You don’t need to have seen the hit horror-comedy movie Cocaine Bear, heard of the real-life 1985 incident it's very loosely based on, or even snorted Bolivian marching powder yourself in order to enjoy Opera del Sol’s consistently entertaining mashup of high-brow art and the lowest common denominator.
The show starts smartly with a mock Masterpiece Theater-esque video welcome from pants-free writer/director Eric Pinder, who has taken instantly recognizable melodies from operas by Handel, Bizet and Mozart and rewritten the lyrics to fit this ridiculous plot. The classically trained ensemble gives it their all, hitting both the high notes and low humor with gusto.
Highlights include Jose-Manuel Lopez as a coke-addled drug smuggler skydiving to Bugs Bunny’s favorite Barber of Seville selections; Maeghin Mueller’s overwrought Puccini aria in an eye-watering tracksuit; and furry-suited David Lee Smith as the titular tanked-up ursine, whose every appearance ends in a gorily goofy evisceration. Perhaps the audience’s biggest applause was earned by Jessica Hoehn, whose oversexed park ranger nearly sets the forest on fire.
Everyone on stage can do this immortal music justice, which makes it disappointing that the harsh microphone mix and overbearing backing tracks made understanding Pinder’s witty words hard work during the opening performance. However, I had no such problem following his fleet-footed direction, which has all the performers perfectly striking an appropriately schlocky, slapstick tone. Every Fringe needs a good cinematic spoof, and "Cocaine Bear" serves up its cracked comedy complete with a side of spectacular singing.
Orlando Fringe: Tickets and times for "Cocaine Bear: The Opera"
