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Holy Sh*t Press Release

Osnabrücker Zeitung

10. April 2000

The Morals behind the Myths
Utter lunacy: Janice Perry with "Holy Sh*t!" in the Lagerhalle

For Janice Perry there are some stinking messes she can't ignore. This critical breaking point is due, when deconstructing an absolutely outrageous state of affairs, to virtue. In layman's terms, when 'Holy Sh*t' is concerned - that's the title of her new program.

This is quite palpably the case in India and Egypt. The kaka of elephants and scarab-beetles is holy and untouchable. Less palpable, but all the more rigid and mendacious are the hard-hitting reactionary ethics and morals in Janice Perry's home country, the USA: the Ten Commandments are suddenly appearing on the walls again, like a portent, and old Charles Darwin and his Theory of Evolution is on the Line. But there are the school-children who would be willing to trade in their machine guns for a Bible?

The comedian has targeted the morals within the biblical myths. That these are in no way outdated demonstrates more than just the current developments in the USA. Janice Perry turns the stories about the biblical kings and queens, about St. Lucy, St. Clare, St. Hedwig, St. Katherine, the Holy Bernadette and Jeanne d'Arc upside down and does it with linguistic brilliance, performing with unbelievable virtuosity from head to toe. So she sets off on her quest to seek the source of what is, in the many of the United States, a very much loved bible verse which delineates the natural submissiveness of women: She soon realizes that it was a totally drunken advisor mumbling that rubbish to an ancient king who - furious about his wife's autonomy- compliantly arranged for the immediate execution of the old Humbug's suggestions.

With utter lunacy and sometimes blacker-than-black humor Janice Perry de-mystifies this fabrication and other dogma. And when the comedian portrays the advisor, who is as drunk as a skunk, there is not a dry eye in the house. Her suggestive narration and her mimicry skills occur at such an enormous speed, it seems she is performing both roles in parallel.

What's really amazing is that she masters these acrobatics not only by brilliant performance, but also in a linguistically absolutely perfect way.Janice Perry is a full-blown Professional and more than just a valuable acquisition for the Lagerhalle's already very well-chosen comedy program. - bem

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