The Daily Campus

Issue date: 4/23/09 Section: Focus

Media Credit: Ed Ryan Students participate om the UCPG Charity Show Wednesday night.

A bustling crowd packed into the Student Union Theater last night for a variety show hosted by UConn Performance Groups. The event featured performances from standup comedians and various improv troupes, as well as a dramatic performance of a scene from "Angels in America." Headlining the event was "Scrubs: The Musical," a musical episode of the television series custom-adapted for the stage by UCPG's own Scott Benito.

Admission to the charity show was donation-based, with 100 percent of proceeds going to benefit the Willimantic Food Bank.

The evening kicked off with a triple-dose of impov comedy, courtesy of Molotov Improv, Agents of Improv and Horse Lincoln. In a whiz-bang display of honed timing and sharp instincts, each group kept the laughter flowing steadily with scenes depicting a flamingo farm, an Englishman sorting out relationship trouble with his lover (who happens to be a grizzly bear), and a man who is given special treatment throughout his life thanks to a novelty "spinner hat."

The tone of the event shifted afterward with a brief scene from Tony Kushner's "Angels in America." Scott Benito and Dina Addorisio took the stage with understated charm as a drag queen and a Valium-popping Mormon, respectively, who each meet the other in what each believes is their own fantasy.

The comedy came back from a breather in the second hour with a string of standup sets from UConn students. Comedians Paul Valentin, Dana Lovallo, Jake Lucas, Drew Bligh, Evan Lawrence, and Scott Colleran riffed on topics ranging from Jelly Belly recipe anxiety, to a conspiracy theory about pirates wanting to revolutionize the Halloween costume industry, to the potentially disastrous consequences of spontaneous parkour urges.

"Scrubs: The Musical," the final act of the night, drew a robust response from the crowd with its bubbly musical numbers and endearing portrayals of the television series' familiar characters. The show was clearly a labor of love, and every cast member's energy was infectious throughout. Songs like the upbeat "Everything Comes Down to Poo" and the campy bromance ballad "Guy Love" were particularly well received.

"I thought they did a good job of keeping what was good about the episode while adapting it successfully for the stage," said Kevin Franzman, a 6th-semester molecular cell biology major. "They all did a great job."

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