Theater artists enjoy going off on ‘Going Rogue’

 But at a small downtown performance space Thursday night, the weapon of choice for a group of gleeful Palin bashers was the former Alaska governor’s new book, “Going Rogue: An American Life.” Some of Kansas City’s best-known theater artists took turns reading aloud from Palin’s memoir in an event called “Going Rogue at the Fishtank,” named for the intimate Fishtank Performance Studio near 18th and Wyandotte streets.
About 50 people filled the studio to capacity as a succession of actors came to the microphone to read excerpts with a decidedly irreverent tone.
“Going Rogue” was released Tuesday. Among the early buyers was Lisa Cordes, a playwright, director and actress who saw an opportunity for a unique performance event.
“I had it in my hand by 11 a.m. Tuesday morning,” Cordes said.
She promptly read the book cover to cover and then began editing a performance script that became the basis of “Going Rogue at the Fishtank.”
“I spent the last two days reading and editing,” she said. “We decided to do it the week the book came out, not knowing how long the media interest would last.”
None of the readers had seen the material beforehand.
David Wayne Reed, an actor associated with the old Late Night Theatre group, was the first reader, taking the audience through Palin’s account of her early childhood.
Actress Gail Bronfman Bunch, chewing gum and performing a serviceable Palin accent, picked up the narrative as the second reader and was followed by Ron Megee, who is Kansas City’s most flamboyant actor. He took the stage in a crimson smoking jacket with a paisley scarf tucked around his neck and sported a cigarette holder.
As a kind of Greek chorus, actors Phil Hooser and Heidi Van sat onstage offering sound effects and ad-libs. And James Hoschek, known as Jim the Blind Guy, offered his own brand of wry commentary between readings.
There were no explicit political statements, just uninhibited mockery of a public figure.