DINNER WITH GOEBBELS by Mark Leith (act2studioWorks/Fringe). At Trinity-St Pauls United Church (427 Bloor West). July 6-8 and 10-14 at 9 pm. See listing. Rating: NN
What happens when war stories are shared between Nazi Minister of Propaganda Josef Goebbels, War on Terror mastermind Karl Rove and public-relations pioneer Edward Bernays? Judging by Dinner With Goebbels, you get a bunch of talking heads with few revelations to share.
The stakes arent high enough in this dinner table conversation where each propaganda mastermind shares his tales of deception, manipulation and foreign invasion. Extolling their exploits feels more like a mashup of Wikipedia entries designed to educate us about the engines keeping the war machines running.
Also hurting the show is the forced and slack tension between Saul Kaufmans Rove and Glenn Moshers Goebbels. Bernays (Randall Moore) has the fewest lines and for good reason: hes the least interesting of the three, and playwright Leith would have benefited from cutting him and keeping the dinner to a two-hander.
