A foul mouthed SNL skit with political commentary? An indictment of porn? A sci-fi apocalypse spoof? An exploitation of conservative media for our entertainment pleasure? A lampoon of the internet? A mockery of evangelicals on television? An explanation for the appeal of screaming goats? Eat The Devil is improbably and hilariously all of those and much more.
A terrifying virus is infecting post-fact America. In an airplane two flight attendants deliver their instructions. In the event of an emergency, “flotation tubes will shoot out of the plane’s asshole.” Meanwhile on the ground, Mia has been invented and her programming is being finalized. She is a sex robot whose early phrases include “why don’t you show me what you got in there big boy?”
Scott Fetterman’s high quality video design is already in progress when you take your seat. Freezing goats. Animal cosplay. A talk show with the caption “Will You Be Replaced by Samantha the Sex Robot?” Eat The Devil has been written by Nadja Leonhard-Hooper and Dan Nuxoll perhaps in response to a disturbing internet binge. The comedy they have created is crude and rude for sure. It is also sharply satirical and filled with a barrage of extraordinarily clever one liners skewering today’s America.
Kelindah Schuster is unforgettable as Mia, the sex toy designed as an idealized woman. The performance is physically superb. An intelligent robot, she has been designed to have many different modes. One unforgettable (and dare I say classic) monologue Schuster is given to perform is bitingly cynical and beyond hysterical. The entire cast is remarkably fine given the loony antics in this script. They fully commit to these ridiculous characters with realistically drawn cartoons.
Why the videos about goats and people dressed as animals at the start of this show? Well, fursecution is a major plot point. Info Wars’ Alex Jones and Fox News’ Tomi Lahren are in a major tizzy. America is under attack. “I hear the globalists coming!” They don’t see that cosplay is just some “gender confused teen in a Bulbasaur costume.” They see “democracy dying in darkness.” Thank goodness the television evangelicals are praying for a return to sanity while collecting donations and selling queso.
Director Nick Flint and his entire creative team have impressively staged this chaotic madness. This production is from One Year Lease Theater (OYL). I saw their excellent pool (no water) many years ago. In that piece and this one, movement is critical to the storytelling. Like many great comedies that swing toward the fence, not every moment is a home run. There are foul balls and perhaps a few extra innings. Like all shows presented at the Tank, this show is a limited run through March 9th. Without hesitation I will return and see the next iteration of this inspired jolt of insanity. “Wake up sheeple. We’re talkin’ bout end times.”