South Philly Review

After a successful Fringe run, Eric Balchunas' show about local everyday oddities earned a three-day reprise at Society Hill Playhouse.

By Caitlin Meals

-->

In a childhood spent as a self-described "divorce brat" Eric Balchunas called nearly every corner of the country home at one point or another, as well as Singapore. The scenery changed, but each time he found himself engrossed in the everyday oddities of his new environment.

Six years ago, when he relocated from New York City to Mount Laurel, N.J., one thing in particular caught his eye.

"Wawa is probably the most distinguishing thing you notice when you first arrive," the current resident of 11th Street and Washington Avenue said of South Jersey and Philadelphia. "They're everywhere. You can't get directions anywhere without there being a 'Take a left at the Wawa' in there."

With notebook in hand, Balchunas' fascination with what he described as a "Wawa phenomenon" and other snippets of the area -- hoagies, the Eagles and unique driving styles -- eventually snowballed into his writing of six 10-minute comedy sketches known as "Wawapalooza" set to make its second run Nov. 23 to 25 at the Society Hill Playhouse.

The show intertwines three live plays, two short films and a stand-up comedian that brings everything from running errands at Kmart to tailgating at Lincoln Financial Field in the early morning hours of game day to the audience's attention, producing laughs along the way.

"Moving around, it kind of helps give a perspective to things not so obvious to people living there day-to-day," Balchunas said.

So what did the 34-year-old think of the popular convenience-store chain that dots the Delaware Valley?

"The first thing I thought of was the teacher from Charlie Brown and the way she talks," he said, laughing and doing his best imitation of the unintelligible noise that resembles a drawn-out version of the company's name. "People just love Wawa hoagies. Wawa has created a type of culture, especially food-wise, because it's something that's only here, it's distinct. But it's hard to say why. Most people probably say the term Wawa once a week and probably stop in or drive by daily. It's definitely ingrained in the culture here."

Balchunas never received formal acting lessons. The same is true of one other cast member, with the remaining five pursuing it as a career. They range in age from early 20s to mid-40s and work day jobs like mortgage consultant, insurance salesman and professional storyteller. Balchunas is a data analyst at Bloomberg in Princeton, N.J., during the day, but invites his castmates over nights and weekends to rehearse in his building, where he lives with his girlfriend.

"Everybody's funny," he said of the cast. "They definitely get the material quickly. I think what helped was that when we first started rehearsing, we were laughing while we were doing it."

The show's development began in January when Balchunas collaborated with fellow cast member and friend Augustus Milligan from Cinnaminson, N.J., on the script. The two planned to rent out a theater and put on the show independently, but his actors urged the two to contact The Fringe Festival. Soon they were slated to perform. This was the first serious stab at script writing for Balchunas who dabbled in independent screenplay writing before.

Three responses from an online ad -- from Bonne Quick, Jeff Soles and Shara Ashley Ziegler -- turned into spots in the play while the other three roles went to friends Milligan, Tony Mahon and Mala Wright. Friend Dan Plunkett helped with the show's production.

Fringe dates at the Red Room in the Society Hill Playhouse, 507 Eighth St., sold out. Balchunas -- who formed a production company (called IdRatherbeHere) to represent the show and future performances -- asked the theater for another run after the successful debut.

"My favorite was, 'it was too short,'" Balchunas said of the feedback he received during the initial run.

Others praised him and the cast for their portrayal of locals in skits like "Eh'gels and Bagels" a pseudo-talk show that follows fans of the city's beloved football team with material inspired by Balchunas' walk around the parking lot during last season's Cowboys-Eagles game; "South Jersey Driving School," which Balchunas said features habits he's observed in South Philly like, "Yellow light means speed up, unless you're going over 65 and it means brake hard" and "stop sign means 'stoptional,'" he said. "Driving here is really intense. I felt the need to try to make fun of it a little bit -- sometimes my pulse goes up when I have to go around cars."

And Wawa, not surprisingly, is referenced several times throughout the hour.