Canadian stage and screen veterans Geri Hall and Gary Pearson are touring to Surrey with “Middle Raged,” a sketch comedy about midlife coupling.
Surrey Civic Theatres presents their show Saturday, Oct. 28 at Surrey Arts Centre’s Main Stage theatre, 8 p.m. curtain.
With a blend of comedy and Jeff Rosenthal’s musical parodies, “Middle Raged” spotlights the trials of life between age 30 and 65, when “the bloom is off the rose, but the thorns are sharper than ever,” a bio explains.
The humour comes from relatable situations and challenges including the struggle to write a will, efforts to keep things spicy in the bedroom (“Outlander” role play anyone?), financial struggles and trying to keep spirits up despite attending too many funerals.
Hall is a veteran of “This Hour Has 22 Minutes” and Gary Pearson has worked on “MadTV” and “Corner Gas.” Their bios are posted on middleraged.ca, along with tour and show details.
Hall conceived the idea for “Middle Raged” shortly after the birth of her first child. As she and her husband climbed in the car ready for a long-overdue date night, she realized they didn’t have a will — and if they died in a car accident, there were no instructions on who would raise the baby. The couple hopped out of the car and spent the night writing out a will on napkins.
Hall then pitched a burgeoning idea to Pearson, her longtime friend and colleague.
Back in 2019, when “Middle Raged” played Toronto Sketch Comedy Festival, reviewer Bill Broulx praised the show for its increasingly hilarious sketches.
“It soon became apparent that Hall and Pearson are masters at what they do,” he wrote. “Playing off each other with an electric energy, Hall and Pearson brought an undeniable charisma to every sketch and song they performed. You can tell that they live for comedy and the rush of a live audience.”
Directed by Mark Melymick, “Middle Raged” is aimed at a 19-plus audience. In Surrey, tickets range from $29 to $49 on tickets.surrey.ca, or call 604-501-5566.
It’s part of a three-show Comedy Series presented by Surrey Civic Theatres, along with Julie Kim live (March 13, 2024) and Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg’s one-woman script “Body Parts” (April 26-27). Nearly two dozen shows are part of the 2023-24 Presentation Series of concerts, plays and more, now until next spring.
While “Middle Raged” plays Surrey Arts Centre’s big stage, the facility’s studio theatre is busy with Royal Canadian Theatre Company’s chaotic comedy “The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomen’s Guild Dramatic Society Murder Mystery,” staged five times from Oct. 26 to 29.
Show producer Crystal Weltzin promises a play filled with hilarity and unforgettable action as it follows the ladies of the F.A.H.E.T.G. Dramatic Society on one disastrous opening night for the whodunit, “Murder At Checkmate Manor.” Scenery collapses, cues are missed, lines forgotten and sound effects soured. Visit rctheatreco.com for tickets, or call the Surrey Civic Theatres box office, 604-501-5566.
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-with a file from Quinn Bender, Black Press Media