About
the Play:
El Grande De Coca-Cola is a full-length comedy
musical by Ron House and Alan Shearman, with Diz
White and John Neville Andrews. A
madcap cabaret-parody set
in a nightclub in the sleazy section of Trujillo, Honduras,
where Pepe Hernandez, who
calls himself Senor Show Business, has persuaded his uncle, the
manager of the local Coca-Cola bottling plant to give him money to
rent the nightclub. A
simple show that is a laugh-a-minute and ridiculously wonderful!
El Grande De Coca-Cola is an extravaganza of timeless
humour, in five languages that you never knew you could speak. The
action takes place in a terrible part of Trujillo,
Honduras, in a
nightclub, which isn't too far from terrible itself. Pepe Hernandez,
the self proclaimed "Senor Show Business," has boasted in
the local press that he is bringing a group of famous international
cabaret stars to town. He has persuaded his uncle, manager of the
local Coca-Cola bottling plant, to advance him enough money to rent
the club for three nights. It is showtime for Pepe's ambitious
extravaganza, "Parada de las Estrellas" (Parade of the
Stars). Your audience sees the cabaret within the cabaret as it
unfolds, as conjuring tricks don't work, people trip up, a blind
American folk singer falls off the stage, chorus girls collide, etc.
El Grande de Coca-Cola is presented mainly in easily
understood Spanish, with some dialogue in French, Italian,
German, as well as English. By using basic vocabulary words that
translate easily, coupled with the cast's fantastic comedic timing
and telltale facial expressions, the language barrier all but
disappears.
El Grande De Coca-Cola premiered in 1973 at the Mercer Arts
Theatre in New York City. It was an instant hit that ran off-Broadway for two and a
half years and went on to launch the careers of both Jeff Goldblum
and Ron Silver. It has been a micro-cult sensation ever since,
proving itself and its comedy to be irrepressible, with productions
cropping up all over America.
Cast: 2 female, 3 male
What people say:
"...a classic of fractured
Spanish and splintered tomfoolery. A knowledge of the language – or
of any language – is not necessary for one to enjoy the show. It is
muy ridiculo y histerico, somewhat in the manner of Monty Python, and
a great deal of the fun is physical comedy." — New
York Times
"Deliriously funny ...
refreshingly lunatic ... high spirited fun in the supreme American
tradition that extends from burlesque to Charlie Chaplin, Ernie
Kovacs, and Second City." — Women's Wear Daily
"A gaudily glistening jewel,
insanely original." — Newsweek
"El Grande de Coca-Cola
... is ridiculously funny. The cast of five rarely speak a word of
English, but have no fear – they quickly prove that humor is a
universal language. There is also something suspiciously Anglicized
about the kind of Spanish Don Pepe and his performing relatives
speak." — Los Angeles Times
"El Grande de Coca-Cola
is an extravaganza of timeless humor, in five languages you never
knew you could speak. And trust me, even though most of this musical
is performed in Spanish (more like Spanglish, really), it won't
matter a bit given the brilliance of each member of the cast to act
out what is being said. You will laugh yourself silly just as I did
through the entire 70 minute show." — Broadway World
About the Playwright:
Ron
House (1939-2016) was an actor, producer, writer and teacher. A
graduate of Second City in his native Chicago, he later founded a
group called Low Moan Spectacular whose members wrote, staged and
starred in plays. A sensation in the London underground Theatre
Company, they eventually relocated to New York. He is a co-author of
El Grande de Coca-Cola, Footlight Frenzy, Bullshot Crummond,
and The Scandalous Adventures of Sir Toby Trollope. All four shows
continue to be performed across the US and around the world.
Alan Shearman is a film and television actor, director and
script writer in Los Angeles. He came to the US over 35 years ago
with Low Moan Spectacular, the British comedy group founded by Ron
House, with whom he created several the Off-Broadway hits. He has
been directing comedies, musicals, musical comedies and
comedies-with-music for over 20 years and along the way has collected
six "Best Director" awards.