Rapid-fire, absurdist parody of the Abbey
After having an impromptu lunch this week in Toronto with Brendan Coyle, the actor who plays the longsuffering Mr. Bates in Downton Abbey, I suggested that he see the premiere of Upside Downton. He passed. Which is probably a good thing. I’m not sure what Coyle would have thought of a parody of Downton Abbey. Or star Luke Kempner’s impersonation of Mr. Bates. Kempner got the limping part right but not much else. Fortunately, there are other characters in the show, many played far more brilliantly.
At the start of the one-man Upside Downton, Downton Abbey is on the brink of financial ruin. Lady Mary has lost track of all the men she’s slept with. Thomas the underbutler is furiously polishing the silver and up to no good.
If there were ever a TV series ripe for lampooning, it is Downton Abbey. Julian Fellowes’ series about an aristocratic British family and their servants in turn-of-the-century England is turgid, over the top and deliciously watchable.
Upside Downton, the homage, is less so. But not for lack of trying by the undeniably talented Kempner, 28. He plays a remarkable 36 characters.
In this alternative universe, Lord Granthamhas invested all his money in Radio Shack and the estate is broke. Meanwhile, the aging Dowager Countess (Maggie Smith in the series) is getting married because it “won’t be long before I lose my looks.”
The two themes rule the first half of the play before it becomes more absurdist, intersecting with reality TV tropes before turning into a fullblown musical.
Like a young, British Robin Williams there are a fount of characters inside Kempner waiting to burst forth. Over the 75-minute show, he changes rapid fire from the cook Mrs. Patmore to Lord Grantham, Lady Mary and Daisy the kitchen maid.
While Mr. Bates was not a standout, Kempner was much more successful in channelling the commanding baritone of Mr. Carson, the whiny pitch of Lady Cora and the gravelvoiced Dowager Countess.
But there were also some atrocious throwaway impersonations, including Kim Kardashian and John McEnroe.
But hey, he is playing three dozen people.
Since his debut at the 2013 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Kempner has been touring the show. It should be a well-oiled machine, but some of the skits feel clunky and half-baked.
Bates playing the Wimbledon final seems interesting, but the skit goes nowhere fast. Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay visiting Downton to do a Kitchen Nightmares reality episode is a more successfully realized narrative.
If you are a Downton fan, you will find Upside Downton at least mildly amusing.
If you aren’t, then many of the rapid-fire impersonations may be lost.
As the Dowager Countess herself might say, vulgarity is no substitute for wit.