FRIENDS!  The Musical Parody by Carol Kaufman Sega

            

Friends is a television sitcom that ran on NBC from September 22, 1994, to May 6, 2004.  The cast included Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox Lisa Kudrow, Matt Leblanc, Matthew Perry and David Schwimmer.  The show is about six close friends in their 20’s and 30’s who live in Manhattan.  I t became one of the most popular TV shows of all time, and reruns are still playing on KCAL nightly following the late news. 

           

I must admit that I never watched Friends during its heydays, but if you did and you were a fan, you undoubtedly, will get enjoyment and laughs from this takeoff of the sitcom. It is making its Los Angles premier at the Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City by the North American Tour.  All six people from the sitcom are represented as characters in this spoof written by Bob and Tobly McSmith, with music and orchestration by Assaf Gleizner, lyrics by the McSmiths.

            

The play opens with a parody of the very first episode of Friends when a runaway bride storms in on the group at a coffee shop in New York. The characters are all there; Rachel Green (Sami Griffith), Ross Geller (Tyler Fromson), Monica Geller (Maggie McMeans), Chandler Bing (Aaron C. Rutherford),  Phoebe Buffay (Madison Fuller), Joey Tribbiani (Dominic Servidio), Swing (Jenna Cormey), Swing (Nick Palazzo).

            

There are many songs in the skits that augment the humor of the show.  They include 495 Grove Street – How Can We Afford This Place?, How You Doin?, We Were on a Break!, Oh. My. God. It’s Janice!  Will They or Wont They, The Ballad of Fat Monica, The Chick and The Duck Song, I am Marcel, the Monkey. Could I be Anymore…in Love with You, The One Where We Make A Million Dollars an ‘Episode, and We’ll Always Be There For You.

           

Laughter abounded during the performance.  But since I was not familiar with Friends perse, I was not as appreciative of the production as the audience was.  If you were, or still are a fan of Friends, I recommend this spoof for your enjoyment by a talented  company.    

            

Friends!  The Musical Parody is playing Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 8 PM, Saturdays at 2 PM and 8 PM, and Sundays at 2 PM and 6:30 PM, through August 4, at the Kirk Douglas Theatre, 9820 Washington Blvd., Culver City.  Tickets are available online at www.KirkDouglasTheatre.org, or by phone at (213) 628-2772.  Group sales are available online at Groups1@CTGLA.org, or (213) 972-7231,