Funnie: The Most Lamentable Comedie of Jane the Foole

by Jessica Moss

All Jane wants is to perform comedy. But she is struggling even to get stage time in the court of King Henry VIII, in 1533. Despite the support of her friend Anne Boleyn, Jane can’t break into the boys club of Tudor nightly entertainment – King Henry would rather see acts like Carl the Funny One, who makes wry observations about contemporary life, but who also is known to publicly masturbate. But Carl the Funny...

All Jane wants is to perform comedy. But she is struggling even to get stage time in the court of King Henry VIII, in 1533. Despite the support of her friend Anne Boleyn, Jane can’t break into the boys club of Tudor nightly entertainment – King Henry would rather see acts like Carl the Funny One, who makes wry observations about contemporary life, but who also is known to publicly masturbate. But Carl the Funny One has a degree of power, and an interest in Jane: which he uses to put her in a humiliating and upsetting situation. When the event goes public, the court is divided, and as Carl makes half-hearted non-apologies, Jane still can’t get onstage – until she and Anne have finally had enough. In a world where you are inherently seen as less-than, what kind of justice is possible? How can you ever be seen as funny when you’re not really seen as a person? Inspired by the very short Wikipedia entry about Jane Foole, or Jane The Foole, the only female court jester ever depicted, and current events.

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Funnie: The Most Lamentable Comedie of Jane the Foole

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  • Kaily Anderson: Funnie: The Most Lamentable Comedie of Jane the Foole by Jessica Moss
    “

    Funnie centers the friendship between a woman we know a lot about, Anne Boleyn, and a woman we know little about, Jane the Foole, while building the absurd, chaotic world they have to navigate. It’s funny, sharp, and relevant. The ensemble is excellent; every character gets delightful, unexpected moments. Moss writes with a precise, overlapping rhythm that keeps the play driving forward with wit and intelligence. I've read it twice; I adore it. Theaters should be clamoring to do this one.

    Funnie centers the friendship between a woman we know a lot about, Anne Boleyn, and a woman we know little about, Jane the Foole, while building the absurd, chaotic world they have to navigate. It’s funny, sharp, and relevant. The ensemble is excellent; every character gets delightful, unexpected moments. Moss writes with a precise, overlapping rhythm that keeps the play driving forward with wit and intelligence. I've read it twice; I adore it. Theaters should be clamoring to do this one.

    ”
  • Zach Barr: Funnie: The Most Lamentable Comedie of Jane the Foole by Jessica Moss
    “

    "Funnie" balances precariously on the tightrope between laughing and crying, between hope and hopelessness, between the past and present. From a starting point of satirizing the struggles of women in comedy, the play barrels past that into a larger story of how the power dynamics of class and gender shape our ability to achieve, or even fight for, restorative justice. A moste merrie satyr play.

    "Funnie" balances precariously on the tightrope between laughing and crying, between hope and hopelessness, between the past and present. From a starting point of satirizing the struggles of women in comedy, the play barrels past that into a larger story of how the power dynamics of class and gender shape our ability to achieve, or even fight for, restorative justice. A moste merrie satyr play.

    ”
  • Kate Danley: Funnie: The Most Lamentable Comedie of Jane the Foole by Jessica Moss
    “

    Screamingly, HOWLINGLY funny!! It's a razer-sharp, biting satire that keeps you laughing the whole time. The biggest crime of our era is that this play is not being produced everywhere. If you have a classical theatre, program this show immediately! If you've ever heard the phrase "Women aren't funny," program this show immediately! If you have hilarious actresses in your life who are losing hope, program this show immediately. Brilliant!

    Screamingly, HOWLINGLY funny!! It's a razer-sharp, biting satire that keeps you laughing the whole time. The biggest crime of our era is that this play is not being produced everywhere. If you have a classical theatre, program this show immediately! If you've ever heard the phrase "Women aren't funny," program this show immediately! If you have hilarious actresses in your life who are losing hope, program this show immediately. Brilliant!

    ”
View all 7 recommendations
JANE: Wannabe court jester in the court of King Henry VIII. Her humour is observational, not joke-based, and distinctly female. Anxious, brave, ambitious, shy, not shy.

ANNE BOLEYN: Her motto is ‘the most fun’. Air to Jane’s earth. Breathless, a whirlwind, very fun and very smart. Ambitious, bold, kind, confident, loving, sarcastic.

KING HENRY VIII: An all-powerful king. Gets what he wants. I think of Henry like a toddler who is completely vulnerable to his emotions – so he can be really jovial but then a mood strikes him and carries him away; and it can end just as quickly.

CARL THE FUNNY ONE: The most popular jester in the court of King Henry VIII. Comedy wise, you can probably guess who he’s like: but maybe even a touch of Jeremy Hotz/Mitch Hedberg/ Jim Gaffigan? In performance, a weird balance between asshole and nebbish. The confidence of a bigwig at UCB.

LUCY THE ANDMAIDEN: Cockney. Broad cockney. Eliza pre-Higgins. Unrelentingly cheerful and optimistic. You know when the best actress in high school has to play the nurse instead of Juliet and so she fucking DOES IT? Like that.

BESSIE THE ANDMAIDEN: Cockney. Broad cockney. Eliza pre-Higgins. Unrelentingly cheerful and optimistic. …until she’s not. You know when the best actress in high school has to play the nurse instead of Juliet and so she fucking DOES IT? Like that.

WALLACE THE EXECUTIONER: 'Aw gee'. Former ratcatcher. Kind of an ‘It’s a living’ working guy, like Sam and Ralph from Looney Tunes.

GORLOCK the WARLOCK – A wizard. Kind of like Hannibal Lecter meets Jafar meets David Blaine meets Grima Wormtongue. Truly evil, truly delighting in his evil. If the actor can do small, kind of unimpressive magic tricks, all the better.