The Museum of Human Achievement continues to present some of the most creative and fun-to-watch live theater in Texas. Enter Shaboom!, a performance trio, featuring Silky Shoemaker, Lex Vaughn, Paul Soileau. The three put on a nearly hour-long show at the Museum’s main makeshift amphitheater space, performing over a dozen sketches that were assembled into a kind of anthology. I had picked a Thursday showing, initially because it was the only one that would fit my schedule, but fellow Fusebox collaborators Michelle Devereaux and Andie Flores confirmed that it would be an excellent use of my limited time in Austin.
The Instagram bio for Shaboom! states, “NUDE VAUDEVILLE FOR ELDERLY CHILDREN.” As alarming as that sounds, the meaning becomes immediately apparent when the first spotlight initiates the show. At the beginning, Shoemaker, Vaughn, and Paul Soileau are bare, save for diapers and globs of face paint. They are thrown about the stage by imaginary wind, and the sound of a train whistle blows at full volume until the lights dim. When the spotlights come back, the three performers have collected themselves into characters, stuffed into layers of clothes and gel-stiffened wigs. They play aloof and asinine characters across various scenes of dialogue; three dogs discussing dietary restrictions, models uncovering the relationship between crops and rocks, and an elderly couple regaling their lives in shakespearean prose to their bratty, impatient Uber passenger. Each sketch has its own lexical signature, which masks the potty humor a bit. Shaboom! Has a reputation in Austin for putting on an enthralling show, and the trio did not disappoint.
