In "The Story of Francis and Wild Gil," the amiable, meandering new play at the Gorilla Tango Theatre, Great Depression-era bank robbers serve pancakes, befriend old ladies and build rockets to the moon in the back yard. Though the play, by Kirk Mason and Shane Portman (who also charm the audience as the title characters), has a thin plot at best, the cast of characters they have created make for good company.
The play follow Francis and Wild Gil as they escape from prison, find themselves in a small town, befriend pancake shop owner Mrs. Frisket (Missy Moreno, delightful), and begin to rob banks in the friendliest manner imaginable. They are guileless and childlike, qualities that one would think were unsuited to a pair of bank robbers, but they end up being very successful in their profession. Trouble comes, however, in their friendship with Mr. Taylor (Cory Rieger, channeling Jimmy Stewart) owner of the largest bank in town.
The plot is rather thin, and the script itself doesn't seem terribly interested in it. As a result, the play gets rather slow in the latter half, as the plot keeps wandering just as the dramatic climax should be arriving.
However, this play never intended to be a masterpiece of dramatic writing. The real strength of the play, and its apparent reason for being, are several wonderful, near-silent sequences of physical comedy. The entire cast is marvelously agile, and brilliant at showing character and telling stories with their bodies and faces. During these sequences, I couldn't help grinning at how perfectly it all fit together.
So don't go expecting a serious look at the Great Depression or a well-crafted piece of dramatic writing. If you want some sweet-natured physical comedy performed by a group of skilled clowns, you'll find it a worthwhile summer diversion.
Reviewed by Centerstage!
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