Stage West Calgary

“Don’t Hug Me” – A Review

The Thursday Morning “Somebody-Asked-Me-To, So-Here-I-Go” Review – Stage West Calgary’s production of “Don’t Hug Me”.

(soon to be a real and proper, even more comprehensive review in The Calgary Herald– link to follow!!)

I’ll be upfront and honest here – I had never heard of this production, prior to seeing the show last night. Imagine my surprise to discover that this charming little character comedy is part of a burgeoning franchise, with follow-ups such as “A Don't Hug Me Christmas Carol”, “A Don’t Hug Me County Fair”, and (coming soon) “Don’t Hug Me, I’m Pregnant”. I’m guessing “Don’t Hug Me, I’ve Got Gas” was soundly rejected during meetings with potential financers.

For U.S. productions, this Minnesota-set romp’s tag line is “It's Fargo meets The Music Man". In Canada, they’ve opted to go with connecting to our own quirky TV hit, “Corner Gas”. Either way, you get the general idea – quirky characters trying to survive quirky rural life, to much comedic effect. Sure, there’s a lot of broad stereotype throughout, but all-in-all, the laughs far outweigh the pigeonholing of rural residents, and once again, a strong, talented cast carries the day.

Essentially, the four acts unfold in a Minnesota bar – where it is cold, coupled with briskly cold, and heaped over with mind-numbing cold. Frankly this could have been set in my home town of Winnipeg. Or Calgary in the first three weeks of June apparently…

The incessant cold eventually pits bar co-owner Gunner Johnson (Kieran Martin Murphy) against his wife Clara (Katherine Fadum) – Gunner pines for the soothing tropical breezes of Florida, Clara likes her frostbitten corner of the world just fine as it is.

Their waitress Bernice Lundstrom (Natascha Girgis), seems to be trapped in a parallel universe to Gunner’s – she wants to pursue a singing career, her
fiance Kanute Gunderson (Sheldon Bergstrom) would prefer to stay in Bunyan Bay and build on his growing empire of property holdings.

Enter Aarvid Gisselsen (David Leyshon), a travelling “Lifestyle Systems” salesman, who substitutes Karaoke for trombones to make the Music Man analogy work – and you’ve got all the elements you need for comical musical theatre.

Each and every performer is strong during their individual showcases. Rich vocals and great stage presence all around. Hard to pick a single stand-out, but after seeing him in three different musical productions now, I have to just say I surely hope Mr. Bergstrom is hunkering down in a recording studio on his days off. 

You will laugh – of that there is no doubt. “Don’t Hug Me” is great fun.

And, I am going to be sitting down with director Bob Walton, an accomplished actor and playwright as well, in mere hours. That will be available as a free download soon thereafter, and I’ll link to The Herald review when that’s online.

That's all folks!

Chow for now!!