MAY 30- JUNE 5, 2013 -------------------------------- Cover Story • Spank! ------------------------------- By Evan Gillespie It was a perfect storm for parody: a high- “We never wanted to make fun of it,” profile story with millions of fans and almost co-writer Colin Munch told OnMilwaukee. If you were living in a cave through all limitless opportunities for fun-poking. Writ- com. “But it’s easy to make fun of a romance of 2012, you might not have heard of Fifty ten by a group of improv comedy special- novel, period, right? So there’s a suspension Shades of Grey. If, however, you were liv- ists, Spank! takes the book’s skeleton – naïve of disbelief that’s involved in reading these ing somewhere with indoor books, and comedians traffic plumbing, electricity and in- in that suspension of disbe- ternet service, you were al- lief.” most certainly unable to miss So while the book’s Chris- the hype surrounding the most tian Grey flew young An- talked-about book of the year. astasia Steele around in his Fifty Shades was big, and like helicopter, the play’s Hugh all big media sensations, it Hanson ferries Tasha Woode Friday, June 14 • 8:00pm was ripe for parody. And as in his hovercraft. we all know, parody is better “He’s basically Batman,” if it’s musical parody. Enter says Munch. DAVID WILCOX Spank!, The Fifty Shades Par- The show is full of twists $20 Adv., $25 D.O.S. ody, a musical stage homage like that, winking references to the story that made millions to the book that will make of readers all over the world fans of Fifty Shades giggle, blush. but the creators insist that the Before we get to the show isn’t just for those who parody, however, let’s have have read and loved the book. a primer on the Fifty Shades There are plenty of jokes and phenomenon for the above- pop culture references that mentioned cave dwellers. don’t require familiarity with Originally conceived as a fan- the source, and, of course, fiction exploration of the char- critics of the original might acters from Stephanie Meyer’s appreciate being able to snick- Twilight, the book was written er at the parody, too. by amateur author E.L. James While Fifty Shades may and published online. When have been a success because the story began to generate readers could consume it dis- some internet buzz, it was creetly, Spank! is not at all published as an e-book by a concerned with discretion. tiny publisher. The buzz grew, The show is pitched as a per- and before anyone knew what fect opportunity for a raucous Wednesday, June 19 • 8:00pm was happening, E.L. James girls’ night out, and the actors had a massive viral hit on her use the word “celebration” a JIMMY THACKERY hands. lot when describing the ex- The story itself was con- perience of attending a per- troversial. It concerns an inno- formance. True to its roots in & THE DRIVERS cent young girl who becomes improv, the show welcomes $20 Adv., $25 D.O.S. involved in a relationship with audience participation in a mysterious billionaire. The spots, and pre-show cocktail Thursday, June 27 • 8:00pm relationship is not typical; it hours and after-show meet- involves sexual domination and-greets ensure that the par- and submission, sadomasoch- SPANK! ty isn’t confined to the stage. JOHN FULLBRIGHT ism and all manner of kinky stuff. It is Tuesday, June 11 • 7:30 p.m. Music always helps to create a party sexually explicit – not the kind of book atmosphere, and the show’s music con- $15 Adv., $20 D.O.S. that often turns up at the top of the best- Embassy Theatre sists of silly song parodies based on pop- seller lists. 125 W. Jefferson Blvd., Fort Wayne ular show tunes. Combine that with the Sunday, June 30 • 7:30pm But it did just that, and commenta- dance moves and physiques of the actors tors fell all over themselves trying to fig- Tix: $38 thru Ticketmaster & who trade off the role of Hugh – the show ure out why. One theory was that, thanks Embassy box office, 260-424-5665 doesn’t hesitate to tap into a little of the GUGGENHEIM to the book being easily available elec- popularity of Magic Mike, either – and tronically, it was the perfect guilty pleasure girl falls in love with kinky billionaire – and you have a perfect stage trifecta of rock n’ GROTTO for female readers (and the assumption was plays it loosely for fun. The show was vetted roll, comedy and sex. $12 Adv., $15 D.O.S. that most of the readers were female); if you by a lawyer to be sure that it avoids copy- If Fifty Shades wasn’t groundbreaking read it on your e-reader, no one can easily right issues, but it retains the Fifty Shades as literature, it was at least novel in the way tell what you’re reading. spirit, including the presence on stage of a that it made it acceptable for its readers to GO TO OUR WEBSITE FOR No one suggested that the book was a fictional author, here named “E.B. Janet,” embrace their inner naughtiness, and that’s TICKET INFO & MORE hit because it was good. The criticism was who writes the story while her husband is the aspect of the book that Spank! aims to ALL SHOWS ALL AGES nearly universal: it was poorly written, the out of town. After a successful opening in