Chez PLJ

Yesterday we saw Avenue Q, a musical playing until the end of August at the Elgin Theatre. This is a show that we’ve waited over four years to see, ever since its Broadway incarnation won a Tony for Best Musical, and we bought the Original Cast Album CD. The version we saw was a touring show, but like the Sweeney Todd we saw last year, the cast was superlative and in no way second-rate (unlike some touring Evitas I’ve seen).

If Avenue Q could be summed up in one concept it would be “Sesame Street for grownups”. Many of the characters are played by Muppet-like puppets, with their human voices/manipulators (often more than one) plainly in view. Other characters are purely human actors, while the puppets are subdivided further into human- and monster-types. These differences make it logical for the ensemble to break into song about how “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist”.

Ah, the songs! They are bouncy, hummable, infuriatingly catchy ditties, with tunes eminently suitable for preschoolers and adults alike. However, the subject matters are maybe not something you’d want to let your toddler hear: Titles such as “It Sucks to be Me”, “What Do You Do with a B.A. in English?”, “Schadenfreude”, and most hilariously, “The Internet Is For Porn” give a reasonable idea of the topics covered in the show. Prudes also may not want to watch the puppet sex scenes, or hear the infrequent F-bombs, but no one over the age of 13 or so is likely to get too offended.

The story revolves around Princeton, a young college graduate trying to make his way in the world. His neighbours on Avenue Q (he wanted to live on Avenue A, but Q was the highest-lettered street he could afford) include unemployed Brian, who dreams of being a comedian; Brian’s fiancée Christmas Eve, a Japanese therapist who can’t find clients (maybe because of language difficulties, or perhaps her abrasive personality); Nick and Rod, an Ernie and Bert-ish set of roommates with gay undertones; Trekkie Monster, a Cookie Monster clone with a seamier addiction than cookies; and sweet kindergarten teaching assistant Kate, who Princeton falls in love with. Not to mention building superintendent Gary Coleman (played by a woman).

Princeton and his friends struggle to find dates, jobs, and most importantly, their purpose in life, navigating past bad choices (personified by the cuddly Bad Idea Bears) and one-night stands, and finding out that starry-eyed idealism often must be tempered to cope with adult life. This makes Avenue Q sound depressing, but the infectious music and bright-eyed cast make the show anything but.