Astronaut of the Year by
Go Cougars!
"Founded two years ago by novelist Joe Meno and friends,
the Go Cougars! ensemble has produced a handful of offerings, most
recently as part of the 2002 Rhinoceros Theater Festival. Their
current production, "Astronaut
of the Year," is composed of three unrelated one-acts brimming
with potential. What the troupe lacks in directorial and dramaturgical
savvy, it makes up for with some excellent writing and a few key
performances. The best two plays of the trio deal with teen angst,
and they have (this is meant as a compliment) a Judy Blume-like
humor. Meno's "Haunted
Trails" centers on a flabby kid turned punk rock teenager
(Meghan Lee) and her geeky next-door neighbor (Joe Tower, playing
floppy-limbed intensity like nobody's business) who is a lot cooler
than anyone suspects. "Astronomy
for Losers," written by and starring James Vickery, is the
story of an appealingly gawky 16-year-old and his crush on a fellow
classmate. Vickery's nuanced performance, equal parts sweat and
exasperated twitter, is right on the money. The production values
for each play leave much to be desired — even by small theater
standards — yet by the end, the homemade quality wins you
over".
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