You can be as loud as the hell you want when you’re making love – this may not be typical advice, but it was one pearl of wisdom dispensed as a song by puppet musical, Avenue Q.
Besides this number, the Sesame Street-esque, colourful mayhem of puppetry had the audience in stitches and tapping their toes to other catchy tunes.
 But beneath all that fluff and frivolity lay a goldmine of controversial issues, waiting to be pulled out and unabashedly sung about for all to hear.
The use of puppets to sing about such topics, which ranged from sex to racism to self-awakening, had the danger of backfiring into a one-dimensional, cringe-worthy joke.
Yet, what transformed this musical from farce to first-class was a potent mix of brilliant direction, dynamic energy, and most of all, heartfelt delivery.
The plot revolves around Princeton, a fresh graduate, and his friends who live on Avenue Q.
All of them have their own ambitions in life. Kindergarten teacher, Kate Monster, wants to build a school for little monsters, Social recluse, Trekkie Monster, wants to watch as much pornography as possible, and Rod the Republican, an investment banker, wants true love, but not the kind you would imagine in clichéd movies.
This overthrowing of clichés, coupled with the unorthodox manner in which topics were broached, were a breath of fresh air.
A personal favourite for this reporter were the supporting roles of the Bad Idea Bears.
The two cuddly bears, which looked like a cheapskate version of The Carebears, proved to be the antithesis of the typical voice of reason in a story.
Instead of telling the characters the appropriate things to do, the advice they give usually border on anarchy and favour chaotic outcomes.
The puppeteers, technically flawless in their delivery of each song and control of the nuanced movements of the puppets, showed intense dedication to their craft.
Emotionally, they resonated with sincerity and were heartfelt, whether they were playing a distraught Rod (which actor Felix Rivera hammed up for some great laughs) or a despondent Kate, where actress Carla Guevara-Laforteza shone.
However, the musical could have done with better pacing in the first act.
Certain scenes in the beginning before “The Internet is for Porn” were a drag (even though this song has been making the rounds online for quite a while) as it did not elicit as many laughs as the later part of the musical.
Additionally, enunciation was also problematic at certain junctures for the Japanese therapist character, who went by the name of Christmas Eve. The audience probably could not make out the punch lines, and this might have been where several potentially good lines were lost on the audience.
But what is not lost on the audience is that having a go at taboo topics is permissible, so long as they can be sang about tastefully.
There will be a 25% student discount for all Avenue Q shows till the end of run on Nov. 16. |
