he wrote the play and the dialogue in such a way where the blanks are easily filled in. He also possesses in an uncanny ability to live in his imagination and take his audience to those places with him, reacting and responding to characters that he’s basically made up in his head.
Droege sets a different standard to one-man shows than others. It even serves to beg the question of what this play would look like if there were actually other people on stage with him. With this achievement in place he’ll hopefully, eventually, do another. This play has finished its run, but is available on Amazon Prime Video and on Broadway HD.
