John Paul Geen sweeps Mimi Davilla into a dip, while Lydia Kapp looks on. (Photo Courtesy SMUST)

Albert Einstein, Pablo Picasso and Charles Dabernow Schmendimen all walk into a bar.
This may sound like the opening line of a joke, but it just so happens to be the plot of Steve Martin’s play “Picasso at the Lapin Agile.”

Over the weekend, SMU student theatre put on a production of this hilarious play, in what is commonly referred to as “The Wet Napkin Theater,” tucked away in the basement of Meadows.

The play feels like an extended “Saturday Night Live” sketch with one joke following another.

In his comedic style Martin allows his characters to break the fourth wall almost immediately when Freddy, the bartender/owner of the Lapin Agile tells Einstein that he has come on to stage too early, as he points out on an audience member’s program that Einstein is listed fourth in order of appearance.

The play is basically a theoretical imagining of what might have occurred had Picasso met Einstein one night at a bar.

Einstein is a socially challenged scientific genius and Picasso is a charming, artistic genius.
What ensues is an intriguing juxtaposition of the two characters in the form of a witty, intellectual conversation.

Each character in the play is very clearly a different member of Martin’s repertoire, ranging from the affably cynical old man, Gaston, played by junior Grant Reynolds, to the ironically roué Picasso, in a delightful performance by sophomore John Paul Green.

Of course Steve Martin could not write a show that didn’t have that one show-stealing character who pops in and out, stealing the loudest laughs.

That character was Schmendimen. Pronounced precisely how it is spelled, Schmendimen is all grins and self-confidence.

In this role, the exuberant Donny Repsher delivered his one-liners with perfect timing that had the audience bursting with laughter.

The beauty of SMU student theatre is that the shows are hand chosen by the student directors and actors and in that way the show grows close to the heart of everyone involved.

The proximity between performers and play was very clear in “Picasso,” as everyone onstage was highly involved with their characters recovering from any forgotten lines very easily.

“Student projects are just a great way to be able to work and grow as an actor outside of the classroom,” Repsher said.

This show, directed by junior Chris McCreary, was riotously funny and the laughs were worth much more than the cost of admission (which happens to be free fall all SMUST productions).
If you’re disappointed that you missed it, the Saturday show was cancelled and will be performed tonight in studio B450 at 10:30 p.m.