People All Over the World, Join Hands

All around Seattle, everybody's getting ready for Valentine's Day. Some people are making reservations at fancy-schmancy restaurants, while others are planning for a night of ice cream 'n' crying. A certain weekly paper went and filled up their pages with declarations of love to "schmoopie pie" and nine million other pet names. It goes without saying that everyone's stocking up on liquor. So now's the perfect time for Train of Thought's new love-themed sketch show Breaking Up. Similar to 69 Love Songs, the comedy troupe's vignettes address the highs and lows of love, the myriad aspects of relationships, all with a cynical been-there eye.

The approximate one hour o' laughs kicked off with a wordless sketch in which a man and a woman fight over a stereo remote control, as the songs they play convey the attitudes and desires of each. This was to set the tone for the evening: a lotta views on love and a lotta love songs, both within and in between sketches. The high points included a conversation between some penguins who just didn't feel like marching and a comparison between lovin' in red states and blue states. The most original skit of the evening was a rap battle between MCs representin' Hallmark and American Greetings. Meanwhile, the low point came when all three guys took out photos of exes and worked on getting depressed. It was basically four minutes of dudes sitting there and getting emotional. Not much happened...y'know, besides the depression.

Out of the three, Ryan Miller (the tall guy with the goatee) is the funny one. Yes yes, they're all funny, but even within a comedy troupe, there's always the Funny One. John Boyle (the dark handsome brooder) writes and directs most of the material, so he's the brains of the operation. Which leaves Matt Owens (the towhead, with his big puppy-dog eyes) to be the eye candy---though all of them look way hot in a wig.

Let's take a moment to give major props to the venue. Breaking Up is playing at the Northwest Actor's Studio in the Cabaret Theater (3rd floor). This means comfy couches and drinks from the bare-bones bar. All the better to enjoy the show.

Breaking Up
1100 E. Pike St., 3rd floor
Fridays and Saturdays now through February 25th
Doors at 10pm, show at 10:30pm
Tickets are $10, $8 for students with ID, and $100 for ex-girlfriends of troupemembers