Left Edge Theatre
Runs in Santa Rosa through Nov. 11, 2018

Just when you think you’ve seen it all, theatrically speaking, who shows up on stage but a foul-mouthed, Satanic, and raunchy hand puppet named Tyrone, who unleashes a violent but hilarious reign of terror on the world around him—that is, around the poor unsuspecting teenager Jason, whose right arm seems possessed when Tyrone is on it. Robert Askins’ madly funny and irreverent play Hand to God gets a terrific airing with a strong cast at Left Edge Theatre, featuring a mind-blowing tour de force performance by Dean Linnard as the teen and his demonic alter-ego.

Jason (Linnard) is an unhappy, forlorn teenager, timid and a little lost after his father’s recent death and his mother’s apparent preoccupation with her own grief. He joins her newly formed church puppet troupe, the Christketeers, reluctantly. The group meets in the church basement classroom, adorned with cheery messages about Jesus and Christian love. Jason is not convinced this will cure his depression, and even tries to abandon his puppet: “I think it’s doing bad things to me.” But mom Margery (Melissa Claire) refuses to hear it, insisting that Jason continue with the troupe so she can have at least one good thing going on in her equally depressed life. …

To continue reading more about this production, see the full review at Talkin’Broadway:
Hand to God