The Art of Falling Down

Review by Neal Weaver
Ruby Theatre at the Complex
Through June 25

Two women — one a tall, up-tight blonde painter (Maddie Moen) and the other a shorter, darker laid-back musician (Porsche James) attempt to find comedy in their repeated failures. “Why does nobody believe in me? And why can’t I believe in myself?” they cry, as bills pile up and problems multiply. The painter launches an art show, but nobody comes. The musician writes songs she can’t sing, and turns to alcohol to escape her disappointments.

The piece is philosophically all over the place, and it works best as a sort of vaudeville turn, sometimes funny and sometimes desperate, for the two feckless women. Their performances are more coherent than the material.

Ruby Theatre at The Complex, 6476 Santa Monica Boulevard, Hollywood. June 10; https://www.hollywoodfringe.org/projects/3523?tab=details. Running time: 45 minutes.