Grouch on a Couch

Review by Ashly Dyck
55min| Comedy Drama | R

Cringing at the Fringe

Though the concept behind Grouch on a Couch—a self-declared “satire of how political correctness and social conformity repress our honest feelings and make us unable to express anger in healthy ways”—sounds promising, playwright and sole performer Jeff Cottrill ends up conforming to generalizations and stereotypes of what it means to be “cutting edge.” His revelations about the real world hidden from children end up sounding more forced than honest, as verity is sacrificed for shock value in the pop culture tradition he tries to criticize. By the time curtains close on the Grouch, passed out head-first in his can—an ending I assume was intended to subvert audiences’ expectations of a warm and fuzzy ending in favour of something more gritty and real—Cottrill has managed to spout every hot-button word in the book in an attempt at political incorrectness that is both unfocused and unnecessary—a little like the play itself. This approach only serves to alienate Cottrill from his audience by implicitly casting any who take offense as the hyper-sensitive, PC-brainwashed types whose sunny optimism blinds them to the grim realities of life espoused by this free-thinking, garbage-picking prophet.

If it is the gasps of audience-members that he is after then the play is a success for Cottrill, but for this audience member the writer/performer’s attempts at keeping it real distract from any real point the play is supposed to have (the Grouch’s imitation of a special needs child is particularly witty and intelligent).

The play feeds every cliché in the book about either Sesame Street or therapy: Big Bird and Snuffie are gay, Oscar had a mean dad who told him he’d never amount to anything, Oscar gave up when he wasn’t accepted and thus became the bitter recluse we know today. And the use of music is that extra hour in the sun that makes the play really stinky—the same, thirty-second snippet from the Braveheart soundtrack is replayed with every unhappy flashback; portions of “All By Myself” echo over and completely distract from the Grouch’s discussion on, you guessed it, being alone. And there is absolutely no fading in or out of these songs; their contributions are sudden and jarring, and their lyrics overpower and trivialize the Grouch’s monologues.

Cottrill does seem to strike his desired balance between profane and prophetic once in the play, during the Grouch’s meditations on love. Inspired by a flashback to his sordid relationship with ex-girlfriend Grungie, the Grouch reminisces on what made their relationship great—acceptance—and on the true nature of love, “the most conditional thing there is.” The Grouch’s monologue here hits on the perfect balance between slightly exaggerated, tell-it-like-it-is sarcasm, and it’s-funny-because-it’s-true humour.

But, did this five-minute diamond-in-the-rough make up for the forty-five other, cringe-worthy minutes? Not a chance. I get it that the Grouch is supposed to be an ass-hole, but any deeper meaning beyond that was buried under one distraction after another, a little like Sesame Street itself.

Grouch on a Couch by Jeff Cottrill is playing at Venue 2 – Arts Court Library (2 Daly, Elevator A) on Saturday June 19 at 4:30pm, Sunday June 20 at 11:00pm, Tuesday June 22 at 6:00pm, Thursday June 24 at 11:00pm and Saturday June 26 at 8:00pm. Tickets are $10 each.