THEATER REVIEW: THE MARIJUANALOGUES

The Marijuanalogues is based on stereotypes, and it doesn't take
marijuana prohibition very seriously, but it's still quite funny.

The three guys who created and perform the live stage show clearly
have a fondness for cannabis and the culture that surrounds it. Last
night's audience at the Lakeshore Theater in Chicago apparently shared
that fondness, as well as the show's sense of humor if the amount of
laughter was any guage. Caricatures of marijuana users might be
offensive in other hands, but performers Doug Benson, Arj Barker and
Tony Camin aren't afraid to have fun at their own expense.

"We at The Marijuanalogues pledge that over 80 percent of the proceeds
from this show will go towards marijuana," Barker states with mock
conviction at one point. That line loses some of its punch in print,
but with Barker's manic intensity, it really worked.

The show features the trio simply sitting on stools and delivering
several short monologues about pot and the people who love it. No
props and no formal set, just the three guys. You can learn more about
the show and see a clip from the group's appearance on Bill Maher's
cable talk show at www.potshow.com

All of the performers have a background in stand-up comedy, and they
know how to draw a reaction out of an audience.

The Maher clip includes the first few minutes of the Marijanalogues,
which opens with the actors repeatedly saying the word
"marijuana."

"We say the word because we want to feel comfortable saying it, not
ashamed and guilty," says an earnest-looking Camin. "We worry about
marijuana. We worry about what people think about marijuana and
marijuana users." A simple gesture toward Maher and the audience draws
some chuckles before the set-up for a bigger punch-line.

"We worry about getting caught with marijuana," he adds, "but mostly
we worry about getting more marijuana."

The show continues in that vein: stoned musings punctuated with subtle
twists, as well as absurd extremes. An factual-sounding exposition
about hemp veers into a fantasy about using one's wardrobe for a quick
buzz. When a character learns about the legality of medical marijuana
in some places, he declares that he suddenly isn't feeling that well.
A mention of all the people arrested for marijuana never leads to a
firm number, just silly hyperbole.

For those of us interested in drug policy reform, these are serious
issues. It's difficult not to feel a little ambivalence when you know
that roughly 700,000 Americans have been arrested in each of the last
five years for cannabis offenses. How many people in the audience
would have been surprised by that number, and not just amused by a
character's inability to put his finger one it?

Of course the Marijuanalogues group isn't promoted as education or
advocacy, though there are some pointed criticisms of the federal
government's taxpayer supported propaganda program, and some other
references to the stupidity of prohibition. It's supposed to be
entertainment and it functions admirably as such.

I doubt it's going to help bring about the end of marijuana
prohibition, but it allows the audience and performers to express some
joy together about a subject which the drug warriors insist should be
solely associated with misery. For me, that's enough to make the show
worthwhile.