Sad Clowns on Velvet

Peter Brown and Ian Hill perform a Chekhov trilogy, Sad Clowns on Velvet. In the first of three monologues, “On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco,” a mild-mannered man trying to give a lecture on the title subject, gets repeatedly sidetracked into anecdotes about his own hellish home life. The second monologue, “Tragedian in Spite of Himself,” presents the second clown: A man laden with so many personal and professional responsibilities he seems ready to explode. The evening ends with “A Moscow Hamlet,” where a turn-of-the 20th century Russian bohemian reflects on the emptiness of his life with what at first seems like dark ironic humor, but soon becomes something more poignant. Part of Pure Pop.