The SF Mime Troupe Problem

The problem with the San Francisco Mime Troupe is that they put on awful productions of awful plays in a style that we might call, passably professional. Professional, because everyone involved in the production knows what to do. Lines are memorized, cues are hit, the musicians play the right notes, the whole enterprise moves along with the precision of a Swiss watch, and yet every year, every summer, it’s a disaster in the park. A disaster of art, thought, time, civic engagement, progressive politics, an indictment of the spirit of the Bay Area that this is what passes for politically engaged, left-wing theater.

Their latest outing is Seeing Red, a time travel comedy bereft of energy and ideas. I suppose there are bits of labor history that some of their audience is unaware of, but that’s what Wikipedia is for. These free shows in the park seem more and more costly every year. We should demand more of fifty-year institutions or shut them down for the good of the Republic.

‘Seeing Red’ runs until September 9 in various Bay Area Parks. For times and dates click here.