FringeNYC: RUBBLE – Location, Tickets, Reviews
Alvin Gordon, played by comedian Bruce Vilanch, is a bitter out-of-work comedy writer in his 50s. In RUBBLE, Alvin is asked to write a pilot for a sitcom (which he hates) at a large network (which he also hates). At a meeting to discuss the offer an earthquake strikes and Alvin is stuck under a pile of debris. Waiting to be rescued, Alvin reflects on his life and hallucinates a parade of visitors, including his real father, a separate fake father, his ex-wife, religious luminaries, and more.
RUBBLE is a sharp comedy about show-business written by Mike Reiss, a former writer for the TV show The Simpsons. The show is jam-packed with jokes, and while not all of them work, the show overall is genuinely funny. Veteran actor Jerry Adler is particularly hilarious as Alvin’s agent. Despite mixed reviews, the entire run at FringeNYC quickly sold out, and we wouldn’t be surprised by a speedy remounting.
LOCATION
The Players Theater
115 MacDougal Street
[google-map-v3 width=”250″ height=”250″ zoom=”12″ maptype=”roadmap” mapalign=”left” directionhint=”false” language=”default” poweredby=”false” maptypecontrol=”true” pancontrol=”true” zoomcontrol=”true” scalecontrol=”true” streetviewcontrol=”true” scrollwheelcontrol=”false” draggable=”true” tiltfourtyfive=”false” addmarkermashupbubble=”false” addmarkermashupbubble=”false” addmarkerlist=”115 MacDougal Street, New York, NY{}1-default.png{}The Players Theater” bubbleautopan=”true” showbike=”false” showtraffic=”false” showpanoramio=”false”]
RUNNING TIME
1 hour 30 minutes, no intermission
TICKETS
$15 in advance, $18 at the door
DATES
Closed
REVIEWS
New York Times
Some of these one-liners are quite funny; many, many others could stand to meet the cutting-room floor.
NYTheatre
Plot in RUBBLE is slight. It’s there to serve the humor. Running gags dot the roughly hour and a half performance. Still, an hour and a half of laughter feels good, and is worth the price of admission.
Theatermania
Rubble is not as funny as even one of Reiss’ classic episodes of The Simpsons and it takes a lot more time and effort to watch.
Time Out
Ultimately, trapped though its hero may be, Rubble is a testament to the ongoing appeal of old-fashioned comedic escapism
CAST & CREW
(partial list)
Written by Mike Reiss
Directed by James Valletti
Featuring Bruce Vilanch, Jerry Adler, Jason Jacoby, Bryan McElroy, Amy Wilson, Jeffrey Arnold Wolf