When Beyond the Fringe – a British comedic revue written and performed by Dudley Moore, Peter Cook, Jonathan Miller and Alan Bennett – opened in 1961, its bold satirical sketches stunned audiences. Although mostly well-received, one of its skits contained commentary on World War II that infuriated veterans. The playful criticism and utter nonsense that dominated the collection of works would later influence groups like Monty Python – another group of Brit legends more familiar on this side of the pond.
Warehouse Performing Arts Center at Lake Norman honors the early material – plus, extras from 1973’s Good Evening by Cook and Moore – with Good Evening from Beyond the Fringe, a stage production of selected skits from the compositions. Among them are random, preposterous bits about a one-legged man’s audition for the role of Tarzan, the destruction of a hospital wing by a woman’s false teeth and a Bethlehem shepherd’s recollection of his conversation with an angel. Don Cook directs local actors Jim Esposito, Barry Newkirk, Scott Stanton and Dominic Weaver. $16-$21. Dec. 7-8, 8 p.m.; Dec. 9, 4 p.m.; Dec. 13-15, 8 p.m.; Dec. 16, 4 p.m. Warehouse Performing Arts Center, 9216 Westmoreland Road, Suite A. 704-859-5930. www.warehousepac.com.
This article appears in Dec 5-11, 2012.
