By Cynthia Citron

In 1987 Spalding Gray gave us Swimming to Cambodia.  In 2005 Michael Schlitt gives us his own version of an ill-fated trip:  Mike’s Incredible Indian Adventure.

Where Gray’s monologue dealt with the filming of The Killing Fields of Cambodia in Thailand, Schlitt’s deals with filming the staging of Neil Simon’s very American They’re Playing Our Song in cities throughout India.  Both productions have in common the confusion of cultures and the absurdity of the project.

Schlitt, who is a founding member of the highly respected Actors’ Gang, has worked in theater since he was seduced by the “theater crowd” in college.  But, ironically, what he always wanted to do was make movies.  Except, “what good is knowing what you want if you can’t figure out how to get it?” he asks ruefully.

Haunted by the thought of Orson Welles’ early triumphs (Welles made Citizen Kane at the age of 25), Schlitt suffers from recurring mid-life crises---from the age of 25 on.  He dreams of becoming a huge success: “I’m dying to sell out, but nobody’s buying,” he says.  And then comes the offer to take “Our Song” to India.  With some trepidation, he agrees.  “It’s the journey, not the destination,” he says.  “It’s about connecting.”

And so he sets out to connect.  Because his promoter thinks that Neil Simon’s Jewish sensibilities might not make it in India, Schlitt adds four women and singing and dancing to Simon’s basic sitcom formula.  And repeating his mantra “Bad is good,” Schlitt launches what he knows is a misbegotten mish-mash.  To his amazement, the show is a smash hit in India.

At least until he reaches Bangalore.  There a party-full of intellectuals tells him what they really think.  Crushed, he offers heated retorts, much like Cyrano reproaching his detractors, but Schlitt’s remarks remain internal as he sits there speechless, responding with a Schlitt-eating grin.

Meanwhile, he has kept himself amused by filming his Indian adventures preparatory to making his master oeuvre: a documentary.  He films scenery.  He films talking heads.  He films rehearsals.  He films backstage whispers.  And in the end, what he has is more than 100 hours of footage with no center.  No story.  No documentary.  Just a running commentary of one disaster after another.  Which he makes into a one-man show, with film projected behind him as he reads his tale of woe.

Fortunately, Schlitt is an engaging performer and a marvelously captivating storyteller, so his Incredible Indian Adventure is a meaty morsel to digest.  As directed by his wife, Nancy Keystone, Schlitt has done Neil Simon one better: he has provided Los Angeles with a play about a failure that is a total success.

This world premiere of Mike’s Incredible Indian Adventure is part of Los Angeles’ 7th Annual Edge of the World Theater Festival, or EdgeFest 2005.  Designed to introduce new, experimental, and cutting-edge productions to L.A. audiences, this year’s festival offers some 20 productions, each playing several times, mostly on the five stages of the Los Angeles Theatre Center, 514 S. Spring Street, in downtown L.A.  Information, schedules, and tickets may be procured on line at www.edgefest.org.  EdgeFest runs from October 6th through the 23rd.