Absurdist theater meets romantic comedy meets a meditation on life and death and what comes in-between in Clown Sh*t, Hope Lauren’s exhilarating, thought-provoking roller coaster ride of a World Premiere two-hander.

“Holy shit holy shit!!! What the fuck!! What the fuck is happening??!!” are the first words out of Darcy’s (Lauren) mouth when she finds herself not only trapped in a nebulous limbo like a character in a Samuel Beckett play but unable to tear her commedia dell’arte clown costume from her skin or resist dancing along to the circus music she hears blasting out from who knows where.

 And if things were already weird enough, imagine Darcy’s confusion when no matter which side of limbo she attempts to exit from, or at what speed, she inevitably re-enters on the opposite side of where she left from, leading her to ask herself in true Sartrean fashion if there is indeed “No Exit” from the heaven or hell she finds herself in.

Enter Darci-with-an-I (Samuel Garnett) sporting a matching clown outfit and looking every bit as perplexed as Darcy-with-a-Y, and imagine his confusion when repeated bursts of the circus music have him and Darcy doing in-sync choreography they find themselves powerless to resist.

As to where Darcy has come from or how long as she’s been here or what kind of work she does, well her guess is as good as Darci’s about his own origins, and neither can explain how a red rubber bouncy-ball ended up hidden inside his pant leg, though at the very least it does give the two of them something to either toss around back and forth or send bouncing off in one direction only to have it bounce back in from the other.

It’s while fooling around with the red rubber ball that bits of memory begin to return to Darcy/Darci and philosophical questions begin to pop into their minds, questions like how major a problem it is on a scale of one to five to simply be alive, or what the definitive definition of sanity is, or whether or not “extreme foolishness” is a completely reasonable way to react to most things in life.

The more Darcy and Darci get to know each other, the clearer it becomes that they are each of them a wounded soul, though exactly how wounded I’ll leave it to you to discover as you experience as original and entertaining and moving a two-hander as I’ve seen in recent years, and a play I guarantee you will be talking and thinking about long after its final blackout.

It’s also an example of do-it-yourself independent intimate L.A. theater at its best, Lauren, Garnett, director Claire Berger, and producer Daniel Dorr having pooled their resources to give Clown Sh*t a production that rivals the best that Rogue Machine, Echo Theater Company, or Ruskin Group Theatre, to name just three of our best membership companies, have to offer.

Director Berger brings Lauren’s script to life with supreme imagination and flair.

In addition, scenic designer Ashley Murray’s appropriately bare black curtained set has been lit to dramatic effect by Luke Moyer, with Joseph “Sloe” Slawinski’s mix of just-right musical underscoring and sound effects adding to the onstage magic as do Olivia Babuka Black’s circus-ready costumes, Jade Takacs’s clever props, and Laura Schein’s captivating choreography.

Most importantly, performances don’t get any richer, or more nuanced, or more touching than Lauren’s and Garnett’s as they delve deep into Darcy and Darci’s increasingly vivid memories and the oceans of pain that have driven these two souls to the darkest of places.

Morgan McDonald is stage manager and Shell Garcia is The Space.

I knew virtually nothing about Clown Sh*t going in, and I’ve tried not to give away too much in this review, because I want you to discover its many wonders for yourself. Take a chance on these two clowns and I guarantee you’ll be glad you did.

Eastwood Performing Arts Center, 1089 N. Oxford Ave., Hollywood. Through August 3. Mondays at 8:00. Saturday at 8:00. Sunday at 5:00
https://eastwoodpac.stagey.net/projects/13115

–Steven Stanley
July 25, 2026

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Tags: Hope Lauren, Los Angeles Theater Review, the Eastwood