The concept was born with a question, it seems, one weâve all pondered: What if fate had been perverse enough to give Capitol Hill its very own high school? Or deeper still⌠What if Capitol Hill were high school? What kind of mad drama would breed between its walls? The hipsters, the fags, the poseurs, the slutty wannabes and the Broadway crack heads all made small again and gathered in some hypothetical study hall, bound together by adolescence and algebra and forced to plod slowly toward (hopefully) graduation? Dan Dembiczak of Bad Actor Productions (the same jaded fairy who brought the world Pine Nuts and In Between Bliss and other emo-homo trash) took this question, chewed it in his sarcastic jaws, and spit the answer all over the stage as Capitol Hill High, Episode 1: The Queen Isnât Dead Yet. The final product looks a lot like The OC all hopped up on fag juiceâa big gay 90210 where the boys can be the biggest bitches.
In this episode (theyâre planning a few follow-ups with hopes for a franchise), we meet the requisite students and faculty, identify the cliques, and indulge their pathos as they careen through that continual car crash called high school, with an affected Capitol High twist. Snarky one-liners ensue.
Some sparkly spangles shine on this productionâs rhinestone belt: Jason Sharp played a straight guy with such skill that I didnât recognize him for the first 15 minutes. Darling Craig Trolli was born to play Guy, âThe Really Gay Guy,â whose run for prom queen ends in bloodshed. Bad Actor Productions has hit a good stride: Its last two satires, The Exorcist, the Musical and Desperate Liaisons were consistently smart and funnyâCapitol Hill High is a clever addition to these sardonic theatrical confections.
