Riverwalk’s ‘Lustful Youth’ fine-tunes the art of sexy slapstick

After kicking off its 36th season with “Angels in America,” Riverwalk Theatre took things in a lighter direction, following up with the comedies “Pickleball and “Urinetown.” It continues its humorous streak with its January production, “Lustful Youth,” a farce written by unpublished Wisconsin playwright Mike Eserkaln.

Eserkaln’s plays are free to read and produce, with the stipulation that he be credited for the work. His website, eserkaln.com, says he’s open to communication with groups that want to produce his plays. First-time Riverwalk director Kait Wilson’s collaborative relationship with the playwright goes back to 2010.

“I met Mike when I joined his improv club, ComedyCity, in De Pere, Wisconsin. We worked together on sketch comedy vignettes and original plays and musicals,” Wilson said. “I saw a production of ‘Lustful Youth’ a year or two ago that Mike directed with a community theater group in Wisconsin, and he suggested I bring the production to Lansing.”

Wilson said she and Eserkaln have been in contact throughout the process of staging the show at Riverwalk.

“He’s been great for bouncing ideas off of and getting some good insight on the play and directing,” she said. “He told me getting the right cast is the hardest part of directing, and I managed to get an amazingly talented cast that brings their characters to life in the most hilarious ways.”

It seems the admiration between the cast and director is mutual. Quinn Kelly, who plays Carl and Jake II, said, “There is absolutely a feeling of unlimited creativity. Looking into this show, I noticed it hasn’t been done that many times, so it feels very much like I’m building this character from my brain, Kait’s brain and the script.”

Wilson noted that the script has undergone some changes to make it more familiar to local audiences.

“Eserkaln has been very easy to work with and has been great with any adjustments we’ve had to make,” she said. “For example, the show makes fun of corporate sponsors when the protagonist, Walt, needs to write sponsors into his script. Eserkaln gave permission to change the names of some of the sponsors to local sponsors, and we were able to name-drop Quality Dairy and Red Cedar Spirits.”

The show, a fast-paced farce written for six actors, is a “meta-comedy.” When Walt, a television statistician, is forced to write an evening soap opera, he calls upon his imaginary friend to help him piece something together. Walt ends up writing himself into the script as he travels in and out his “out-of-control romp” known as “Lustful Youth.” 

Popularized in 15th-century France, the term “farce,” from the French word for “stuffing,” was used to describe impromptu bits of buffoonery that actors inserted into the texts of religious plays — comic relief if you will. By the 16th century, independent farces became popular around Europe, with the works of Moliѐre and Shakespeare as notable examples. The Three Stooges are an example of modern farce. Comedic farces are known for their improbable plots, bawdy humor, stock characters and extravagant wordplay. Essential to the success of a farce is impeccable timing and the use of physical elements such as door slamming and slapstick violence.

“I’m calling this show a ‘sexy farce’ since most of the physical elements are romantic in nature,” Wilson said. “We brought in Shannon Bowen as intimacy scene support to make sure the actors felt comfortable with kissing and physical intimacy. We also brought in Connor Kelly as a fight coordinator.

“The script has lots of slapping written in it, but Connor added other moments of staged violence to really amp up the slapstick. This farce has lots of door slamming as well, and the actors had to get comfortable with the physicality of the doors as part of their blocking,” she continued. “During one rehearsal, we ended up breaking one of the doors, so we’ve made sure the set is durable and reinforced!”

She noted that with farce, the stakes, “no matter how ridiculous,” are higher.

“In farce, the actions and reactions need to be amped up in order to give the proper level of absurdity,” she said. “Nothing is casual; everything needs to be energetic and lively. Physical moments are treated like dance choreography to make sure the timing is right and the energy is big.”

Lewis Elson, who plays Tony and Jake I, said that in order to keep the timing and energy right, “tonal modulation is crucial.”

“It’s easy to get carried away in a comedic role, but maintaining a dynamic range keeps the audience engaged,” he said. “Given our multi-character roles, versatility in voice, posture and personality is essential to create a lively and energetic performance.” 

The cast has it all down pat, according to TJ Kelly, who plays Walt.

“I’m very lucky to be sharing the stage with such extremely talented actors who are willing to work to find the funniest moments,” he said. “Springboarding off each other has been delightful, and the energy at rehearsals is so uplifting.”