Jerry Springer: The Opera
Aug. 21st, 2008 12:52 pmJerry Springer: The Opera is freaking hilarious. The first half is a little slow, as it depicts a typical Springer show. It's an exaggerated parody, with singing, but it seems to me, just verisimilitudinous. But the second, ah, the descent into hell! That went really, really, really well.
It was funny, and not too nasty. And oddly enough, though I can't say how: I like J. Springer more now. He was portrayed really nicely too.
You don't need to have seed the show. It'll make sense if you haven't at all, thirty seconds once and I knew it all[1]. Now all I need is a rhyme for "micely"[2].
Footnotes
[1] The show also warns you need a working background knowledge of Judeo-Christian mythos to get the religious references. Living in a Judeo-Christian culture or country is plenty, but that's a bit misleading; it really won't make much sense to you unless you know who Jesus is[3].
And for that matter, I'm not sure how much of the modern concept of Satan as a punisher and God's current rival on earth is rooted in the commandments in the old testament. But that's just a theoretical exception: I don't imagine I know any culturally Judeo-Christian people who haven't studied the gospels more than I have :)
[2] Do you see what I did there? :) I wasn't going to even attempt to rhyme (let alone scan) a review, but the second sentence just got written so, I felt I had to try, even if it meant rhyming "too" and "[2]"... The footnotes don't necessarily rhyme, though I keep breaking my brain trying to read them in rhythm, after trying to read the post so.
[3] The religious characters are also played with character. (All of the characters are not traditionally beautiful, but very wonderfully expressive.) In fact, I'm sure some of the pre-existing conceptions (eg. Satan as rival to God's will) are more blasphemous than the ones the opera comes up with (eg. Jesus displaying anger). (Although I won't go so far as to try and claim it could never be offensive to people who like God (or Jerry Springer).)
It was funny, and not too nasty. And oddly enough, though I can't say how: I like J. Springer more now. He was portrayed really nicely too.
You don't need to have seed the show. It'll make sense if you haven't at all, thirty seconds once and I knew it all[1]. Now all I need is a rhyme for "micely"[2].
Footnotes
[1] The show also warns you need a working background knowledge of Judeo-Christian mythos to get the religious references. Living in a Judeo-Christian culture or country is plenty, but that's a bit misleading; it really won't make much sense to you unless you know who Jesus is[3].
And for that matter, I'm not sure how much of the modern concept of Satan as a punisher and God's current rival on earth is rooted in the commandments in the old testament. But that's just a theoretical exception: I don't imagine I know any culturally Judeo-Christian people who haven't studied the gospels more than I have :)
[2] Do you see what I did there? :) I wasn't going to even attempt to rhyme (let alone scan) a review, but the second sentence just got written so, I felt I had to try, even if it meant rhyming "too" and "[2]"... The footnotes don't necessarily rhyme, though I keep breaking my brain trying to read them in rhythm, after trying to read the post so.
[3] The religious characters are also played with character. (All of the characters are not traditionally beautiful, but very wonderfully expressive.) In fact, I'm sure some of the pre-existing conceptions (eg. Satan as rival to God's will) are more blasphemous than the ones the opera comes up with (eg. Jesus displaying anger). (Although I won't go so far as to try and claim it could never be offensive to people who like God (or Jerry Springer).)