by Joel Elkins~

Milk, milk, lemonade
‘Round the corner, fudge is made
Stick your finger up the hole…
Out comes a chocolate Tootsie roll.

– classic children’s rhyme

MilkMilkLemonade, now playing at the Rogue Machine, is about as grounded and focused as the nonsensical children’s rhyme upon which it is inexplicably titled.

Introduced by an awkward and nervous narrator, and interspersed with occasional song and dance numbers, MilkMilk tells the story of (and perhaps by) Emory, a fifth-grader living on a chicken farm outside Mall Town, USA, with his loose-talking, chain-smoking, cancer-ridden grandmother and his best friends: a doll and a chicken. He prefers dancing rather than playing baseball and dreams of performing in a regional talent show. Inevitably, everyone, including Elliot, the bully from down the street, call him derogatory nicknames, but he doesn’t seem to have a problem with that. He even goes along with Elliot’s strange but oddly realistic version of playing house.

But when Linda, the chicken, is slated for slaughter, Emory does all he can to save her, and, in doing so, grows a little wiser but bitterer about the real world.

Given the fantastical situations, the over-the-top characters and the clumsy dance numbers, in conjunction with David Mauer’s intentionally amateurish sets, designed to resemble a child’s handiwork, the apparent message is that the entire play is a production in the mind of a frustrated and lonely 11-year old.

It is a bit jarring to see such serious themes – homosexuality, molestation, aging, dying, animal cruelty – presented so flippantly. And the satirical direction of Matthew Elkins (no relation to this writer) only exacerbates Joshua Conkel’s absurdist story line.

Within this framework, the actors do a fine job. Andy Hirsch successfully takes on the mannerisms and mindset of a naive preteen. And Justin Okin plays Elliot as stereotypical bully, struggling with his inner demons. Hollace Starr’s portrayal of Nanna, through enjoyable, in particular sacrificed nuance for comedy, reminding this writer of a Carol Burnett skit. Tracie Lockwood shows excellent range in multiple roles, from the chicken-to-English interpreter to a wonderfully hep spider. Surprisingly, the most engaging performance may have been Sharron Shayne as Linda the chicken. Although she only speaks English in one very uncomfortable scene, her clucks teem with emotion.

The play is nothing if not edgy, perfect for the off-off-Broadway world where it won Best Show of 2009. But I found it to be not quite deep enough to be good drama and not nearly funny enough to be good comedy. While there are some plays that are able to play the comedy off the drama, successfully straddling the line between them and succeeding on both fronts, MilkMilkLemonade seems to use each as a refuge against the other, seeking sanctuary when the going gets too tough. And like milk and lemonade, that’s not a good mix.

MilkMilkLemonade plays Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through October 10, 2009 (no shows the first week of September and Sunday, September 19). There are two Thursday shows August 19 and 26. Check theatre’s calendar for showtimes.

Theatre Theater is located at 5041 W. Pico Blvd. (two blocks west of La Brea).

Ticket prices: $25.00 (Students: $20.00)

Reservations online at www.roguemachinetheatre.com or by phone at (323) 930-0747