Metro Pulse/Backstage/Holiday Readers' Theatre

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What:
Holiday Reader's Theatre

When/Where:
Fri., Nov. 22 and Sat., Nov. 23 at Tomato Head, 12 Market Square, 8 p.m.
Tues., Dec. 3 and Tues., Dec. 10 at Borders, 8 p.m., with post-show discussion
Friday, Dec. 13 at Yee-Haw Galleries, 413 S. Gay St., 6 p.m.

Cost:
Free. Call 523-0900 for further info.

David Sedaris' sly fables attack Knoxville

by Paige M. Travis

David Sedaris is funny. Maybe you've never heard of the guy, but I'll tell you: He has a dry, wicked wit that bites into the truth of human nature so hard that you're being bruised while you're laughing your head off. Sedaris has written several books (Barrel Fever, Naked, Me Talk Pretty One Day, Holidays on Ice); he has also been a regular commentator on National Public Radio and a contributor to the NPR program This American Life.

So when this very funny man who doesn't shy away from any unnerving or uncomfortable topic (including a gadget called "The Stadium Pal" that allows you to pee into a tube connected to a plastic bag strapped to your leg) sets his sights on the holiday season, watch out. Anything sacred or sentimental about Christmas and all its trimmings will be whacked into little hilarious bits. What makes it funny, in addition to Sedaris' impeccable timing and his droll delivery, is that it's all true.

To celebrate the holiday season with humor, the Actors Co-op Beehive (the Co-op's side-stage production company for out-of-Black-Box, avant garde performances) presents five performances of Holiday Reader's Theatre, featuring two readings from Sedaris' book Holidays on Ice.

I've listened to the book on tape of Holidays on Ice, which is read by Sedaris himself. A friend and I were on a roadtrip, and he proposed we listen to the tape. But he warned me: I might at some point, from laughing so hard, lose my ability to drive the car. And, while I never actually had to pull over to the shoulder of the highway, my vision was seriously compromised by tears of laughter, and it was considerably difficult to make any major steering decisions with my stomach muscles gripped in convulsions. Dangerous, I know—I'm sure the highway patrol wouldn't approve—but it was totally worth it to hear Sedaris tell his tale.

Pat and Morgan Fitch, a wife-husband team of actors who have been playing with the Co-op for a good while now, will read "Santaland Diaries" and "Season's Greetings." In "Santaland," Sedaris tells about his tenure as an elf at Macy's department store. He chronicles the adventures of his co-worker elves, all of whom have vastly original and mostly freakish personalities. "Season's Greetings" is a holiday newsletter that features the characters of Khe Sahn, an illegitimate Vietnamese daughter produced by the Vietnam War, and Satan Speaks, the crack baby grandchild.

Beehive artistic director Kara Kemp says Sedaris' humor is a good match for the Co-op's mission, particularly for a holiday show.

"The Beehive is all about [the Co-op] getting back to the roots of how we started," Kemp says. Back before the Co-op operated out of the Black Box Theatre, the company of actors found performance space where they could: empty storefronts, fields of grass, the attic of an antique store. The found spaces helped them access a wilder side of theater. "David Sedaris is a little bit edgy, and he gives a different perspective on the Christmas season."

Because Sedaris does see the world so differently, we can either relate to his questioning of the holiday season or laugh at it. It's anybody's guess what made Sedaris' vision so different; he's a gay man who grew up with a lisp, who now lives in Paris with his boyfriend, Hugh. After the events of Sept. 11, 2001, Sedaris wrote a piece for This American Life about what it means to be an American in Paris. It was incredibly thought-provoking, sensitive, and completely hilarious. He just has a way with words and with his delivery. It's up to Pat and Morgan Fitch, two talented and seasoned Co-op actors, to demonstrate Sedarisism to an audience.

The Fitches will conduct readings in three different spaces: the Tomato Head, Yee-Haw Industries on Gay Street, and in the café at Borders. The actors will presumably be reading the works, not exactly acting them out, but Kemp suspects the Fitches may memorize their lines and "surprise us." The Beehive has done shows at the Tomato Head before, using the space between tables, and even a table itself, as the staging area. Some people knew there was a play afoot; some didn't. The performance at Yee-Haw will take place at the ends of the space, and the café inside Borders will host the readers and the audience. People will be invited to ask questions after the performances at Border's.

With lighted Christmas trees already rearing their festive heads all over town, it's not too early to start dreading all the pressure and panic that the holiday season can bring. The great thing about works by David Sedaris is how he bears the weight of the world on his puny shoulders. As he whines in his particular way, we laugh. We understand. We laugh because it's more fun than crying.