Contrary to what the posters may lead you to believe, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are not actually coming to Tufts tonight. While this might disappoint some, the alternative is fairly comparable. Pen, Paint, and Pretzels' (3Ps) minor production of "Matt and Ben" provides a hysterical, although not necessarily realistic, look at these two celebrities before they broke into the limelight.
In this version, Matt (senior Jess Fisch) and Ben (sophomore Katherine Round) live in Somerville and are struggling to make their way to riches and fame. In the middle of adapting (a term loosely used by Ben to describe the copying of lines from the J. D. Salinger novel verbatim) of "The Catcher in the Rye," a miracle occurs: the script for "Good Will Hunting" falls out of the ceiling into Ben's apartment. Even more fortunate for the duo, the cover of the divine gift gives them credit for being the authors of the movie.
This good luck quickly turns sour, as clashes ensue between two best friends both vying for the same prize. The friction eventually leads to shouting, strangling and sword fighting.
The entire piece is stuffed with jokes, entertaining action and comedic timing. Fisch describes the play as "a good way to laugh on a Monday before Thanksgiving. You'll leave feeling happy."
The entire show uses only two actors, which proved to be surprisingly difficult for the director, senior Nathan Todd. Each movement and interaction between the two has to be specific, since the entire play hinges on the way these two best friends relate to each other.
Having a small ensemble was also beneficial. Round found that the laidback atmosphere really helped the show. "We got a lot of our best stuff from just messing around," she said.
Another challenge for Todd was having two females playing male roles, which, although it debatably makes the show even more entertaining, also makes it harder to perform. The play was originally written by two females for two females, but Todd still had to teach his leading ladies the finer aspects of being a guy, including pushing as a man would or scratching themselves.
The satirical piece also offers social commentary (if you decide to think about it). Having two females in these roles serves to "break down gender," Todd said, as it highlights "the feminine within the masculine."
Todd describes the play as a "testament to the nature of celebrity and celebrity worship." Along those lines, seeing this image of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck pre-Oscar win reminds us that celebrities are a lot more like us than we might think.
Ben's apartment is littered with junk food, magazines and empty beer bottles; it could easily belong to any Tufts student. The two characters are nowhere near perfect. Round immediately describes Ben as an "idiot." "He gets by on his charisma, looks and his frat boy persona," she said.
Matt is the more intelligent of the two. "Matt wants something more for himself and is not afraid to go out and get it," Fisch said.
Sometimes he does this at the expense of Ben, which causes some serious tension in their friendship.
If you want to, you can find several themes in "Matt and Ben." If not, you can easily appreciate it just for the hilarity. In either case, be prepared to be surrounded by fun and silliness for an hour.
In the words of Round: "['Matt and Ben'] is a reminder that there is still fun to be had in theater."
