Experimental Comedy

This morning the kids and I went down to the Cortez Library on the southside of town to catch a science show by a fellow going by the name of  Dr. Krashundbang . The purpose for the show, as he put it, was to get the kids "excited about science"which he accomplished quite well. He did so with a variety of science experiments and demonstrations employing several basic science principals. Some of those experiments are very familiar magic tricks like the needle through the balloon. Works for clowns and for Dr. Krashundbang. 

He started his show, as many of us do,  by setting down ground rules for the audience to follow during the course of the show. The rules are for the adults as much as for the kids and help by minimizing or eliminating interruptions from the audience that are common in such informal show settings. Reminding the audience of obvious common courtesies such as remaining seated and  not talking during the performance have become something of a pre-show warmup that segues into the presentation.

Once he got passed the pre-show he went straight into the show pleasing the crowd with a combination of humor and simple science experiments. If I'm not mistaken, most of his experiments had an audience member there to assist him.       

Neat prop trunk. It's got a great paint job and stickers too. Your eye is drawn to it right away. Looks good and doubles as a table. Pretty handy! Most of his props were pre-set on a table just behind him to his right but he did produce a couple of props from the trunk. He had plenty of fun props for each of his experiments never using the same prop for a different experiment. 

My only negative critique has nothing to do with his performance or the show itself but rather with his costume. His costume could have been better. I feel the same about Spikey Mikey's costume. Both are very good performer's presenting  very entertaining shows for the kids and adults using humor and a variety of visually appealing props in their routines to both educate and entertain. Obviously, a lot of work was put into the show to make it successful. So the same thought and effort should go into the costume. 

With a name like Dr. Krashundbang you expect a little more than a labcoat, a black t-shirt and slacks. The costume should help define a character not simply set him apart from the audience visually. The manner in which a character is dressed gives hints as to his personality. Some costumes can even be used to carry props or becomes a prop itself. The labcoat lends itself to both uses as it could have secret pockets to store any number of things ala Harpo Marx and alter the physical appearance of the performer, appearing tall to small from one minute to the next ala Bill Irwin.

Overall, though, the show was pretty good and left the audience wanting more. His experiments would play well to a small or big room. I'd like to see what else he has in his bag 'o' tricks for his next show. It was a fun.