BUBKUS

BUBKUS
This is a solo show by Jesse Buck .. and the guy’s a dynamo. He is a fount of energy and physical dexterity .. as well as eternally upbeat. With little more than a blanket and a toothbrush he created an entire universe on an empty stage. This was an exercise in unrelenting invention and discovery, and we were won over by the obvious delight in his creations.

But to what end? The main problem was that BUBKUS never left the realm of ‘exercise’.
One invention after another added up to a sum of parts that didn’t seem to signify much more than a sum of parts. And the universe he created so utterly enthralled him that I was left wondering what we were doing there.

This obviously talented actor should follow the laughs. We were a small audience, which is always difficult, but we were eager. We wanted to laugh. We laughed hardest .. and maybe even only .. when something real happened onstage. .. namely, when his main prop, a large piece of cloth got stuck by accident on a nail in the wall., and when he turned the air conditioner on because he was obviously expiring from the heat. Because he so enjoys playing with the audience, his response to our reactions was spot-on and fearless, - and we loved it. That seemed to be when he was at his best, - when he was playing with us. Why then did he spend so much time distancing himself?
Why did he absorb himself to our exclusion in the telling of some elaborate, repetitive story which was, finally, incomprehensible?

There was so much energy and skill here. So much talent and determination. This man with a baby … what a provocative beginning. Jesse worked at great expense of body and spirit .. and for that we deeply respected him. But we were left unmoved … either to laughter or to revelation.