The Kapinski Private Eye Academy, Coney Island Chris and Angels Noted

I am a proud graduate of The Kapinski Private Eye Academy, Butt Kapinski, Private Eye (Deanna Fleysher) Proprietor.  Walking (and sometimes running) through the streets of Williamsburg, we were led by the inscrutable, toughened-by-a-tough-world Butt Kapinski.  It's a journey into her wacky, noir-inpsired world--this is her beat--and now we're on it with her.  Det. Kapinski asks us to play along and makes it easy to do.  We became students of detection and witnesses to a little drama played for out for our edification and entertainment.  It is a lovely and inventive use of the neighborhood as set piece--including graffiti, local buildings, ambient lighting, and some nice touches left unmentioned so as not to spoil the fun.  I was wondering what the "partial nudity" listed in the program would be.  I think it made a shadowy appearance along with sex, drugs and alcohol.  The longer we were together, the more I got into the spirit of the piece and enjoyed being out on the open streets, where we were observed by passersby.  (Typical worldly New Yorkers, especially in Williamsburg, who barely blink an eye at an unexplained gathering with a clown at its center.)  A strong character carries this site-specific clowning, aided by strolling musicians and a small supporting cast.

Coney Island Chris (Chris Allison) is a doofus character with sideshow skills not for the faint of heart.  One classic illusion after another elicits both "Don't do it" and "Do it!" shouts from the audience.  Coney Island Chris masterfully creates anxiety in us and then gives us an outlet to blow off the buildup of steam by exposing the illusions.  However, I am mystified by his glass eating.  He does it convincingly and with a hearty crunch.  His clown keeps us laughing all the way through to the big finale.  I was impressed by the emphasis on the importance of proper hygiene in sideshow work that is achieved without the use of hand sanitizer.

I regret that I didn't get to see the full show of Send in the Angels (Denni Dennis and Clare Parry-Jones, but I got the preview before the The Wow Show.  Because it was opening for a children's show, I was told that they toned down the material in this brief appearance.  I can only guess where they may have gone with it in the full program.  The clowns brought pillows to make audience members more comfortable--as we would expect of angels.  These angels are clearly not always angelic and the inevitable pillow fight was also expectation fulfilled.