The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street

Go into The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street at the Kraine Theatre expecting a hard boiled detective story full of tersely delivered dialogue, dames and dicks and that’s what you’ll get, in a manner of speaking. It’s your typical setup: two hard talking detectives (Sergio Lodolce and Adam Brome) are behind a desk in some seedy joint down town when a hapless dame (Maggie McGuire) walks in. She’s leggy, lovely and looking for her brother; a few tears, a little exposition, some wisecracks and the dicks are soon hoofing it all over town on a random chase that leads them down the path of innuendo, wisecracks, double entendres and mistaken meaning, all culminating with a big shootout in a warehouse.  Sounds like all the elements are there for the perfect noir send-up, yes?  Well, yes.  And . . . no.

Usually stories like this make me happy; when done well they crackle and snap with witty  dialogue, tough action and good ole fashioned chauvinism.  If, like me, you enjoy the genre then you’ll either be happy with the effort put forth by the team behind The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street (helmed by writer/director Sergio Solorzano), or  you’ll walk away with the strange feeling that somehow, in the end, this is one Mystery that never got solved.

Like the title, there was just too much crammed into this short hour, and some things were just out of place.  Maggie McGuire is a fine enough actress but she’s miscasts as the stereotypical “dame “- from the looks of it she was chosen solely for her ability to fill out the requisite red dress which happened to be on hand (it too is miscast, looking more like a cocktail dress than a dress representative of the genre).  She’s earnest in her delivery but at no point does she ever really sell the part convincingly.

Lines of dialogue are either intentionally absurdist (which, for their sake, I’m hoping) or the product of sloppy research – regardless I couldn’t tell which.  Incorrect time periods are thrown together, ala carte style, in service of a wisecrack or running gag.   The sexually confused sub-plot is a one note joke that gets tired after numerous references, and the actual plot was too convoluted to actually follow, for those wishing to do just that.

One standout was the fight choreography which was tremendously executed.  My recommendation would be to trim this show by half and submitted to Fight Fest later this year where it will fare far better.

While I do admit to reacting with a few chuckles those just didn’t seem worth it in the end; this was neither a side-splitting comedy that earned the right to strip the noir genre, nor a solid noir story that benefited from a few laughs.  Like the running gag, this show suffered from a case of mistaken identity.

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FRIGID New York Festival 2011 will run February 23-March 6 at The Kraine Theater & The Red Room (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1sr Ave and Ave A). Tickets ($10-$16) may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444. All shows will run 60 minutes long or less.

Related Posts:

• FRIGID New York Festival 2011 – Five Questions For: The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street
• Women’s History Month: Celebrating Women In The Arts – Spotlight On Heidi Grumelot
• Yippie! – Revolution On Demand (FRIGID New York 2011)
• FRIGID Hangovers – I’ll Have Another Round! (FRIGID New York 2011)
• Scarlet Woman, Noirtastic Femmes (FRIGID New York 2011)

Welcome back to another installment of FRIGID New York Festival 2011 Q&A!  We’ll be running these throughout February until the Festival starts, so be sure to check back to read all about the great shows that will be taking part in the festival.  Also – don’t miss the winner-take-all game of Rock Paper Scissors! Today’s Q&A is with Sergio Solorzano who is the Writer/Director of The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street.

A beautiful lady in a red dress hires two clueless private eyes to investigate a matter of intrigue, foul play, and homoerotic undertones. Dangerous mystery, mysterious danger, and one big Lonely Sausage.

The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street

answers by Sergio Solorzano – Writer/Director

Antonio Asks: What makes FRIGID such a warm and welcoming experience for your production?

FRIGID is a very helpful festival during all stages of production. Where other festivals give you a space and some generic flyers, FRIGID will help you individually market your show and fulfill your technical needs.

Diánna Asks: What about this play do you feel most drawn to personally, and because of that, what message do you hope the audience walks away with?

I feel most drawn to the choice of themes the play offers. There are seven very different characters coming from very different backgrounds, and their goals are, you guessed it, very different.

The message the audience walks away with will vary from person to person, because people with identify with different characters. Watching it all play out from each character’s point of view is something that I have a lot of fun with.

Karen Asks: That’s some title.  How did you come up with it – and what does it mean?

Mystery Street is a location in the show, and there is a mystery that needs solving. After that I figured I’d throw another mystery in there, just to make sure people got the point.

Stephen Asks: You must have a favorite part of your show.  What makes it your favorite?

My favorite scene has to be the climactic scene 8, which we’ve taken to calling the “Gun Scene”. As the name implies, there are a lot of guns drawn, motivations are revealed, and shit basically hits the fan.
We take the energy and ridiculousness up to the max, and then take it further. I can’t say too much, but just know that someone will die. Or not.

Lina Asks: How much of your show was inspired by true events?

The show is in no way inspired by true events. This is a completely original and exaggerated story, and you’ll love every extreme minute of it.

THM Bonus Question: If you could play a virtual game of Rock, Paper, Scissors with another FRIGID Show which show would you take on?  And what would you throw?

Virtual Rock Paper Scissors- I’d take on the other Noir show, Scarlet Women, and throw out scissors.

Thanks The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street – for participating in The Happiest Medium’s FRIGID New York Festival 2011 Q&A.  And for playing our game!  You’re officially SCISSORS.  So you may win TWICE.  Or, not at all.  This is how it works in the crazy world of the VIRTUAL ROCK PAPER SCISSORS TOURNAMENT!

Meanwhile, for the rest of you – don’t forget to check out The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street!

FRIGID New York Festival 2011 will run February 23-March 6 at The Kraine Theater & The Red Room (85 East 4th Street between 2nd Ave and Bowery) and UNDER St. Marks (94 St. Marks Place between 1sr Ave and Ave A). Tickets ($10-$16) may be purchased online at www.FRIGIDnewyork.info or by calling Smarttix at 212-868-4444. All shows will run 60 minutes long or less.

Related Posts:

• The Mysterious Mystery of Mystery Street – A Little Too Much Mystery (FRIGID New York 2011)
• Women’s History Month: Celebrating Women In The Arts – Spotlight On Heidi Grumelot
• Yippie! – Revolution On Demand (FRIGID New York 2011)
• FRIGID Hangovers – I’ll Have Another Round! (FRIGID New York 2011)
• Scarlet Woman, Noirtastic Femmes (FRIGID New York 2011)