bring to the fore. While the show softens characters were laughably unbelievable and Springfield, Massachusetts last year, the some of the book’s more controversial as- the story was clumsy. Not even those com- show hit the road and has been delighting pects through comedy, it makes some ele- fortable with the subject matter were eager audiences all across North America since. ments of the story even naughtier (the scene to get behind it, arguing that it was an inac- The show mines the absurdity of the with the toothbrush is an example) and audi- curate portrayal of the alternative lifestyle it book for laughs, but its creators tried hard to ence members consistently report that, after tried to depict. steer clear of mean-spirited mockery. the show, their cheeks hurt from laughing. 2 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- www.whatzup.com -----------------------------------------------------------------May 30, 2013 whatzup Volume 17, Number 43 long with the rising temperatures comes a long list of things to do here in the Fort. Whether it’s music, art, comedy, stage and dance or another form of entertainment, we have a plethora of events to tell you about thisA week. For starters, we’ve got a featured story about an event that’ll turn your cheeks red from blushing and laughing. Spank! (page 2), the parody on the ever popular Fifty Shades of Grey, comes to the Embassy Theatre June 11. For fans of fine art, small towns and films involving both, the Decatur Sculpture Tour (page 4) may very well be of interest to you. A new addition this year is the film competition to showcase downtown Decatur and the sculptures. And it’s time once again for the Northeast Indiana Playwright Festival featuring some impressive plays on a variety of subject matter. Details on page 4. It’s also time to whip out the lederhosen! Germanfest kicks off June 2, but know that there’s a whole lot more to the festival than just the events at Headwaters Park. To find out what’s going on and where, check out the article on page 5 June 15, 2013 along with our music and Things To Do calendars. 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Also inside, we’ve got a ton of shows and exhibits to explore, local and national CD reviews, movie times and much, much more. So get reading, start planning $10 Advance • $12 Day of Tour your social calendar and, as always, tell one and all that whatzup sent you. • features DIRECTOR’S NOTES ......................19 The Wedding Gift SCREENTIME ................................ 21 Historic Homes • Lush Gardens SPANK! ..........................................................2 Fast 6 Dominates Huge Weekend Fifty Shades of Blush Early Fort Wayne Architectural Gems! FARE WARNING ............................ 22 CALL ARCH for tickets: 260.426.5117 DECATUR SCULPTURE TOUR ..................4 Embassy Lets the Sunshine In Small Town Shows Off Big Art ON BOOKS .....................................23 N.E. INDIANA PLAYWRIGHT FESTIVAL ..4 All You Could Ask For Weddings, Birthdays & Cover-Ups Made possible with the support of FORT WAYNE GERMANFEST ..................5 the Lincoln Financial Foundation. Deutschland in the Fort • calendars PacificPacific Coast Coast ConcertsConcerts Pacific Coast Concerts Proudly Presents in Elkhart, Indiana )( Proudly Presents in South Bend, Indiana )( The Legendary King of The Blues! #,-. -& -& 0, $/(ARCH WMainTour-8thV.indd 1 5/16/13 6:29 PM -./,3 KARAOKE & DJS ..............................7 &%",. • columns & reviews -")1 $/(! LIVE MUSIC & COMEDY ...................8 MUSIC/ON THE ROAD ...................13 SPINS ...............................................6 Taylor Fredricks, The Remony ROAD TRIPZ ..................................15 BACKTRACKS ..................................6 MOVIE TIMES ................................16 Jackson Browne, For Everyman (1973) ART & ARTIFACTS .........................18 OUT & ABOUT ...................................8 STAGE & DANCE ...........................19 IMHO, AIC Rocked the House Last Week THINGS TO DO ..............................20 ROAD NOTEZ ................................. 13 BB FLIX ................................................ 16 1=<F=K<9Q);LG:=J c*' Hangover 3 .@=&=JF=J.@=9LJ=cDC@9JL #F<A9F9 %#(! .A;C=LKGFK9D= JA<9Q$MF=9L9E9LL@=&=JF=JGP)>_;= -MF<9Q);LG:=J c*' ;@9J?=:QH@GF= GJGFDAF=OOO L@=D=JF=J ;GE )J:AL'MKA; Cover design by Greg Locke 'AK@9O9C9 M<AG-H=;A9DAKLK -L9L=,G9<(GJL@ -GML@=F< %9JE9,=;GJ<K 'GJJAK*=J>GJEAF?JLK=FL=Jc-GML@=F< #F<A9F9 *DQEGML@19JK9O 1GG<=F(A;C=D,=;GJ<K GJL19QF= .A;C=LKGFK9D=-9LMJ<9Q$MF=9L9E9L'GJJAK*=J>GJEAF?JLK=FL=JGP)>_;= THE GREEN ROOM ........................18 &9*GJL=ANA;M<ALGJAMEGP)>_;= )J:AL'MKA; 'AK@9O9C9 M<AG-H=;A9DAKLK -, -GML@=F< %9JE9,=;GJ<K *DQEGML@ Spank! Cover photo by Peter Hurley 19JK9O 1GG<=F(A;C=D,=;GJ<K GJL19QF= &9*GJL=ANA;M<ALGJAMEGP)>_;= ;@9J?= DIRECTOR’S NOTES ......................19 Spank! page 2 photo by Tim Greenway :QH@GF= GJOOO EGJJAK;=FL=J GJ? Pacific Coast Concerts Pacific Coast Concerts Lombard *JGM<DQ*J=K=FLKAF GJL19QF= #F<A9F9 Proudly Presents in South Bend, Indiana GMFLJQ'MKA;&=?=F<.@=G9D'AF=JK9M?@L=J )( -& !,.