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Loosely adapted from Chekhov's The Seagull, this play is three acts of neurotic moaning about the struggles of artists and the role of theater in a lengthy "woe is me" rant that feels like artistic masturbation.
Stupid F***ing Bird breaks the fourth wall, with characters confessing their desires to the audience as if in a Stanislavsky acting class. While intriguing at first, the techniques get old quickly, like a teenager who has to tell everyone he just started smoking pot. The play knows its audience—beret-wearing theater devotees who think adding "fuck" makes something edgy—and the script plays to that crowd with endless theater in-jokes.
It's not the cast's fault; each actor is stunning, especially Kimberly Gilbert as the emo cook Mash. Portland Center Stage's pop art set, graffitied with neon green and pink portraits of Chekhov, and the set-change scene, in which Russian music blasts, are almost worth the three hours.
See it: Gerding Theater at the Armory, 128 NW 11th Ave., 445-3700. 7:30 pm Tuesday-Sunday; 2 pm Saturday-Sunday; 12 pm Thursday, through March 27. $25-$70.
Willamette Week