Ever wonder what the world would be like if Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were contestants on "American Idol?" Or how about John McCain picking his political ideology on a politically incorrect version of "Deal or No Deal?" How about President Bush having his own children's show? At the premiere of the Freedom Toast's performance "Freedom Roast," that is exactly what the audience got to experience.
A group of four multitalented performers raced madly around a small stage in the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Capitol Hill for an hour and a half, changing everything from costumes, characters, accents and even sexes in the blink of an eye.
Each actor took on no fewer than 10 roles throughout the course of the night, impersonating everyone from the top politicos in Washington to the cast of "Law and Order."
The night of parodies began with "Democratic Idol," when the audience roared at actor Rob Seitelman portraying Hillary Clinton as a gyrating Pussycat Doll, bumping and grinding to "Don't Cha Wish Your President Was Hot Like Me." Actor Reed Prescott drew laughs for portraying all three "Idol" judges-at the same time.
The highlight of the night was undoubtedly when actress Ashleigh Chilton slinked on-stage as Monica Lewinsky and shimmied her way through a rousing rendition of "Pulling Out Is Hard To Do." She was, of course, referring to pulling troops out of Iraq. The other three actors donned military helmets and marched around singing backup while performing rather suggestive dance moves with their toy machine guns.
There was nothing off-limits for this troupe as it made fun of everyone left and right. Using everything from show tunes, soap operas and pop songs as inspiration, the troupe made good on its promise to deliver "laughter in liberal doses."
Other highlights included Tanesha Gary donning a wig, a power suit and an apron to impersonate Nancy Pelosi hosting her very own "House Improvement" show and Reed Prescott adopting the mannerisms of Barbara Bush and warbling his way through "Don't Cry To Me 'Bout Katrina." Ashleigh Chilton was scarily convincing as the current first lady, expressing her secret love through the ballad "Obama."
The show had a few minor glitches, a misstep in a dance, a forgotten word here and there, and malfunctioning microphone, but the actors covered all the mishaps well. It was amazing how quickly the foursome was able to keep the show moving. It was obvious that all members of the Freedom Toast were professional, seasoned performers. Tanesha Gary especially impressed the audience with her vocal skills.
The Freedom Toast is a slightly more risqu? and fast-paced version of the Capitol Steps, a political satire troupe that has been a fixture on the Hill since the 1980s. Take a Capitol Steps performance, add a loose plot line and a few hilarious skits and that's Freedom Roast. An evening with the Freedom Toast is one that will be filled with laughter, all at the expense of our leaders from both sides of the aisle.
