Dillon Yuhasz debuts his new theatre company, Not Half Bad Theatre, with a very funny, very cool grassroots effort that offers the kind of off-beat, half-improv comedy that Santa Barbara doesn’t feature nearly enough. The production, called The Story of War, is written and performed by Yuhasz. Billed by the company as “a strange journey through time as both man and animatronic,” the concept is designed in homage to the legendary animatronic attractions at the Disney theme parks.
The show is a physical comedy wrapped around an absurdist take on an already idiosyncratic concept. Guiding the audience through this historical presentation on the art and evolution of warfare is Wathel Rogers, a true-to-history animatronic creator and programmer for the Disney company, and a (probably not-true-to-history) tootsie-roll-obsessed weirdo. Yuhasz also plays animatronic soldiers throughout the centuries, starting at the dawn of man. Meanwhile, there’s a saboteur in the mix, a thinly veiled audience murder plot, and a bushel of iconic stupid facial hair. There’s a lot going on, but it feels purposefully constructed rather than disorderly and random.
The true magic of the production is Yuhasz’s skill with improv and crowd-work. Including the unsuspecting audience is always a gamble of spontaneity, but Yuhasz nimbly walks the line of the fourth wall, simultaneously managing interactions with the skill of the actor and maintaining the tone and integrity of the story.
With help from the company (Brittany Regan and Rebekah Hofberg, who serve as the “invisible” run crew and wielders of the many props), the show really feels like a group effort from the ground-up. The Story of War is weird and charming, and I’m looking forward to more work from this company in the future. See nothalfbad.org
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